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Chapter 4

The document provides an overview of threads and multithreaded programming. It discusses thread libraries like Pthreads, Windows threads and Java threads. It explores implicit threading using thread pools, OpenMP and Grand Central Dispatch. It also examines issues with multithreaded programming like semantics of fork and exec calls, signal handling, thread cancellation and thread-local storage. The objectives are to introduce threads, discuss thread APIs, explore implicit threading strategies and examine multithreading issues and OS support on Windows and Linux.

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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
39 views45 pages

Chapter 4

The document provides an overview of threads and multithreaded programming. It discusses thread libraries like Pthreads, Windows threads and Java threads. It explores implicit threading using thread pools, OpenMP and Grand Central Dispatch. It also examines issues with multithreaded programming like semantics of fork and exec calls, signal handling, thread cancellation and thread-local storage. The objectives are to introduce threads, discuss thread APIs, explore implicit threading strategies and examine multithreading issues and OS support on Windows and Linux.

Uploaded by

bu.patil25
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Chapter 4: Threads

• Overview
• Multicore Programming
• Multithreading Models
• Thread Libraries
• Implicit Threading
• Threading Issues
• Operating System Examples
Objectives
• To introduce the notion of a thread—a
fundamental unit of CPU utilization that forms
the basis of multithreaded computer systems
• To discuss the APIs for the Pthreads, Windows,
and Java thread libraries
• To explore several strategies that provide
implicit threading
• To examine issues related to multithreaded
programming
• To cover operating system support for threads
in Windows and Linux
Motivation
• Most modern applications are multithreaded
• Threads run within application
• Multiple tasks with the application can be
implemented by separate threads
• Update display
• Fetch data
• Spell checking
• Answer a network request
• Process creation is heavy-weight while thread
creation is light-weight
• Can simplify code, increase efficiency
• Kernels are generally multithreaded
Multithreaded Server Architecture
Benefits

• Responsiveness – may allow continued execution


if part of process is blocked, especially important
for user interfaces
• Resource Sharing – threads share resources of
process, easier than shared memory or message
passing
• Economy – cheaper than process creation, thread
switching lower overhead than context switching
• Scalability – process can take advantage of
multiprocessor architectures
Multicore Programming
• Multicore or multiprocessor systems putting pressure
on programmers, challenges include:
• Dividing activities
• Balance
• Data splitting
• Data dependency
• Testing and debugging
• Parallelism implies a system can perform more than
one task simultaneously
• Concurrency supports more than one task making
progress
• Single processor / core, scheduler providing concurrency
Multicore Programming (Cont.)

• Types of parallelism
• Data parallelism – distributes subsets of the same
data across multiple cores, same operation on
each
• Task parallelism – distributing threads across
cores, each thread performing unique operation
• As # of threads grows, so does architectural
support for threading
• CPUs have cores as well as hardware threads
• Consider Oracle SPARC T4 with 8 cores, and 8
hardware threads per core
Concurrency vs. Parallelism
 Concurrent execution on single-core system:

 Parallelism on a multi-core system:


Single and Multithreaded Processes
Amdahl’s Law
• Identifies performance gains from adding additional cores to an application
that has both serial and parallel components
• S is serial portion
• N processing cores

• That is, if application is 75% parallel / 25% serial, moving from 1 to 2 cores
results in speedup of 1.6 times
• As N approaches infinity, speedup approaches 1 / S

Serial portion of an application has disproportionate effect on


performance gained by adding additional cores

• But does the law take into account contemporary multicore systems?
User Threads and Kernel Threads

• User threads - management done by user-level threads library


• Three primary thread libraries:
• POSIX Pthreads
• Windows threads
• Java threads
• Kernel threads - Supported by the Kernel
• Examples – virtually all general purpose operating systems, including:
• Windows
• Solaris
• Linux
• Tru64 UNIX
• Mac OS X
Multithreading Models

• Many-to-One

• One-to-One

• Many-to-Many
Many-to-One
• Many user-level threads mapped
to single kernel thread
• One thread blocking causes all to
block
• Multiple threads may not run in
parallel on muticore system
because only one may be in kernel
at a time
• Few systems currently use this
model
• Examples:
• Solaris Green Threads
• GNU Portable Threads
One-to-One
• Each user-level thread maps to kernel
thread
• Creating a user-level thread creates a
kernel thread
• More concurrency than many-to-one
• Number of threads per process
sometimes restricted due to overhead
• Examples
• Windows
• Linux
• Solaris 9 and later
Many-to-Many Model
• Allows many user level
threads to be mapped to
many kernel threads
• Allows the operating
system to create a sufficient
number of kernel threads
• Solaris prior to version 9
• Windows with the
ThreadFiber package
Two-level Model
• Similar to M:M, except that it allows a
user thread to be bound to kernel thread
• Examples
• IRIX
• HP-UX
• Tru64 UNIX
• Solaris 8 and earlier
Thread Libraries

• Thread library provides programmer with


API for creating and managing threads
• Two primary ways of implementing
• Library entirely in user space
• Kernel-level library supported by the OS
Pthreads

• May be provided either as user-level or


kernel-level
• A POSIX standard (IEEE 1003.1c) API for
thread creation and synchronization
• Specification, not implementation
• API specifies behavior of the thread library,
implementation is up to development of the
library
• Common in UNIX operating systems (Solaris,
Linux, Mac OS X)
Pthreads Example
PthreadsPthreads
Example (Cont.)
Example (Cont.)
Pthreads Code for Joining 10 Threads

Operating System Concepts – 9 th Edition 4. 21 Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne ©2013


Windows Multithreaded C Program
Windows Multithreaded C Program (Cont.)
Java Threads
• Java threads are managed by the JVM
• Typically implemented using the threads model provided
by underlying OS
• Java threads may be created by:

• Extending Thread class


• Implementing the Runnable interface
Java Multithreaded Program
Java Multithreaded Program (Cont.)
Implicit Threading
• Growing in popularity as numbers of threads
increase, program correctness more difficult with
explicit threads
• Creation and management of threads done by
compilers and run-time libraries rather than
programmers
• Three methods explored
• Thread Pools
• OpenMP
• Grand Central Dispatch
• Other methods include Microsoft Threading Building
Blocks (TBB), java.util.concurrent package
Thread Pools
• Create a number of threads in a pool where
they await work
• Advantages:
• Usually slightly faster to service a request with an
existing thread than create a new thread
• Allows the number of threads in the application(s)
to be bound to the size of the pool
• Separating task to be performed from mechanics
of creating task allows different strategies for
running task
• i.e.Tasks could be scheduled to run periodically
• Windows API supports thread pools:
OpenMP
• Set of compiler directives and an API
for C, C++, FORTRAN
• Provides support for parallel
programming in shared-memory
environments
• Identifies parallel regions – blocks of
code that can run in parallel
#pragma omp parallel
Create as many threads as there are
cores
#pragma omp parallel for
for(i=0;i<N;i++) {
c[i] = a[i] + b[i];
}
Run for loop in parallel
Grand Central Dispatch

• Apple technology for Mac OS X and iOS operating


systems
• Extensions to C, C++ languages, API, and run-time
library
• Allows identification of parallel sections
• Manages most of the details of threading
• Block is in “^{ }” - ˆ{ printf("I am a
block"); }
• Blocks placed in dispatch queue
• Assigned to available thread in thread pool when
removed from queue
Grand Central Dispatch
• Two types of dispatch queues:
• serial – blocks removed in FIFO order, queue is per
process, called main queue
• Programmers can create additional serial queues within
program
• concurrent – removed in FIFO order but several
may be removed at a time
• Three system wide queues with priorities low, default,
high
Threading Issues
• Semantics of fork() and exec() system calls
• Signal handling
• Synchronous and asynchronous
• Thread cancellation of target thread
• Asynchronous or deferred
• Thread-local storage
• Scheduler Activations
Semantics of fork() and exec()

• Does fork()duplicate only the calling


thread or all threads?
• Some UNIXes have two versions of fork
• exec() usually works as normal –
replace the running process including all
threads
Signal Handling
 Signals are used in UNIX systems to notify a
process that a particular event has occurred.
 A signal handler is used to process signals
1. Signal is generated by particular event
2. Signal is delivered to a process
3. Signal is handled by one of two signal handlers:
1. default
2. user-defined
 Every signal has default handler that kernel
runs when handling signal
 User-defined signal handler can override default
 For single-threaded, signal delivered to process
Signal Handling (Cont.)
 Where should a signal be delivered for
multi-threaded?
 Deliver the signal to the thread to which the
signal applies
 Deliver the signal to every thread in the
process
 Deliver the signal to certain threads in the
process
 Assign a specific thread to receive all signals
for the process
Thread Cancellation
• Terminating a thread before it has finished
• Thread to be canceled is target thread
• Two general approaches:
• Asynchronous cancellation terminates the target
thread immediately
• Deferred cancellation allows the target thread to
periodically check if it should be cancelled
• Pthread code to create and cancel a thread:
Thread Cancellation (Cont.)
• Invoking thread cancellation requests cancellation, but
actual cancellation depends on thread state

• If thread has cancellation disabled, cancellation remains


pending until thread enables it
• Default type is deferred
• Cancellation only occurs when thread reaches cancellation point
• I.e. pthread_testcancel()
• Then cleanup handler is invoked
• On Linux systems, thread cancellation is handled through
signals
Thread-Local Storage

• Thread-local storage (TLS) allows each thread


to have its own copy of data
• Useful when you do not have control over the
thread creation process (i.e., when using a
thread pool)
• Different from local variables
• Local variables visible only during single function
invocation
• TLS visible across function invocations
• Similar to static data
• TLS is unique to each thread
Scheduler Activations
• Both M:M and Two-level models require
communication to maintain the appropriate
number of kernel threads allocated to the
application
• Typically use an intermediate data structure
between user and kernel threads –
lightweight process (LWP)
• Appears to be a virtual processor on which
process can schedule user thread to run
• Each LWP attached to kernel thread
• How many LWPs to create?
• Scheduler activations provide upcalls - a
communication mechanism from the kernel
to the upcall handler in the thread library
• This communication allows an application to
maintain the correct number kernel threads
Operating System Examples

• Windows Threads
• Linux Threads
Windows Threads
• Windows implements the Windows API –
primary API for Win 98, Win NT, Win 2000,
Win XP, and Win 7
• Implements the one-to-one mapping, kernel-
level
• Each thread contains
• A thread id
• Register set representing state of processor
• Separate user and kernel stacks for when thread
runs in user mode or kernel mode
• Private data storage area used by run-time
libraries and dynamic link libraries (DLLs)
• The register set, stacks, and private storage
area are known as the context of the thread
Windows Threads (Cont.)

• The primary data structures of a thread


include:
• ETHREAD (executive thread block) – includes
pointer to process to which thread belongs and
to KTHREAD, in kernel space
• KTHREAD (kernel thread block) – scheduling and
synchronization info, kernel-mode stack, pointer
to TEB, in kernel space
• TEB (thread environment block) – thread id,
user-mode stack, thread-local storage, in user
space
Windows Threads Data Structures
Linux Threads
• Linux refers to them as tasks rather than threads
• Thread creation is done through clone() system call
• clone() allows a child task to share the address
space of the parent task (process)
• Flags control behavior

• struct task_struct points to process data


structures (shared or unique)
End of Chapter 4

Operating System Concepts – 9th Edition Silberschatz, Galvin and Gagne ©2013

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