An address generated by the CPU is commonly referred to as a logical address, whereas an address seen by the memory unit - that is, the one loaded into the memory-address register of the memory - is commonly referred to as a physical address.
Binding addresses at either compile or load time generates identical logical and physical addresses. However, the execution-time address-binding scheme results in differing logical and physical addresses. In this case, we usually refer to the logical address as a virtual address. We use logical address and virtual address interchangeably in this text. The set of all logical addresses generated by a program is a logical address space. The set of all physical addresses corresponding to these logical addresses is a physical address space. Thus, in the execution-time address-binding scheme, the logical and physical address spaces differ.
The run-time mapping from virtual to physical addresses is done by a hardware device called the memory-management unit (MMU) (Figure 9.4). We can choose from many different methods to accomplish such mapping. For the time being, we illustrate this mapping with a simple MMU scheme that is a generalization of the base-register scheme. The base register is now called a relocation register. The value in the relocation register is added to every address generated by a user process at the time the address is sent to memory (see Figure 9.5). For example, if the base is at 14000, then an attempt by the user to address location 0 is dynamically relocated to location 14000; an access to location 346 is mapped to location 14346.
The user program never accesses the real physical addresses. The program can create a pointer to location 346, store it in memory, manipulate it, and compare it with other addresses - all as the number 346. Only when it is used as a memory address (in an indirect load or store, perhaps) is it relocated relative to the base register. The user program deals with logical addresses. The memory-mapping hardware converts logical addresses into physical addresses. The final location of a referenced memory address is not determined until the reference is made.
We now have two different types of addresses: logical addresses (in the range 0 to max) and physical addresses (in the range R + 0 to R + max for a base value R). The user program generates only logical addresses and thinks that the process runs in memory locations from 0 to max. However, these logical addresses must be mapped to physical addresses before they are used. The concept of a logical address space that is bound to a separate physical address space is central to proper memory management.
To learn more about logical versus physical address space along with dynamic program loading and dynamically linked libraries (DLLs) see chapter 9 in The tenth edition of Operating System Concepts.
About the Authors
Abraham Silberschatz is the Sidney J. Weinberg Professor of Computer Science at Yale University. Prior to joining Yale, he was the Vice President of the Information Sciences Research Center at Bell Laboratories. Prior to that, he held a chaired professorship in the Department of Computer Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin.
Professor Silberschatz is a Fellow of the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), a Fellow of Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and a member of the Connecticut Academy of Science and Engineering.
Greg Gagne is chair of the Computer Science department at Westminster College in Salt Lake City where he has been teaching since 1990. In addition to teaching operating systems, he also teaches computer networks, parallel programming, and software engineering.
The tenth edition of
Operating System Concepts
has been revised to keep it fresh and up-to-date with contemporary examples of how operating
systems function, as well as enhanced interactive elements to improve learning and the student's
experience with the material. It combines instruction on concepts with real-world applications
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exercises, review questions, and programming exercises help to further reinforce important
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students monitor their level of understanding and progress. A Linux virtual machine (including
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that help them engage further with the material.
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