Question

System calls are usually invoked by using

• A. Software interrupt
• B. polling
• C. an indirect jump
• D. a privileged instruction

Answer 1

The correct option is A Software interrupt

System calls are usually invoked by using software interrupt.

A software interrupt occurs when an application program terminates or requests certain services from the operating system. In a personal computer, a hardware interrupt request has a value that associates it with a particular device.

A system call is the programmatic way in which a computer program requests a service from the kernel of the operating system it is executed on. System calls provide an essential interface between a process and the operating system.