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Operating System Articles
Page 151 of 171
Cooperating Process
Cooperating processes are those that can affect or are affected by other processes running on the system. Cooperating processes may share data with each other.Reasons for needing cooperating processesThere may be many reasons for the requirement of cooperating processes. Some of these are given as follows −ModularityModularity involves dividing complicated tasks into smaller subtasks. These subtasks can completed by different cooperating processes. This leads to faster and more efficient completion of the required tasks.Information SharingSharing of information between multiple processes can be accomplished using cooperating processes. This may include access to the same files. A mechanism is required so that ...
Read MoreMutex vs Semaphore
Mutex and Semaphore both provide synchronization services but they are not the same. Details about both Mutex and Semaphore are given below −MutexMutex is a mutual exclusion object that synchronizes access to a resource. It is created with a unique name at the start of a program. The Mutex is a locking mechanism that makes sure only one thread can acquire the Mutex at a time and enter the critical section. This thread only releases the Mutex when it exits the critical section.This is shown with the help of the following example −wait (mutex); ….. Critical Section ….. signal (mutex);A ...
Read MoreMulti-Threading Models
Multithreading allows the execution of multiple parts of a program at the same time. These parts are known as threads and are lightweight processes available within the process. Therefore, multithreading leads to maximum utilization of the CPU by multitasking.The main models for multithreading are one to one model, many to one model and many to many model. Details about these are given as follows −One to One ModelThe one to one model maps each of the user threads to a kernel thread. This means that many threads can run in parallel on multiprocessors and other threads can run when one ...
Read MoreMonitors vs Semaphores
Monitors and semaphores are used for process synchronization and allow processes to access the shared resources using mutual exclusion. However, monitors and semaphores contain many differences. Details about both of these are given as follows −MonitorsMonitors are a synchronization construct that were created to overcome the problems caused by semaphores such as timing errors.Monitors are abstract data types and contain shared data variables and procedures. The shared data variables cannot be directly accessed by a process and procedures are required to allow a single process to access the shared data variables at a time.This is demonstrated as follows:monitor monitorName { ...
Read MoreMessage Passing vs Shared Memory Process communication Models
Message passing model and shared memory model are models of interprocess communication. Details about these are given as follows −Message Passing Process Communication ModelMessage passing model allows multiple processes to read and write data to the message queue without being connected to each other. Messages are stored on the queue until their recipient retrieves them. Message queues are quite useful for interprocess communication and are used by most operating systems.A diagram that demonstrates message passing model of process communication is given as follows −In the above diagram, both the processes P1 and P2 can access the message queue and store ...
Read MoreDifferent Operations on Processes
There are many operations that can be performed on processes. Some of these are process creation, process preemption, process blocking, and process termination. These are given in detail as follows −Process CreationProcesses need to be created in the system for different operations. This can be done by the following events −User request for process creationSystem initializationExecution of a process creation system call by a running processBatch job initializationA process may be created by another process using fork(). The creating process is called the parent process and the created process is the child process. A child process can have only one ...
Read MoreInterprocess Communication with Sockets
Interprocess communication is the mechanism provided by the operating system that allows processes to communicate with each other. This communication could involve a process letting another process know that some event has occurred or transferring of data from one process to another.One of the ways to manage interprocess communication is by using sockets. They provide point-to-point, two-way communication between two processes. Sockets are an endpoint of communication and a name can be bound to them. A socket can be associated with one or more processes.Types of SocketsThe different types of sockets are given as follows −Sequential Packet Socket: This type ...
Read MoreWhat are the different states of a Process?\\n
A process is an active program. It can also be said as a program that is under execution. It is more than the program code as it includes the program counter, process stack, registers, program code etc. Compared to this, the program code is only the text section.A process passes through different states as it executes. These states may be different in different operating systems. However, the common process states are explained below with the help of a diagram −NewThis is the state when the process has just been created. It is the initial state in the process life cycle.ReadyIn ...
Read MoreWhat is Zombie Process in Linux?
A zombie process is a process whose execution is completed but it still has an entry in the process table. Zombie processes usually occur for child processes, as the parent process still needs to read its child’s exit status. Once this is done using the wait system call, the zombie process is eliminated from the process table. This is known as reaping the zombie process.A diagram that demonstrates the creation and termination of a zombie process is given as follows −Salient points of Zombie ProcessesSome of the salient points related to zombie processes are as follows −All the memory and ...
Read MoreLoadable Modules Architecture of the Operating System
The loadable kernel modules in an operating system is an object file that contains code to extend the running kernel, which is also known as the base kernel. The loadable kernel modules are used to add support for file systems, hardware, system calls etc.An image that shows the loadable modules of the operating system is as follows −The different types of kernels in the operating system that may require loadable kernel modules are −MicrokernelA microkernel is the minimum software that is required to correctly implement an operating system. This includes memory, process scheduling mechanisms and basic inter-process communication.The microkernel contains ...
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