Laboratory Rules

The lab classes are built to complement the course by providing a framework where students can build their practical skills related to system programming, command-line environments and scripting.

Attendance is mandatory, regardless of the format of the lab (online or face-to-face), according to the general University rules and regulations, and the details on the lab Web and Campus Virtual pages. The final mark counts as 35% of the total grade for the Operating Systems course. (Note: this percentage may change, any changes will be announced.)

The 2023-2024 lab classes are held face-to-face following the official timetable or schedule. Students must attend the class scheduled for their own officially-assigned group.

The laboratory classes are governed by the following rules:

A. Lab attendance and activities

  • During the semester, students will participate to 14 lab classes, one per week. The structure of the lab classes is presented on the web page.
  • Class attendance is mandatory on all lab classes, as per the University regulations, and the directions on the lab web and Campus Virtual pages.
  • The lab uses the Campus Virtual platform. Students must make sure they have access and they are registered to the OS course on the platform.
  • Students must attend the lab class scheduled for her/his study unit ("subgrupa"). No changes are accepted.
  • Lab attendance is not sufficient by itself, it implies working successfully on all tasks, assignments, projects, etc. during the semester. The lab supervisor can mark as absent a student whose activity is insufficient, and may test students at any time by asking targeted questions about the current assigned task or the related theoretical background. A lab class is considered fulfilled if the student works as required. Note: the lab activity is evaluated and graded.
  • For the online variant of the lab (not active currently), participation to the lab class also means that the students must connect to the online conference for each class, and participate according to the rules and lab supervisor's requests.
  • Students work on the assignments individually, and they are completely responsible for their work.
  • At most 3 unfulfilled lab classes can be re-done during the semester, but only if a free place exists in the lab, and only with the explicit approval of the lab supervisor. Students can re-attend a class only at the same supervisor he/she was assigned to. The default week for re-doing labs is Week 14.
  • Students must prepare in advance for the lab classes, by reading the related study materials.
  • A lab class deals with solving a specific problem (such as implementing a program). Marks are not necessarily given, but the lab supervisor evaluates whether the student's activity is sufficient or must be re-done at a later time.
  • Redoing a lab class implies the full participation of the student, during a separate class. The student will have to solve a problem that is similar, but not identical, to the one assigned at the missed class.
  • Redoing a lab class is possible only with the same lab supervisor that coordinates the group the student is already registered to.

B. Lab evaluation and grading

  • The lab activity is evaluated throughout the semester, and finalizes with a lab grade. The lab grade is computed based on two marks:
    • a lab involvement mark, with a weight of 0.4
    • a single mark for a multipart assignment students must implement gradually during several weeks, with a weight of 0.6
  • The lab involvement mark represents the activity of the student during the entire semester, her/his contributions to the discussions, answering questions, etc., as evaluated by the lab supervisor.
  • The mark for the assignment evaluates the student's abilities and knowledge regarding the topics involved in the assignment. It is not only about the actual source code of the program, it also involves answering questions, providing solutions to related problems, etc. A special evaluation period is scheduled for this purpose, which implies direct discussions with the students. The mark is given as evaluated by the lab supervisor.
  • Plagiarism is punished. Any attempt will be reported to the Decanat, for enacting the exmatriculation (expulsion) procedure.
  • The lab activity is passed (graduated) if and only if the final lab grade is greater than or equal to 5.