What is the role of an interrupt in operating systems?

The role of an interrupt in operating systems is to indicate an event that requires immediate attention from the CPU. When an interrupt occurs, it interrupts the normal flow of execution, allowing the operating system to respond promptly to critical events, such as hardware malfunctions, I/O requests, or external signals.

This mechanism is essential for multitasking and resource management since it enables the operating system to prioritize tasks based on urgency. For example, when a user presses a key on the keyboard, an interrupt is generated to notify the CPU that it should process that input right away rather than waiting for the current executing task to complete. This responsiveness is crucial for maintaining efficient system performance and ensuring that time-sensitive tasks receive appropriate processing time.

In contrast, other options may represent functions that operating systems perform, but they do not accurately describe the core purpose of interrupts. Delaying process execution or facilitating user interaction can involve other mechanisms and approaches, while managing memory allocation pertains to resource management rather than immediate event signaling.