Understanding Race Conditions and Enforcing Single Access

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What is the main consequence of enforcing a rule that only one process may enter a function at a time?

Processes will be blocked from entering the function if another process is already executing it. (correct)
Processes will be able to enter the function, but the data and resources will not be protected against interference.
Processes will be able to execute the function concurrently without any issues.
Processes will be able to enter the function, but the final output will depend on the order of execution.

What is a race condition in the context of concurrent processes?

A situation where processes are allocated and de-allocated resources by the operating system.
A situation where processes are waiting for the same resources, leading to a deadlock.
A situation where processes are executed in a specific order, leading to a deterministic output.
A situation where processes compete for the same resources, leading to unpredictable results. (correct)

What is the main design and management issue raised by the existence of concurrency in an operating system?

The operating system must keep track of various processes and allocate/de-allocate resources.
The operating system must ensure that the processes and outputs are independent of the processing speed.
The operating system must protect the data and resources against interference by other processes.
All of the above. (correct)

What is the purpose of mutual exclusion in the context of process interaction?

To ensure that processes can execute their critical sections without any race conditions. (B) Signup and view all the answers

What is the main cause of a deadlock in the context of concurrent processes?

Processes waiting for the same resources that they already own. (C) Signup and view all the answers

How can the operating system protect data and resources against interference by other processes in a concurrent environment?

By implementing mutual exclusion mechanisms to control access to critical sections. (A) Signup and view all the answers

What is a key issue in modern Operating Systems related to managing multiple processes?

Concurrency (C) Signup and view all the answers

Why is it difficult to locate programming errors in concurrent systems?

Non-deterministic and non-reproducible results (B) Signup and view all the answers

What is a common challenge in concurrency related to global resources?

Optimal resource allocation (B) Signup and view all the answers

What is the main difficulty associated with interleaving and overlapping processes on multiprocessors?

Non-reproducible results (A) Signup and view all the answers

Which technique is used to enforce single access to shared resources in concurrent systems?

Semaphore (B) Signup and view all the answers

What can lead to unexpected behavior in a system with multiple processes sharing resources concurrently?

Race conditions (C) Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of the requirement for mutual exclusion in operating systems?

To ensure that only one process can access the critical section at a time (C) Signup and view all the answers

In the context of concurrency, what does disabling interrupts help achieve?

Guarantees mutual exclusion (A) Signup and view all the answers

What is a semaphore primarily used for in managing global resources?

Facilitating signaling between processes (C) Signup and view all the answers

Why must a process halt in its noncritical section without interfering with others?

To maintain mutual exclusion and prevent race conditions (A) Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of the time out concept in process design with respect to concurrency?

To ensure that a process leaves its critical section within a finite time (C) Signup and view all the answers

How does exchanging data between registers and memory help maintain mutual exclusion?

By guaranteeing atomicity of operations and avoiding race conditions (B) Signup and view all the answers