Memory Table
Memory tables are used to keep track of both main (real) and secondary (virtual) memory. Some of main memory is reserved for use by the OS; the remainder is available for use by processes. Processes are maintained on secondary memory using some sort of virtual memory or simple swapping mechanism.
The memory tables must include the following information:
- The allocation of main memory to processes
- The allocation of secondary memory to processes
- Any protection attributes of blocks of main or virtual memory, such as which processes may access certain shared memory regions
- Any information needed to manage virtual memory