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A real-time operating system (RTOS) is an operating system (OS) for real-time computing applications that processes data and events that have critically defined time constraints. An RTOS is distinct from a time-sharing operating system, such as Unix, which manages the sharing of system resources with a scheduler, data buffers, or fixed task prioritization in a multitasking or multiprogramming environments. Processing time requirements need to be fully understood and bound rather than just kept as a minimum. All processing must occur within the defined constraints. Real-time operating systems are event-driven and preemptive, meaning the OS can monitor the relevant priority of competing tasks, and make changes to the task priority. Event-driven systems switch between tasks based on their priorities, while time-sharing systems switch the task based on clock interrupts.
In computing, a process is the instance of a computer program that is being executed by one or many threads. There are many different process models, some of which are light weight, but almost all processes are rooted in an operating system (OS) process which comprises the program code, assigned system resources, physical and logical access permissions, and data structures to initiate, control and coordinate execution activity. Depending on the OS, a process may be made up of multiple threads of execution that execute instructions concurrently.
In concurrent computing, deadlock is any situation in which no member of some group of entities can proceed because each waits for another member, including itself, to take action, such as sending a message or, more commonly, releasing a lock. Deadlocks are a common problem in multiprocessing systems, parallel computing, and distributed systems, because in these contexts systems often use software or hardware locks to arbitrate shared resources and implement process synchronization.
In computer science, a semaphore is a variable or abstract data type used to control access to a common resource by multiple threads and avoid critical section problems in a concurrent system such as a multitasking operating system. Semaphores are a type of synchronization primitive. A trivial semaphore is a plain variable that is changed depending on programmer-defined conditions.
In computing, scheduling is the action of assigning resources to perform tasks. The resources may be processors, network links or expansion cards. The tasks may be threads, processes or data flows.
Round-robin (RR) is one of the algorithms employed by process and network schedulers in computing. As the term is generally used, time slices are assigned to each process in equal portions and in circular order, handling all processes without priority. Round-robin scheduling is simple, easy to implement, and starvation-free. Round-robin scheduling can be applied to other scheduling problems, such as data packet scheduling in computer networks. It is an operating system concept.
In computer science, resource starvation is a problem encountered in concurrent computing where a process is perpetually denied necessary resources to process its work. Starvation may be caused by errors in a scheduling or mutual exclusion algorithm, but can also be caused by resource leaks, and can be intentionally caused via a denial-of-service attack such as a fork bomb.
In computer science, an algorithm is called non-blocking if failure or suspension of any thread cannot cause failure or suspension of another thread; for some operations, these algorithms provide a useful alternative to traditional blocking implementations. A non-blocking algorithm is lock-free if there is guaranteed system-wide progress, and wait-free if there is also guaranteed per-thread progress. "Non-blocking" was used as a synonym for "lock-free" in the literature until the introduction of obstruction-freedom in 2003.
In modern computers many processes run at once. Active processes are placed in an array called a run queue, or runqueue. The run queue may contain priority values for each process, which will be used by the scheduler to determine which process to run next. To ensure each program has a fair share of resources, each one is run for some time period (quantum) before it is paused and placed back into the run queue. When a program is stopped to let another run, the program with the highest priority in the run queue is then allowed to execute.
In computer science, I/O bound refers to a condition in which the time it takes to complete a computation is determined principally by the period spent waiting for input/output operations to be completed, which can be juxtaposed with being CPU bound. This circumstance arises when the rate at which data is requested is slower than the rate it is consumed or, in other words, more time is spent requesting data than processing it.
A process control block (PCB), also sometimes called a process descriptor, is a data structure used by a computer operating system to store all the information about a process.
nice is a program found on Unix and Unix-like operating systems such as Linux. It directly maps to a kernel call of the same name. nice is used to invoke a utility or shell script with a particular CPU priority, thus giving the process more or less CPU time than other processes. A niceness of -20 is the lowest niceness, or highest priority. The default niceness for processes is inherited from its parent process and is usually 0.
In computer science, a multilevel feedback queue is a scheduling algorithm. Scheduling algorithms are designed to have some process running at all times to keep the central processing unit (CPU) busy. The multilevel feedback queue extends standard algorithms with the following design requirements:
- Separate processes into multiple ready queues based on their need for the processor.
- Give preference to processes with short CPU bursts.
- Give preference to processes with high I/O bursts.
In computer science, an input queue is a collection of processes in storage that are waiting to be brought into memory to run a program. Input queues are mainly used in Operating System Scheduling which is a technique for distributing resources among processes. Input queues not only apply to operating systems (OS), but may also be applied to scheduling inside networking devices. The purpose of scheduling is to ensure resources are being distributed fairly and effectively; therefore, it improves the performance of the system.
Shortest job next (SJN), also known as shortest job first (SJF) or shortest process next (SPN), is a scheduling policy that selects for execution the waiting process with the smallest execution time. SJN is a non-preemptive algorithm. Shortest remaining time is a preemptive variant of SJN.
Working set is a concept in computer science which defines the amount of memory that a process requires in a given time interval.
In a multitasking computer system, processes may occupy a variety of states. These distinct states may not be recognized as such by the operating system kernel. However, they are a useful abstraction for the understanding of processes.
In computer science, synchronization is the task of coordinating multiple of processes to join up or handshake at a certain point, in order to reach an agreement or commit to a certain sequence of action.
Multi-level queueing, used at least since the late 1950s/early 1960s, is a queue with a predefined number of levels. Items get assigned to a particular level at insert, and thus cannot be moved to another level. Items get removed from the queue by removing all items from a level, and then moving to the next. If an item is added to a level above, the "fetching" restarts from there. Each level of the queue is free to use its own scheduling, thus adding greater flexibility than merely having multiple levels in a queue.
Earliest deadline first (EDF) or least time to go is a dynamic priority scheduling algorithm used in real-time operating systems to place processes in a priority queue. Whenever a scheduling event occurs the queue will be searched for the process closest to its deadline. This process is the next to be scheduled for execution.
References
- ↑ Silberschatz, Galvin, Gagne Operating System Principles, 7th ed., p.159
- ↑ Processor Scheduling – Notes – Operating Systems – Computer Science Now
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^ Silberschatz, Galvin, Gagne Operating System Principles, 6th ed., p.162