Memory Management

The main purpose of a computer system is to execute programs. These programs, together with the data they access, must be at least partially in main memory during execution.

Modern computer systems maintain several processes in memory during system execution. Many memory-management schemes exist, reflecting various approaches, and the effectiveness of each algorithm varieswith the situation. Selection of amemory-management scheme for a system depends onmany factors, especially on the system’s hardware design. Most algorithms require some form of hardware support.