What is the function of an operating system?

The function of an operating system is primarily to manage hardware and software resources on a computer system. This includes overseeing the interaction between the various components of the system, such as the CPU, memory, storage devices, and peripheral devices like printers and displays. The operating system acts as an intermediary that facilitates communication between the user applications and the underlying hardware, ensuring that resources are allocated efficiently and fairly.

By managing hardware resources, the operating system controls how tasks are scheduled, error handling, memory management, and input/output operations. This orchestration allows multiple applications to run simultaneously without conflicts, as the operating system ensures that each application gets the necessary resources to function while maintaining overall system stability.

While enhancing graphics performance can be a function of certain operating systems through their graphics drivers and APIs, it is not the sole purpose of an operating system. Similarly, storing user data is a function of storage systems rather than the operating system itself, which may manage file systems but does not directly store data. Turning off the computer is primarily a procedure initiated by the user or an application, not a core function of the operating system. Thus, the first choice accurately encapsulates the main role of an operating system in managing both hardware and software.