CPU Scheduling
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 distribution
Alternating Sequence of CPU And I/O Bursts
Histogram of CPU-burst
Times
CPU Scheduler
Selects from among the processes in memory that
are ready to execute, and allocates the CPU to one
of them
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
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
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)
Optimization Criteria
Max CPU utilization
Max throughput
Min turnaround time
Min waiting time
Min response time
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
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
Shortest-Job-First (SJR)
Scheduling
Associate with each process the length of its next
CPU burst. Use these lengths to schedule the
process with the shortest time
Two schemes:
nonpreemptive – once CPU given to the process it
cannot be preempted until completes its CPU burst
preemptive – if a new process arrives with CPU burst
length less than remaining time of current executing
process, preempt. This scheme is know as the
Shortest-Remaining-Time-First (SRTF)
SJF is optimal – gives minimum average waiting
time for a given set of processes
Example of Non-Preemptive
SJF
Process Arrival Time Burst Time
P1 0.0 7
P2 2.0 4
P3 4.0 1
P4 5.0 4
SJF (non-preemptive)
P1 P3 P2 P4
0 3 7 8 12 16
Average waiting time = (0 + 6 + 3 + 7)/4 = 4
Example of Preemptive SJF
Process Arrival Time Burst Time
P1 0.0 7
P2 2.0 4
P3 4.0 1
P4 5.0 4
SJF (preemptive)
P1 P2 P3 P2 P4 P1
0 2 4 5 7 11 16
Average waiting time = (9 + 1 + 0 +2)/4 = 3
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 a priority scheduling where priority is the
predicted next CPU burst time
Problem Starvation – low priority processes may
never execute
Solution Aging – as time progresses increase the
priority of the process
Round Robin (RR)
Each process gets a small unit of CPU time (time
quantum), 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.
Performance
q large FIFO
q small q must be large with respect to context switch,
otherwise overhead is too high
Example of RR with Time Quantum = 20
Process Burst Time
P1 53
P2 17
P3 68
P4 24
The Gantt chart is:
P1 P2 P3 P4 P1 P3 P4 P1 P3 P3
0 20 37 57 77 97 117 121 134 154 162
Typically, higher average turnaround than SJF, but better
response
Time Quantum and Context Switch Time
Turnaround Time Varies With The Time Quantum
Multilevel Queue
Ready queue is partitioned into separate queues:
foreground (interactive)
background (batch)
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
Multilevel Queue
Scheduling
Multilevel Feedback Queue
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
Example of Multilevel Feedback Queue
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.
Multilevel Feedback
Queues
Multiple-Processor
Scheduling
CPU scheduling more complex when multiple
CPUs are available
Homogeneous processors within a multiprocessor
Load sharing
Asymmetric multiprocessing – only one processor
accesses the system data structures, alleviating
the need for data sharing
Real-Time Scheduling
Hard real-time systems – required to complete
a critical task within a guaranteed amount of
time
Soft real-time computing – requires that
critical processes receive priority over less
fortunate ones
