What is the purpose of paging in an operating system?
a) To divide processes into fixed-size blocks for memory management
b) To execute processes in parallel
c) To manage I/O devices
d) To ensure CPU scheduling
Answer:
a) To divide processes into fixed-size blocks for memory management
Explanation:
Paging is a memory management scheme that eliminates the need for contiguous memory allocation. It divides a process into fixed-size blocks called pages, which are loaded into physical memory frames, making more efficient use of memory.
Paging allows the operating system to load only the required parts of a process into memory, improving system performance and allowing large processes to run even if memory is fragmented.
This approach helps in efficient memory utilization, avoids issues like fragmentation, and allows for virtual memory implementation, where parts of a process can be stored on disk when not in use.