Question 1: For the test, do I need to know everything in the slides?

Answer to Question 1: you will need to know everything in the slides, EXCEPT for things that I explicitly say that you don't need to know. For example, during the lectures, when I showed slides 31-32 of OSD4.pdf, “Fields of the VFS Superblock Object in Linux,” I said that you don't need to memorize all the names of the Fields of the VFS Superblock Object, UNLESS the name is mentioned in the slides. Here is one example: the field name “s_fs_info” is mentioned in slide 33, so you do need to memorize the field name “s_fs_info”, and what it does. In general, you will need to know anything and everything that is discussed in the slides.

Question 2: For the project, do I need to perform a study of the whole Linux kernel? Can you provide an example of a Linux subsystem that would be of suitable scope for the project?

Answer to Question 2: No, you are required to study … one or more subsystems of the Linux kernel which provide some basic kernel functionality. You do not need to study the whole Linux kernel for your project.

“Memory Management”, would be an example of a Linux subsystem that would be of suitable scope for the project. “Process Scheduling” would be another example of a Linux subsystem that would be of suitable scope for the project.

Question 3: Can you recommend a chapter in a book for helping to understand the material in the slides in OSD.5?

Answer to Question 3: Unfortunately, there is no chapter in any book that covers all the material in the slides in OSD.5. However, reading Chapter 5, “Kernel Synchronization”, of the book, “Understanding the Linux Kernel”, 3rd Edition, may help understand some of the material on synchronization in the slides in OSD.5.