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The Design of the UNIX Operating System 1st Edition

by
Maurice J. Bach (Author)
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Maurice J. Bach (Author)
4.7 out of 5 stars 30 customer reviews
ISBN-13: 007-6092031369
ISBN-10: 0132017997
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 471 pages
  • Publisher: Prentice Hall; 1st edition (June 6, 1986)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0132017997
  • ISBN-13: 978-0132017992
  • Product Dimensions: 7 x 1.1 x 9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #106,458 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Top Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsPerfect foundational book
By Joshua Davies VINE VOICE on October 18, 2004
Format: Paperback
After becoming a Linux enthusiast, I bought the book "Understanding the Linux Kernel", which I unfortunately found to be almost completely impenetrable. I had heard good things about this book ("The Design of the UNIX Operating System") - in fact, I read somewhere that this was the book that taught Linus to write OS code. I put down the Linux book and picked up Maurice Bachs, which I found perfectly readable - it's abstract treatment of kernel algorithms made it easy to get the "big picture". Now, with Bach's complete treatment of the design philosophy under my belt, I'm going back to the linux kernel book, and I've found it to be a breeze... even the linux kernel source code itself now makes sense. This book is excellent for anybody who's serious about programming.
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5.0 out of 5 starsExcellent explaination of SysV internals and design
By none on December 31, 2000
Format: Paperback
UNIX in its many derivatives is a 30-year old operating system. Why has it stood the test of time? Because it was designed with a simple philosophy: to give the user the ability to create his own tools to solve problems. This book has been a classic in UNIX architecture since it was published in 1987. Although some of the sections are a bit dated (e.g., IPC, file systems), it is still a valuable source of information. You will begin to understand the design philosophy of UNIX after reading this book. You will see why some of the design decisions were made (primarily due to the hardware of the time) and some of the really neat kluges that was devised to get around those problems. This book deserves its status as one of classics of UNIX literature. I highly recommend it.
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5.0 out of 5 starsThe pinacle of OS books
By Oscar A. Ross Gurrola on March 8, 2007
Format: Paperback
I'm something of an OS freak (not an expert though) and I collect OS books. I've read many of the classics of the field but I think this book is the crowning achievement of OS literature. Here are the arguments to support my claim:

a) It does not go into explaining general OS theory, thus all space can be dedicated to explaining the details of one operating system (Unix System V Release 2). This of course makes it unsuitable for begginers as it assumes you have a good understanding of basic concepts like race conditions, mutual exclusion, data structures, etc. If you're a begginer don't buy this book yet; get "Operating Systems - Design and Implementation" by Tanenbaum & Woodhull or "Operating System Concepts" by Silberschatz, Galvin and Baer.

b) It details EVERY algorithm with C-like pseudocode and adds verbal explanations exemplifying operations running through the algorithms. This is unlike other OS books which sometimes just give general descriptions of algorithms with no examples.

c) Explanations are complemented by many diagrams of data structures in various states of manipulation by the algorithms. This is possibly the most valuable feature of the book as it does wonders to help you understand what the kernel is doing; you get to 'see' how the algorithms work. This sets it apart from practically all other OS books I've read that just mention in passing "... then function 'x' manipulates data structure 'y'" and leave you to find out the implications of these manipulations. Diagrams also make the book superior to mere code listings.

d) Each chapter 'uses' the algorithms explained in the previous chapter to explain higher level functionality.Read more ›
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5.0 out of 5 starsA model for how technical books should be written
By Tom Clark on October 20, 2004
Format: Paperback
Maurice Bach's The Design of the Unix Operating System still holds the place of honor on my technical reference bookshelf. After almost 20 years, it provides a clear overview of basic Unix organization and operations and is a model for how technical books should be written. Readers who complain that the text is dated evidently did not bother to notice the 1986 copyright date. Its age, however, has not diminished its clarity of content or usefulness in understanding the Unix operating system. Bach deserves an award for excellence in technical writing.
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5.0 out of 5 starsmagnificent discussion of internal architecture of UNIX
By Bruce D. Wilner on June 2, 2006
Format: Paperback
While there may be more detail to be found in "The Magic Garden," or more up-to-date coverage in the likes of Vahalia or Schimmel, Bach's opus is, in the view of this twenty-plus-year UNIX guru, unmatched. I say this because only while reading Bach's book do I experience the sense of philsophic structural perfection, of tool-orientation, of practicality-versus-theoretic-efficiency tradeoff, that characterizes the earliest UNIX monographs (Ritchie, Kernighan, Bourne, Lycklama, Ossana; that sort of thing) that busied me as a freshman. Bach imparts to the reader a glorious--and gloriously holistic--depiction of the structure of the UNIX kernel as a unit. Algorithmic details are provided where appropriate. Exceptionally well thought-out exercises stimulate the reader to extend the textual material where meet. The material is assuredly out of date, but I dare you to critize, say, Lions as being "out of date" (whether or not it describes a 25-year-old, 9K-LOC kernel, it is a scripture of paramount importance, a cornerstone of my computer engineering [n.b.: I didn't say "computer science"] library).

For those who are wont to compare Leffler and Bach--if for no other reason than that they are coevals--I heartily endorse Bach over its competitor. It's nice. It's clean. It's precise. You just couldn't ask for more. And, BTW, stay away from "The Magic Garden." I'm not sure that five hundred pages worth of out-of-context code excerpts, inundating the reader with thousands of kernel variables, accomplishes much by way of imparting conceptual understanding.

(I'm reminded: a customer of mine--an older gentleman with a Ph.D. in physics--once asked me for a concise description of the workings of UNIX, something that introduced the basic concepts at a scholarly but not overweight level.Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

A nice book to more about Unix

Published 6 months ago by SHANGLUN TSAI
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

A 'must read' for everybody interested in understanding the basics of the UNIX core.

Published 11 months ago by Alexey Chumakov
4.0 out of 5 starsCover unexpected but excellent content

Excellent content, but disapointed 'cause a friend bought the book a few years amd his cover it was like actual cover from "how to disappear" book, and this cover is so... Read more

Published 19 months ago by Julio
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Great book, the best starting-point to learn UNIX

Published 19 months ago by virginio
5.0 out of 5 starsRecommended for the interested persons.

Excellent book for the Unix/Linux internal working. If you want to know how Unix/Linux work on the inside, get it.

Published on December 11, 2013 by Peter Mojassamian
5.0 out of 5 starsThe "Bach Book" - a Unix classic and touchstone work

If you want to understand Unix or Linux inside out, then you must read (or better, study) this book. Read more

Published on August 26, 2011 by Unimon
5.0 out of 5 starsExhaustive, But Out-Of-Date

I tried to get a copy of this book for years and had no luck. Then Al Gore invented the internet and the problem was solved. I've read mine almost cover to cover. Read more

Published on July 7, 2011 by Stephen Mann
5.0 out of 5 starsDefinitive guide for UNIX internals

This book is for anyone who wants to know what happens "under the hood" in a UNIX based operating system. Read more

Published on July 1, 2007 by Siddharth Choudhuri
5.0 out of 5 starsAwesome book on UNIX Internals

It is one of the greatest books that I have ever read on UNIX. It is a comprhensive yet simple depiction of Unix Operating System. Read more

Published on November 2, 2004 by Balaji B. Rao

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