Peterson's Solution Quiz
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Questions and Answers

What purpose does the variable 'turn' serve in Peterson's Solution?

  • It specifies which process can enter the critical section next. (correct)
  • It indicates the current time in the algorithm.
  • It denotes the priority level of the processes.
  • It keeps track of the number of processes waiting.
  • What problem arises when multiple processes access shared data concurrently?

  • Deadlock
  • Starvation
  • Data inconsistency (correct)
  • Resource leakage
  • Which of the following statements is true about the flag array in Peterson's Solution?

  • It is used to signal that the process has completed execution.
  • The flag array can hold more than two boolean values.
  • It helps in determining the execution order of the processes.
  • flag[i] = true indicates process Pi is ready to enter the critical section. (correct)
  • Which of the following correctly describes the 'while' loop in the algorithm for process Pi?

    <p>It creates a busy wait until the critical section can be entered. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following tools can be used to address the critical-section problem?

    <p>Mutex locks (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the three critical section requirements does 'turn' help satisfy?

    <p>Mutual exclusion. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a race condition?

    <p>An unexpected outcome caused by concurrent accesses to shared data (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which mechanism helps in achieving liveness in process synchronization?

    <p>Condition variables (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What can be inferred if flag[j] is true and turn == j?

    <p>Process Pj is blocked from entering the critical section. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What aspect of Peterson's Solution does the flag variable directly support?

    <p>Communication between processes about their states. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    How do semaphores contribute to solving the critical-section problem?

    <p>By allowing limited concurrent access to shared resources (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following best describes the objective of using mutex locks?

    <p>To serialize access to a shared resource (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In the context of Peterson's Solution, what is the significance of having atomic load and store machine instructions?

    <p>It prevents interruptions during the flag setting and turn assignment. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main focus in evaluating synchronization tools in high-contention scenarios?

    <p>Maximizing throughput and minimizing latency (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following best describes the properties proven in the correctness of Peterson's Solution?

    <p>All three critical section requirements are met. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which hardware solution can be utilized to manage the critical-section problem?

    <p>Compare-and-swap operations (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What does bounded waiting ensure in a process requesting to enter its critical section?

    <p>No process waits indefinitely to enter the critical section. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In the interrupt-based solution for entering a critical section, what is the purpose of disabling interrupts?

    <p>To prevent other processes from entering their critical sections. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What potential issue arises if the critical section execution takes a very long time?

    <p>Processes may starve and never enter their critical sections. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the purpose of the 'turn' variable in the software solution for two processes?

    <p>To control which process is allowed to access the critical section next. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In the algorithm for process Pi, the statement 'while (turn == j);' serves what primary function?

    <p>It causes process Pi to wait until it is officially its turn to enter. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What problem remains to be addressed after ensuring mutual exclusion in software solutions?

    <p>The progress requirement of process execution. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which statement is false regarding the use of atomic load and store instructions in the two-process solution?

    <p>They can be interrupted by higher priority processes. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a consequence of having two CPUs on the implementation of a critical section solution?

    <p>It complicates the mutual exclusion requirement across the CPUs. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What problem occurs when processes P0 and P1 create child processes using the fork() system call without proper control?

    <p>Race condition (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following best describes the mutual exclusion requirement in the critical section problem?

    <p>Only one process may execute in its critical section at any given time. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What happens if no processes are executing in their critical sections while some wish to enter them?

    <p>Selection of the next process may be indefinitely postponed. (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following statements is true regarding the critical section of a process?

    <p>It is a segment where only one process must operate at a time. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary goal of the critical section problem?

    <p>Design a protocol for entry into the critical section. (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is NOT a requirement for a solution to the critical-section problem?

    <p>Eventual entry (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    In a scenario with multiple processes, what is the risk of failing to manage access to the next_available_pid variable?

    <p>A process may be assigned multiple identifiers. (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What can cause Peterson's Solution to fail on modern architectures?

    <p>Reordering of independent operations (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What step must a process take to enter its critical section according to the protocol?

    <p>Request permission in the entry section. (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the expected output when the two threads in a modern architecture run as described?

    <p>100 (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What may happen if the instructions of Thread 2 are reordered due to memory optimizations?

    <p>Thread 1 prints an unpredictable value (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    To ensure that Peterson's Solution works correctly on modern architectures, what must be utilized?

    <p>Memory Barrier (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Why is single-threaded execution not affected by instruction reordering?

    <p>Reordering is irrelevant to the output (C)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of the boolean flag variable in the multithreaded example?

    <p>To control the loop execution in Thread 1 (D)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a potential consequence of having both processes in their critical section simultaneously?

    <p>Race conditions occur (B)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What could be a reason for unexpected results in a multithreaded environment?

    <p>Instruction reordering (A)</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Flashcards

    Race condition

    A situation where multiple processes or threads access and modify shared data concurrently, leading to unpredictable and potentially incorrect results.

    Critical section

    A section of code that can only be executed by one process at a time. It ensures mutual exclusion, preventing data corruption from concurrent access.

    Synchronization tool

    A tool that enables processes to synchronize access to shared resources.

    Mutual Exclusion

    A technique used to protect shared data from concurrent access by multiple processes. It ensures that only one process can access the critical section at a time.

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    Critical-section problem

    A classic problem in concurrent programming where multiple processes need to access and modify a shared resource, but only one process can be in the critical section at a time. The challenge is to ensure that the processes cooperate and access the resource safely.

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    Memory barrier

    A memory barrier that ensures that all memory operations before the barrier are completed before any operations after the barrier are executed, preventing out-of-order execution.

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    Compare-and-swap (CAS)

    An instruction that atomically reads a value from memory, compares it to a given value, and if they are equal, updates the memory location with a new value. It guarantees that the comparison and update happen as a single, indivisible operation.

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    Atomic variable

    A type of variable that supports atomic operations, guaranteeing that operations on it happen without interference from other processes.

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    Progress

    If no processes are currently in their critical sections, and some processes want to enter, then the selection of which process will enter next should not be postponed indefinitely. At least one of the processes waiting to enter its critical section must eventually be allowed to do so.

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    Bounded Waiting

    Ensuring that processes do not wait forever to enter their critical sections. The selection of the next process to enter a critical section shouldn't be delayed indefinitely.

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    Interrupt-based Solution

    This approach aims to solve the critical section problem by disabling and enabling interrupts. It's a primitive method with limitations.

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    Two Process Solution

    This method for two processes uses a shared variable 'turn' to control access to the critical section. The process holding the 'turn' can enter the critical section.

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    Algorithm for Process Pi

    The algorithm for Process Pi ensures that it enters the critical section only when it's its turn (indicated by 'turn' being equal to 'i').

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    Algorithm for Process Pj

    This algorithm mirrors the algorithm for Process Pi, but with the roles of 'i' and 'j' reversed. Process Pj can enter the critical section when 'turn' is equal to 'j'.

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    Correctness: Mutual Exclusion

    This solution guarantees that only one process can be in the critical section at a time. However, it does not address the progress requirement, meaning a process could be perpetually blocked.

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    Correctness: Progress Requirement

    The two-process solution ensures mutual exclusion but fails to address the progress requirement because it does not guarantee that a process will eventually enter the critical section.

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    Synchronization

    A programming technique that ensures processes or threads can access shared resources in a controlled and synchronized manner.

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    Progress Requirement

    A requirement that ensures that if a process wants to enter the critical section, it will eventually be able to do so.

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    Peterson's Solution

    A solution to the critical section problem that uses two shared variables: 'turn' and 'flag', to coordinate access to the critical section.

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    Semaphore

    A programming construct that allows processes to communicate and coordinate their actions.

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    Mutex

    A type of semaphore with a maximum value of 1, used to implement mutual exclusion. Only one thread can acquire the mutex at a time.

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    Race Condition in Modern Systems

    A situation where the order of instructions in a multi-threaded program is unpredictable, leading to unreliable results. This occurs when multiple threads access and modify shared data concurrently without proper synchronization.

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    Peterson's Solution Without Memory Barrier

    An implementation of Peterson's Solution that fails on modern architectures due to instruction reordering (out-of-order execution). It demonstrates the importance of memory barriers in preventing race conditions.

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    Instruction Re-ordering

    A process where instructions are not necessarily executed in the order they appear in the code. This is a performance optimization technique that can lead to unexpected behavior in multithreaded programs.

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    Reordering in Peterson's Solution

    In the context of Peterson's solution, the reordering of instructions can lead to both threads entering the critical section simultaneously, violating mutual exclusion and causing potential data corruption.

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    Study Notes

    Chapter 6: Synchronization Tools

    • Synchronization tools are mechanisms to manage concurrent processes, ensuring orderly execution and data consistency

    • Background: Concurrent processes may interrupt each other, leading to inconsistencies when accessing shared data (e.g., the bounded buffer problem).

    • Critical-Section Problem: Defining protocols to prevent multiple processes from accessing shared resources concurrently.

    • Requirements for Critical Section Solution:

      • Mutual Exclusion: Only one process can be in its critical section at a time.
      • Progress: If no process is in its critical section, and some processes want to enter, the selection of the next process cannot be indefinitely postponed.
      • Bounded Waiting: A bound must exist on the number of times other processes are allowed to enter their critical sections after a process has requested entry and before that request is granted.
    • Interrupt-Based Solution: Using interrupts to disable and enable access to critical sections. While simple, this can lead to performance issues and starvation if a critical section takes too long to complete.

    • Two Process Solution (Software Solution 1):

      • Shared variable turn tracks whose turn it is to enter the critical section.
      • Process must obey while loop to wait its turn.
    • Peterson's Solution:

      • Uses two shared variables (turn, flag) to manage access to a critical section, ensuring mutual exclusion for processes.
      • The solution uses a flag array to indicate if a process is ready to enter the critical section, whereas turn controls which process has priority.
    • Correctness of Peterson's Solution: This algorithm fulfills the three critical section requirements (mutual exclusion, progress, bounded waiting).

    • Modern Architecture Limitations of Peterson's Solution: Reordering of instructions on modern processors can lead to unexpected or incorrect results.

    • Memory Barrier: Needed to enforce atomic operations to overcome reordering issues. Guarantees that instructions will be executed in a specific order, even with optimal instruction reordering.

    • Modern Architecture Example:

      • Shows that without memory barriers, the order of operations might change based on the processor's optimization efforts.
      • This can lead to unexpected results when multiple threads access and modify the same data

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