Multithreading in Java

Multithreading in java is a process of executing multiple threads simultaneously.

A thread is a lightweight sub-process, the smallest unit of processing. Multiprocessing and

multithreading, both are used to achieve multitasking.

However, we use multithreading than multiprocessing because threads use a shared memory
area. They don't allocate separate memory area so saves memory, and context-switching
between the threads takes less time than process.

Java Multithreading is mostly used in games, animation, etc.

Advantages of Java Multithreading

1) It doesn't block the user because threads are independent and you can perform multiple
operations at the same time.

2) You can perform many operations together, so it saves time.

3) Threads are independent, so it doesn't affect other threads if an exception occurs in a

single thread.

Multitasking
Multitasking is a process of executing multiple tasks simultaneously. We use multitasking to
utilize the CPU. Multitasking can be achieved in two ways:

 Process-based Multitasking (Multiprocessing)

 Thread-based Multitasking (Multithreading)

1) Process-based Multitasking (Multiprocessing)

 Each process has an address in memory. In other words, each process allocates a
separate memory area.
 A process is heavyweight.
 Cost of communication between the process is high.
 Switching from one process to another requires some time for saving and loading
registers, memory maps, updating lists, etc.

2) Thread-based Multitasking (Multithreading)

 Threads share the same address space.

  A thread is lightweight.
 Cost of communication between the thread is low.

Note: At least one process is required for each thread.

What is Thread in java

A thread is a lightweight subprocess, the smallest unit of processing. It is a separate path of
execution.

Threads are independent. If there occurs exception in one thread, it doesn't affect other
threads. It uses a shared memory area.

As shown in the above figure, a thread is executed inside the process. There is context-
switching between the threads. There can be multiple processes inside the OS, and one
process can have multiple threads.
Note: At a time one thread is executed only.

Java Thread class

Java provides Thread class to achieve thread programming. Thread class provides
constructors and methods to create and perform operations on a thread. Thread class extends
Object class and implements Runnable interface.

Java Thread Methods

S.N. Modifier and Type Method Description
It is used to
start the
1) void start()
execution of
the thread.
It is used to
2) void run() do an action
for a thread.
It sleeps a
thread for the
3) static void sleep() specified
amount of
time.
It returns a
reference to
4) static Thread currentThread() the currently
executing
thread object.
It waits for a
5) void join()
thread to die.
It returns the
6) int getPriority() priority of the
thread.
It changes the
7) void setPriority() priority of the
thread.
It returns the
8) String getName() name of the
thread.
It changes the
9) void setName() name of the
thread.
It returns the
10) long getId() id of the
thread.
It tests if the
11) boolean isAlive() thread is
alive.
 It causes the
currently
executing
thread object
12) static void yield() to pause and
allow other
threads to
execute
temporarily.
It is used to
13) void suspend() suspend the
thread.
It is used to
resume the
14) void resume()
suspended
thread.
It is used to
15) void stop() stop the
thread.
It is used to
destroy the
16) void destroy() thread group
and all of its
subgroups.
It tests if the
thread is a
17) Boolean isDaemon()
daemon
thread.
It marks the
thread as
18) void setDaemon()
daemon or
user thread.
It interrupts
19) void interrupt()
the thread.
It tests
whether the
20) Boolean isinterrupted() thread has
been
interrupted.
It tests
whether the
21) static Boolean interrupted() current thread
has been
interrupted.
22) static int activeCount() It returns the
number of
active threads
in the current
thread's
 thread group.
It determines
if the
currently
running
23) void checkAccess()
thread has
permission to
modify the
thread.
It returns true
if and only if
the current
thread holds
24) static Boolean holdLock()
the monitor
lock on the
specified
object.
It is used to
print a stack
trace of the
25) static void dumpStack() current thread
to the
standard error
stream.
It returns an
array of stack
trace
elements
26) StackTraceElement[] getStackTrace()
representing
the stack
dump of the
thread.
It is used to
copy every
active thread's
thread group
27) static int enumerate()
and its
subgroup into
the specified
array.
It is used to
return the
28) Thread.State getState()
state of the
thread.
29) ThreadGroup getThreadGroup() It is used to
return the
thread group
to which this
thread
 belongs
It is used to
return a string
representation
of this thread,
30) String toString() including the
thread's
name,
priority, and
thread group.
It is used to
give the
notification
for only one
31) void notify()
thread which
is waiting for
a particular
object.
It is used to
give the
notification to
32) void notifyAll() all waiting
threads of a
particular
object.
It sets the
context
33) void setContextClassLoader() ClassLoader
for the
Thread.
It returns the
context
34) ClassLoader getContextClassLoader()
ClassLoader
for the thread.
It returns the
default
handler
invoked when
static
getDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler( a thread
35) Thread.UncaughtExceptionHandle
) abruptly
r
terminates
due to an
uncaught
exception.
36) static void setDefaultUncaughtExceptionHandler( It sets the
) default
handler
invoked when
a thread
 abruptly
terminates
due to an
uncaught
exception.

Life cycle of a Thread (Thread States)

1. Life cycle of a thread
1. New
2. Runnable
3. Running
4. Non-Runnable (Blocked)
5. Terminated

A thread can be in one of the five states. According to sun, there is only 4 states in thread life
cycle in java new, runnable, non-runnable and terminated. There is no running state.

But for better understanding the threads, we are explaining it in the 5 states.

The life cycle of the thread in java is controlled by JVM. The java thread states are as follows:

1. Newttt
2. Runnable
3. Running
4. Non-Runnable (Blocked)
5. Terminated
1) New

The thread is in new state if you create an instance of Thread class but before the invocation
of start() method.

2) Runnable

The thread is in runnable state after invocation of start() method, but the thread scheduler has
not selected it to be the running thread.

3) Running

The thread is in running state if the thread scheduler has selected it.

4) Non-Runnable (Blocked)

This is the state when the thread is still alive, but is currently not eligible to run.

5) Terminated

A thread is in terminated or dead state when its run() method exits.

How to create thread

There are two ways to create a thread:

1. By extending Thread class

2. By implementing Runnable interface.

Thread class:

Thread class provide constructors and methods to create and perform operations on a
thread.Thread class extends Object class and implements Runnable interface.

Commonly used Constructors of Thread class:

 Thread()
  Thread(String name)
 Thread(Runnable r)
 Thread(Runnable r,String name)

Commonly used methods of Thread class:

1. public void run(): is used to perform action for a thread.

2. public void start(): starts the execution of the thread.JVM calls the run() method on
the thread.
3. public void sleep(long miliseconds): Causes the currently executing thread to sleep
(temporarily cease execution) for the specified number of milliseconds.
4. public void join(): waits for a thread to die.
5. public void join(long miliseconds): waits for a thread to die for the specified
miliseconds.
6. public int getPriority(): returns the priority of the thread.
7. public int setPriority(int priority): changes the priority of the thread.
8. public String getName(): returns the name of the thread.
9. public void setName(String name): changes the name of the thread.
10. public Thread currentThread(): returns the reference of currently executing thread.
11. public int getId(): returns the id of the thread.
12. public Thread.State getState(): returns the state of the thread.
13. public boolean isAlive(): tests if the thread is alive.
14. public void yield(): causes the currently executing thread object to temporarily pause
and allow other threads to execute.
15. public void suspend(): is used to suspend the thread(depricated).
16. public void resume(): is used to resume the suspended thread(depricated).
17. public void stop(): is used to stop the thread(depricated).
18. public boolean isDaemon(): tests if the thread is a daemon thread.
19. public void setDaemon(boolean b): marks the thread as daemon or user thread.
20. public void interrupt(): interrupts the thread.
21. public boolean isInterrupted(): tests if the thread has been interrupted.
22. public static boolean interrupted(): tests if the current thread has been interrupted.

Runnable interface:

The Runnable interface should be implemented by any class whose instances are intended to
be executed by a thread. Runnable interface have only one method named run().
1. public void run(): is used to perform action for a thread.

Starting a thread:

start() method of Thread class is used to start a newly created thread. It performs following
tasks:
  A new thread starts(with new callstack).
 The thread moves from New state to the Runnable state.
 When the thread gets a chance to execute, its target run() method will run.

1) Java Thread Example by extending Thread class

class Multi extends Thread{  

public void run(){  

System.out.println("thread is running...");  

}  

public static void main(String args[]){  

Multi t1=new Multi();  

t1.start();  

 }  

}  

Output:thread is running...

2) Java Thread Example by implementing Runnable interface

class Multi3 implements Runnable{  

public void run(){  

System.out.println("thread is running...");  

}  

  

public static void main(String args[]){  

Multi3 m1=new Multi3();  

Thread t1 =new Thread(m1);  

t1.start();  
  }  

}  

Output:thread is running...
If you are not extending the Thread class,your class object would not be treated as a thread
object.So you need to explicitely create Thread class object.We are passing the object of your
class that implements Runnable so that your class run() method may execute.

Thread Scheduler in Java

Thread scheduler in java is the part of the JVM that decides which thread should run.

There is no guarantee that which runnable thread will be chosen to run by the thread
scheduler.

Only one thread at a time can run in a single process.

The thread scheduler mainly uses preemptive or time slicing scheduling to schedule the
threads.

Difference between preemptive scheduling and time slicing

Under preemptive scheduling, the highest priority task executes until it enters the waiting or
dead states or a higher priority task comes into existence. Under time slicing, a task executes
for a predefined slice of time and then reenters the pool of ready tasks. The scheduler then
determines which task should execute next, based on priority and other factors

Sleep method in java

The sleep() method of Thread class is used to sleep a thread for the specified amount of time.

Syntax of sleep() method in java

The Thread class provides two methods for sleeping a thread:

 public static void sleep(long miliseconds)throws InterruptedException

 public static void sleep(long miliseconds, int nanos)throws InterruptedException

Example of sleep method in java

class TestSleepMethod1 extends Thread{  

 public void run(){  
   for(int i=1;i<5;i++){  

    try{Thread.sleep(500);}catch(InterruptedException e){System.out.println(e);}  

    System.out.println(i);  

  }  

 }  

 public static void main(String args[]){  

  TestSleepMethod1 t1=new TestSleepMethod1();  

  TestSleepMethod1 t2=new TestSleepMethod1();  

   

  t1.start();  

  t2.start();  

 }  

}  

Output:

1
1
2
2
3
3
4
4

As you know well that at a time only one thread is executed. If you sleep a thread for the
specified time,the thread shedular picks up another thread and so on.

Can we start a thread twice

No. After starting a thread, it can never be started again. If you does so, an
IllegalThreadStateException is thrown. In such case, thread will run once but for second
time, it will throw exception.

Let's understand it by the example given below:

1. public class TestThreadTwice1 extends Thread{  
2.  public void run(){  
 3.    System.out.println("running...");  
4.  }  
5.  public static void main(String args[]){  
6.   TestThreadTwice1 t1=new TestThreadTwice1();  
7.   t1.start();  
8.   t1.start();  
9.  }  
10.
11. }  

Test it Now
running
Exception in thread "main" java.lang.IllegalThreadStateException

What if we call run() method directly

instead start() method?
 Each thread starts in a separate call stack.
 Invoking the run() method from main thread, the run() method goes onto the current
call stack rather than at the beginning of a new call stack.

1. class TestCallRun1 extends Thread{  
2.  public void run(){  
3.    System.out.println("running...");  
4.  }  
5.  public static void main(String args[]){  
6.   TestCallRun1 t1=new TestCallRun1();  
7.   t1.run();//fine, but does not start a separate call stack  
8.  }  
9. }  

Test it Now
Output:running...

Problem if you direct call run() method

 class TestCallRun2 extends Thread{  

 public void run(){  

  for(int i=1;i<5;i++){  

    try{Thread.sleep(500);}catch(InterruptedException e){System.out.println(e);}  

    System.out.println(i);  

  }  

 }  

 public static void main(String args[]){  

  TestCallRun2 t1=new TestCallRun2();  

  TestCallRun2 t2=new TestCallRun2();  

   

  t1.run();  

  t2.run();  

 }  

}  

Output:1
2
3
4
5
1
2
3
4
5

As you can see in the above program that there is no context-switching because here t1 and t2
will be treated as normal object not thread object.

Priority of a Thread (Thread Priority):

Each thread have a priority. Priorities are represented by a number between 1 and 10. In most
cases, thread schedular schedules the threads according to their priority (known as preemptive
scheduling). But it is not guaranteed because it depends on JVM specification that which
scheduling it chooses.

3 constants defined in Thread class:

1. public static int MIN_PRIORITY
2. public static int NORM_PRIORITY
3. public static int MAX_PRIORITY

Default priority of a thread is 5 (NORM_PRIORITY). The value of MIN_PRIORITY is 1 and

the value of MAX_PRIORITY is 10.

Example of priority of a Thread:

class TestMultiPriority1 extends Thread{  

 public void run(){  

   System.out.println("running thread name is:"+Thread.currentThread().getName());  

   System.out.println("running thread priority is:"+Thread.currentThread().getPriority());  

  

  }  

 public static void main(String args[]){  

  TestMultiPriority1 m1=new TestMultiPriority1();  

  TestMultiPriority1 m2=new TestMultiPriority1();  

  m1.setPriority(Thread.MIN_PRIORITY);  

  m2.setPriority(Thread.MAX_PRIORITY);  

  m1.start();  

  m2.start();  

   

 }  

}     

Output:running thread name is:Thread-0

running thread priority is:10
running thread name is:Thread-1
running thread priority is:1
Synchronization in Java
Synchronization in java is the capability to control the access of multiple threads to any
shared resource.

Java Synchronization is better option where we want to allow only one thread to access the
shared resource.

Why use Synchronization

The synchronization is mainly used to

1. To prevent thread interference.

2. To prevent consistency problem.

Types of Synchronization

There are two types of synchronization

1. Process Synchronization
2. Thread Synchronization

Here, we will discuss only thread synchronization.

Thread Synchronization

There are two types of thread synchronization mutual exclusive and inter-thread
communication.

1. Mutual Exclusive
1. Synchronized method.
2. Synchronized block.
3. static synchronization.
2. Cooperation (Inter-thread communication in java)

Mutual Exclusive

Mutual Exclusive helps keep threads from interfering with one another while sharing data.
This can be done by three ways in java:

1. by synchronized method
2. by synchronized block
3. by static synchronization
Concept of Lock in Java

Synchronization is built around an internal entity known as the lock or monitor. Every object
has an lock associated with it. By convention, a thread that needs consistent access to an
object's fields has to acquire the object's lock before accessing them, and then release the lock
when it's done with them.

From Java 5 the package java.util.concurrent.locks contains several lock implementations.

Understanding the problem without Synchronization

In this example, there is no synchronization, so output is inconsistent. Let's see the example:

class Table{  
void printTable(int n){//method not synchronized  
   for(int i=1;i<=5;i++){  
     System.out.println(n*i);  
     try{  
      Thread.sleep(400);  
     }catch(Exception e){System.out.println(e);}  
   }  
  
 }  
}  
  
class MyThread1 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread1(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(5);  
}  
  
}  
class MyThread2 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread2(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(100);  
}  
}  
  
class TestSynchronization1{  
 public static void main(String args[]){  
Table obj = new Table();//only one object  
MyThread1 t1=new MyThread1(obj);  
MyThread2 t2=new MyThread2(obj);  
t1.start();  
t2.start();  
}  
}  
Output: 5
100
10
200
15
300
20
400
25
500

Java synchronized method

If you declare any method as synchronized, it is known as synchronized method.

Synchronized method is used to lock an object for any shared resource.

When a thread invokes a synchronized method, it automatically acquires the lock for that
object and releases it when the thread completes its task.

1. //example of java synchronized method  

class Table{  
 synchronized void printTable(int n){//synchronized method  
   for(int i=1;i<=5;i++){  
     System.out.println(n*i);  
     try{  
      Thread.sleep(400);  
     }catch(Exception e){System.out.println(e);}  
   }  
  
 }  
}  
  
class MyThread1 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread1(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(5);  
}  
   
}  
class MyThread2 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread2(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(100);  
}  
}  
  
public class TestSynchronization2{  
public static void main(String args[]){  
Table obj = new Table();//only one object  
MyThread1 t1=new MyThread1(obj);  
MyThread2 t2=new MyThread2(obj);  
t1.start();  
t2.start();  
}  
}  
Output: 5
10
15
20
25
100
200
300
400
500

Example of synchronized method by using annonymous class

In this program, we have created the two threads by annonymous class, so less coding is
required.

1. //Program of synchronized method by using annonymous class  
2. class Table{  
3.  synchronized void printTable(int n){//synchronized method  
4.    for(int i=1;i<=5;i++){  
5.      System.out.println(n*i);  
6.      try{  
7.       Thread.sleep(400);  
8.      }catch(Exception e){System.out.println(e);}  
9.    }  
10.   
11.  }  
12. }  
13.   
 14. public class TestSynchronization3{  
15. public static void main(String args[]){  
16. final Table obj = new Table();//only one object  
17.   
18. Thread t1=new Thread(){  
19. public void run(){  
20. obj.printTable(5);  
21. }  
22. };  
23. Thread t2=new Thread(){  
24. public void run(){  
25. obj.printTable(100);  
26. }  
27. };  
28.   
29. t1.start();  
30. t2.start();  
31. }  
32. }  

Output: 5
10
15
20
25
100
200
300
400
500

Synchronized block in java

Synchronized block can be used to perform synchronization on any specific resource of the
method.

Suppose you have 50 lines of code in your method, but you want to synchronize only 5 lines,
you can use synchronized block.

If you put all the codes of the method in the synchronized block, it will work same as the
synchronized method.

Points to remember for Synchronized block

 Synchronized block is used to lock an object for any shared resource.

 Scope of synchronized block is smaller than the method.

Syntax to use synchronized block

1. synchronized (object reference expression) {   
 2.   //code block   
3. }  

Example of synchronized block

Let's see the simple example of synchronized block.

Program of synchronized block

class Table{  
  
 void printTable(int n){  
   synchronized(this){//synchronized block  
     for(int i=1;i<=5;i++){  
      System.out.println(n*i);  
      try{  
       Thread.sleep(400);  
      }catch(Exception e){System.out.println(e);}  
     }  
   }  
 }//end of the method  
}  
  
class MyThread1 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread1(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(5);  
}  
  
}  
class MyThread2 extends Thread{  
Table t;  
MyThread2(Table t){  
this.t=t;  
}  
public void run(){  
t.printTable(100);  
}  
}  
  
public class TestSynchronizedBlock1{  
public static void main(String args[]){  
Table obj = new Table();//only one object  
MyThread1 t1=new MyThread1(obj);  
MyThread2 t2=new MyThread2(obj);  
t1.start();  
t2.start();  
}  
 }  

Static synchronization
If you make any static method as synchronized, the lock will be on the class not on object.

Problem without static synchronization

Suppose there are two objects of a shared class(e.g. Table) named object1 and object2.In case
of synchronized method and synchronized block there cannot be interference between t1 and
t2 or t3 and t4 because t1 and t2 both refers to a common object that have a single lock.But
there can be interference between t1 and t3 or t2 and t4 because t1 acquires another lock and
t3 acquires another lock.I want no interference between t1 and t3 or t2 and t4.Static
synchronization solves this problem.

Example of static synchronization

In this example we are applying synchronized keyword on the static method to perform static
synchronization.

class Table{  
  
 synchronized static void printTable(int n){  
   for(int i=1;i<=10;i++){  
     System.out.println(n*i);  
     try{  
       Thread.sleep(400);  
     }catch(Exception e){}  
   }  
 }  
 }  
  
class MyThread1 extends Thread{  
public void run(){  
Table.printTable(1);  
}  
}  
  
class MyThread2 extends Thread{  
public void run(){  
Table.printTable(10);  
}  
}  
  
class MyThread3 extends Thread{  
public void run(){  
Table.printTable(100);  
}  
}  
  
  
  
  
class MyThread4 extends Thread{  
public void run(){  
Table.printTable(1000);  
}  
}  
  
public class TestSynchronization4{  
public static void main(String t[]){  
MyThread1 t1=new MyThread1();  
MyThread2 t2=new MyThread2();  
MyThread3 t3=new MyThread3();  
MyThread4 t4=new MyThread4();  
t1.start();  
t2.start();  
t3.start();  
t4.start();  
}  
}  
Test it Now
Output: 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
 10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
100
100
200
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1000
1000
2000
3000
4000
5000
6000
7000
8000
9000
10000

Same example of static synchronization by annonymous class

In this example, we are using annonymous class to create the threads.

1. class Table{  
2.   
3.  synchronized static  void printTable(int n){  
4.    for(int i=1;i<=10;i++){  
5.      System.out.println(n*i);  
6.      try{  
7.        Thread.sleep(400);  
8.      }catch(Exception e){}  
9.    }  
10.  }  
11. }  
12.   
13. public class TestSynchronization5 {  
14. public static void main(String[] args) {  
15.       
16.     Thread t1=new Thread(){  
17.         public void run(){  
18.             Table.printTable(1);  
 19.         }  
20.     };  
21.       
22.     Thread t2=new Thread(){  
23.         public void run(){  
24.             Table.printTable(10);  
25.         }  
26.     };  
27.       
28.     Thread t3=new Thread(){  
29.         public void run(){  
30.             Table.printTable(100);  
31.         }  
32.     };  
33.       
34.     Thread t4=new Thread(){  
35.         public void run(){  
36.             Table.printTable(1000);  
37.         }  
38.     };  
39.     t1.start();  
40.     t2.start();  
41.     t3.start();  
42.     t4.start();  
43.       
44. }  
45. } 

Output: 1
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Synchronized block on a class lock:

The block synchronizes on the lock of the object denoted by the reference .class name .class.
A static synchronized method printTable(int n) in class Table is equivalent to the following
declaration:

1. static void printTable(int n) {  
2.     synchronized (Table.class) {       // Synchronized block on class A  
3.         // ...  
4.     }  
5. }