CPU Scheduling Fundamentals In operating systems, what is scheduling?

Introduction / Context:
Scheduling is the heart of CPU resource management. It decides which ready process gets the CPU and for how long, directly affecting throughput, response time, and fairness.

Given Data / Assumptions:

• There may be more ready processes than available CPUs.
• Scheduling policies reflect goals (interactive responsiveness, batch throughput, or deadlines).

Concept / Approach:
Scheduling selects the next process/thread to run from the ready queue. Policies range from simple round-robin to priority-based, multilevel feedback queues, or real-time algorithms (rate-monotonic, earliest-deadline-first). The chosen policy shapes performance and user experience.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Maintain a ready queue of runnable entities.Choose a candidate based on the policy (e.g., highest priority).Dispatch it to the CPU; on preemption or blocking, repeat.

Verification / Alternative check:
Metrics such as average waiting time, turnaround time, and response time change noticeably as policies change, confirming scheduling’s performance impact.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Unrelated to performance: false—policy choice dramatically affects performance.Not required in uniprocessors: false—even one CPU must decide which process runs next.Always identical: false—policies differ with system purpose (interactive vs. batch vs. real-time).

Common Pitfalls:

• Assuming one “best” policy fits all workloads.
• Ignoring priority inversion and starvation without safeguards.

Final Answer:
Allowing jobs or processes to use the processor according to a defined policy.