Chapter 5: CPU Scheduling

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne

 Chapter 5: CPU Scheduling
 Basic Concepts
 Scheduling Criteria
 Scheduling Algorithms
 Thread Scheduling
 Multiple-Processor Scheduling
 Real-Time CPU Scheduling
 Examples

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.2 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Basic Concepts

 Maximum CPU utilization

obtained with
multiprogramming
 CPU–I/O Burst Cycle –
Process execution
consists of a cycle of CPU
execution and I/O wait
 CPU burst followed by I/O
burst
 CPU burst distribution is of
main concern

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.3 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Histogram of CPU-burst Times

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.4 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 CPU Scheduler
 Short-term scheduler selects from among the processes
in ready queue, and allocates the CPU to one of them
 Queue may be ordered in various ways
 CPU scheduling decisions may take place when a
process:
1. Switches from running to waiting state
2. Switches from running to ready state
3. Switches from waiting to ready
4. Terminates
 Scheduling under 1 and 4 is nonpreemptive
 All other scheduling is preemptive
 Consider access to shared data
 Consider preemption while in kernel mode
 Consider interrupts occurring during crucial OS
activities

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.5 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Dispatcher

 Dispatcher module gives control of the CPU to

the process selected by the short-term
scheduler; this involves:
 switching context
 switching to user mode
 jumping to the proper location in the user
program to restart that program
 Dispatch latency – time it takes for the
dispatcher to stop one process and start another
running

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.6 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Scheduling Criteria

 CPU utilization – keep the CPU as busy as possible

 Throughput – # of processes that complete their
execution per time unit
 Turnaround time – amount of time to execute a
particular process
 Waiting time – amount of time a process has been
waiting in the ready queue
 Response time – amount of time it takes from when
a request was submitted until the first response is
produced, not output (for time-sharing environment)

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.7 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Scheduling Algorithm Optimization Criteria

 Max CPU utilization

 Max throughput
 Min turnaround time
 Min waiting time
 Min response time

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.8 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 First- Come, First-Served (FCFS) Scheduling

Process Burst Time

P1 24
P2 3
P3 3
 Suppose that the processes arrive in the order: P1 , P2 , P3
The Gantt Chart for the schedule is:

P1 P2 P3
0 24 27 30

 Waiting time for P1 = 0; P2 = 24; P3 = 27

 Average waiting time: (0 + 24 + 27)/3 = 17

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.9 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 FCFS Scheduling (Cont.)
Suppose that the processes arrive in the order:
P2 , P3 , P1
 The Gantt chart for the schedule is:

P2 P3 P1
0 3 6 30

 Waiting time for P1 = 6; P2 = 0; P3 = 3

 Average waiting time: (6 + 0 + 3)/3 = 3
 Much better than previous case
 Convoy effect - short process behind long process
 Consider one CPU-bound and many I/O-bound
processes

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.10 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Shortest-Job-First (SJF) Scheduling

 Associate with each process the length of its next

CPU burst
 Use these lengths to schedule the process with
the shortest time
 SJF is optimal – gives minimum average waiting
time for a given set of processes
 The difficulty is knowing the length of the next
CPU request
 Could ask the user

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.11 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example of SJF

ProcessArriva l Time Burst Time

P1 0.0 6
P2 2.0 8
P3 4.0 7
P4 5.0 3

 SJF scheduling chart

P4 P1 P3 P2
0 3 9 16 24

 Average waiting time = (3 + 16 + 9 + 0) / 4 = 7

 Preemptive version called shortest-remaining-time-first

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.12 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example of Shortest-remaining-time-first (SRTF)

 Now we add the concepts of varying arrival times and

preemption to the analysis
ProcessAarri Arrival TimeTBurst Time
P1 0 8
P2 1 4
P3 2 9
P4 3 5
 Preemptive SJF Gantt Chart

P1 P2 P4 P1 P3
0 1 5 10 17 26

 Average waiting time = [(10-1)+(1-1)+(17-2)+5-3)]/4

 = 26/4 = 6.5 msec

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.13 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Priority Scheduling

 A priority number (integer) is associated with each

process

 The CPU is allocated to the process with the highest

priority (smallest integer  highest priority)
 Preemptive
 Nonpreemptive

 SJF is priority scheduling where priority is the inverse

of predicted next CPU burst time

 Problem  Starvation – low priority processes may

never execute

 Solution  Aging – as time progresses increase the

priority of the process

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.14 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example of Priority Scheduling

ProcessAarri Burst TimeT Priority

P1 10 3
P2 1 1
P3 2 4
P4 1 5
P5 5 2

 Priority scheduling Gantt Chart

 Average waiting time = 8.2 msec

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.15 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Round Robin (RR)

 Each process gets a small unit of CPU time (time

quantum q), usually 10-100 milliseconds. After this
time has elapsed, the process is preempted and
added to the end of the ready queue.
 If there are n processes in the ready queue and the
time quantum is q, then each process gets 1/n of the
CPU time in chunks of at most q time units at once.
No process waits more than (n-1)q time units.
 Timer interrupts every quantum to schedule next
process
 Performance
 q large  FIFO
 q small  q must be large with respect to
context switch, otherwise overhead is too high

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.16 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example of RR with Time Quantum = 4
Process Burst Time
P1 24
P2 3
P3 3
 The Gantt chart is:

P1 P2 P3 P1 P1 P1 P1 P1
0 4 7 10 14 18 22 26 30

 Typically, higher average turnaround than SJF, but

better response
 q should be large compared to context switch time
 q usually 10ms to 100ms, context switch < 10 usec

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.17 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Multilevel Queue
 Ready queue is partitioned into separate queues, eg:
 foreground (interactive)
 background (batch)
 Process permanently in a given queue
 Each queue has its own scheduling algorithm:
 foreground – RR
 background – FCFS
 Scheduling must be done between the queues:
 Fixed priority scheduling; (i.e., serve all from
foreground then from background). Possibility of
starvation.
 Time slice – each queue gets a certain amount of
CPU time which it can schedule amongst its
processes; i.e., 80% to foreground in RR
 20% to background in FCFS

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.18 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Multilevel Queue Scheduling

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.19 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Multilevel Feedback Queue (MFQ)

 A process can move between the various queues;

aging can be implemented this way
 Multilevel-feedback-queue scheduler defined by the
following parameters:
 number of queues
 scheduling algorithms for each queue
 method used to determine when to upgrade a
process
 method used to determine when to demote a
process
 method used to determine which queue a process
will enter when that process needs service

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.20 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example of MFQ

 Three queues:
 Q0 – RR with time quantum 8
milliseconds
 Q1 – RR time quantum 16 milliseconds
 Q2 – FCFS

 Scheduling
 A new job enters queue Q0 which is
served FCFS
 When it gains CPU, job receives 8
milliseconds
 If it does not finish in 8
milliseconds, job is moved to
queue Q1
 At Q1 job is again served FCFS and
receives 16 additional milliseconds
 If it still does not complete, it is
preempted and moved to queue Q2

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.21 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Thread Scheduling

 Distinction between user-level and kernel-level threads

 When threads supported, threads scheduled, not
processes
 Many-to-one and many-to-many models, thread library
schedules user-level threads to run on LWP
 Known as process-contention scope (PCS) since
scheduling competition is within the process
 Typically done via priority set by programmer
 Kernel thread scheduled onto available CPU is system-
contention scope (SCS) – competition among all threads
in system

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.22 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Multicore Processors

 Recent trend to place multiple processor cores on

same physical chip
 Faster and consumes less power
 Multiple threads per core also growing
 Takes advantage of memory stall to make
progress on another thread while memory
retrieve happens

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.23 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Multithreaded Multicore System

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.24 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time Operating System (RTOS)
 Is a software that manages the computing
resources with guaranteeing all timing
constraints are satisfied.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.25 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 RTOS
 The RTOS must manage resources like memory,
processor and I/O.
 The RTOS will guarantee strict timing constraints and
provide reliable operation.
 The RTOS will support synchronization and
communication between tasks.
 As complex systems are built the RTOS manages the
integration of components.
 Evolution is the notion of a system changing to
improve performance, features and reliability.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.26 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Difference between
Regular OS and Real-time OS

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.27 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 What does real-time mean?
 Means that the embedded system must respond
to critical events within a strictly defined time,
called the deadline.
 A guarantee to meet all deadlines can only be
made, if the behaviour of the operating system
can be predicted.
 In other words, the timing must be
deterministic.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.28 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Embedded System
 A smart device with a processor having a special
and dedicated purpose.
 There are five types of software functions the
processor can perform in an embedded system:
1. Mathematical and/or data processing operations.
 It can analyse data and make decisions based on the data.

2. Handling and managing time:

 as an input (e.g., measure period), an output (e.g., output
waveforms), and a means to synchronize tasks (e.g., run 1000
times a second).

3. Real-time input/output
 for the purpose of measurement or control.

4. Digital signal processing (DSP)

 which are mathematical calculations on data streams. Examples
include audio, video, radar, and sonar.

5. Communication and networking

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.29 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Embedded Systems
 Conventional Systems are Transformative Systems taking an
input and generating an output
 However, Embedded Systems are Reactive, taking
continuous input and generating continuous outputs
1. Parallel (interaction with physical world)
2. Real-time (guarantees on reaction time)

1 Input Transformative 1 Output

System

Continuous Reactive Continuous

Inputs System Outputs

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.30 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Six constraints typify an embedded system
 First, they are small size.
 For example, many systems must be handheld.
 Second, they must have low weight.
 If the device is deployed in a system that moves, e.g., attached to a
human, aircraft or vehicle, then weight incurs an energy cost.
 Third, they often must be low power.
 For example, they might need to operate for a long time on battery power.
Low power also impacts the amount of heat they are allowed to generate.
 Fourth, embedded systems often must operate in harsh
environments
 such as heat, pressure, vibrations, and shock. They may be subject to
noisy power, RF interference, water, and chemicals.
 Fifth, embedded systems are often used in safety critical
systems
 Real-time behaviour is essential. For these systems they must function
properly at extremely high levels of reliability.
 Lastly, embedded systems are extremely sensitive to cost.

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 Real-Time Embedded Systems
 Embedded computers are the most prevalent form of
computers in existence.
 These devices are found everywhere, from car engines
and manufacturing robots to DVDs and microwave ovens.
 They tend to have very specific tasks.
 The systems they run on are usually primitive, and so the
operating systems provide limited features.
 Usually, they have little or no user interface, preferring to
spend their time monitoring and managing hardware
devices, such as automobile engines and robotic arms.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.32 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time Embedded Systems
 The real-time embedded systems vary considerably:
 Some are general-purpose computers, running
standard operating systems—such as Linux—with
special-purpose applications to implement the
functionality.
 Others are hardware devices with a special-purpose
embedded operating system providing just the
functionality desired.
 Yet others are hardware devices with application
specific integrated circuits (ASICs) that perform their
tasks without an operating system.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.33 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time Embedded Systems
 These embedded systems almost always run real-time
operating systems.
 A real-time system is used when rigid time requirements
have been placed on the operation of a processor or the
flow of data; thus, it is often used as a control device in a
dedicated application.
 Sensors bring data to the computer.
 The computer must analyze the data and possibly adjust
controls to modify the sensor inputs.
 Systems that control scientific experiments, medical
imaging systems, industrial control systems, and certain
display systems are real-time systems.
 Some automobile-engine fuel-injection systems, home-
appliance controllers, and weapon systems are also real-
time systems.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.34 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time Embedded Systems
 A real-time system has well-defined, fixed time
constraints.
 Processing must be done within the defined constraints,
or the system will fail.
 For instance, it would not do for a robot arm to be
instructed to halt after it had smashed into the car it was
building.
 A real-time system functions correctly only if it returns
the correct result within its time constraints.
 Contrast this system with a time-sharing system, where it
is desirable (but not mandatory) to respond quickly, or a
batch system, which may have no time constraints at all.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.35 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time CPU Scheduling
 CPU scheduling for real-time operating systems involves
special issues.
 Two major types:
1. Soft real-time systems
Provide no guarantee as to when a critical real-time
process will be scheduled.
They guarantee only that the process will be given
preference over noncritical processes.
2. Hard real-time systems
Have stricter requirements.
A task must be serviced by its deadline; service after
the deadline has expired is the same as no service at
all.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.36 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time CPU Scheduling
 Issues related to process scheduling in both soft and hard
real-time operating systems:
 Consider the event-driven nature of a real-time system.
 The system is typically waiting for an event in real time
to occur.
 Events may arise either in software —as when a timer
expires—or in hardware—as when a remote-controlled
vehicle detects that it is approaching an obstruction.
 When an event occurs, the system must respond to and
service it as quickly as possible.
 We refer to event latency as the amount of time that
elapses from when an event occurs to when it is
serviced.

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.37 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time CPU Scheduling
 Can present obvious
challenges
 Two types of latencies
affect performance
1. Interrupt latency – time
from arrival of interrupt
to start of routine that
services interrupt
2. Dispatch latency – time
for schedule to take
current process off CPU
and switch to another

Fig. Interrupt Latency

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.38 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Real-Time CPU Scheduling

 Conflict phase of
dispatch latency:
1. Preemption of
any process
running in
kernel mode
2. Release by
low-priority
process of
resources
needed by
high-priority
processes

Fig. Dispatch Latency

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.39 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example 1: Linux Scheduling in Version 2.6.23 +
 Completely Fair Scheduler (CFS)
 Scheduling classes
 Each has specific priority
 Scheduler picks highest priority task in highest scheduling class
 Rather than quantum based on fixed time allotments, based on
proportion of CPU time
 2 scheduling classes included, others can be added: Default and real-
time
 Quantum calculated based on nice value from -20 to +19
 Lower value is higher priority
 Calculates target latency – interval of time during which task should
run at least once
 Target latency can increase if say number of active tasks increases
 CFS scheduler maintains per task virtual run time in variable
vruntime
 Associated with decay factor based on priority of task
 lower priority is higher decay rate
 Normal default priority yields virtual run time = actual run time
 To decide next task to run, scheduler picks task with lowest
virtual run time

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.40 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne
 Example 2: Windows Scheduling

 Windows uses priority-based preemptive scheduling

 Highest-priority thread runs next
 Dispatcher is scheduler
 Thread runs until (1) blocks, (2) uses time slice, (3)
preempted by higher-priority thread
 Real-time threads can preempt non-real-time
 32-level priority scheme
 Variable class is 1-15, real-time class is 16-31
 Priority 0 is memory-management thread
 Queue for each priority
 If no run-able thread, runs idle thread

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition 5.41 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne