Adaptive Process Importance

• US 20130332941A1
• Filed: 10/19/2012
• Published: 12/12/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 06/08/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Ramesh, Ananthakrishna, Sorresso, Damien Pascal, Magee, James Michael, Lin, Yosen, Van Vechten, Kevin James, Vaishampayan, Umesh Suresh
• Granted Patent: US 9,411,637 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 719/314
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4831 with variable priority
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4843 by program, e.g. task dispatcher, supervisor, operating system

Abstract

A method and apparatus of a device that changes the importance of a daemon process is described. In an exemplary embodiment, the device receives a message from a user process destined for daemon process, wherein the daemon process executes independently of the user process and the first daemon process communicates messages with other executing processes. The device further determines if the first message indicates that the importance of the first daemon process can be changed. If the first message indicates the importance of the first daemon process can be changed, the device changes the importance of the first daemon process. The device additionally forwards the first message to the first daemon process.

Claims

1. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause one or more processing units to perform a method to change an importance of a first daemon process, the method comprising:

receiving a first message from a user process destined for the first daemon process, wherein the first daemon process executes independently of the user process, the first daemon process communicates messages with other executing processes, and the message is a service request to the first daemon process from the user process;

determining if the first message indicates that the importance of the first daemon process can be changed;

if the first message indicates the importance of the first daemon process can be changed,

changing the importance of the first daemon process; and

forwarding the first message to the first daemon process.

2. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the user process is running at a higher importance higher than the first daemon process.

3. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the changing the importance of the first daemon process changes importance of the first daemon process to an importance that is the same as the user process.

4. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the determining comprises:

determining if the message is destined for a first daemon process that can have the importance of the first daemon process changed.

5. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein forwarding the message comprises:

enqueueing the message in a port queue for the first daemon process.

6. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

maintaining a count of assertions for the first daemon process;

receiving a drop assertion for the first daemon process;

decrementing the count of assertions for the first daemon process; and

if the count of assertions for the first daemon process is zero,

changing the importance of the first daemon process to a default importance.

7. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

receiving a second message from a user process destined for a second daemon process, wherein the second daemon process is executing, the second daemon process executes independently of the first daemon process, and the second daemon process communicates messages with the other executing processes;

determining if the second message indicates that the importance of the second daemon process can be changed;

if the second message indicates the importance of the second daemon process can be changed,

changing the importance of the second daemon process; and

forwarding the second message to the second daemon process.

8. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 7, wherein the changing the importance of the second daemon process changes the importance of the second daemon process being changed to an importance that is the same as the user process.

9. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, further comprising:

marking the first message as carrying importance.

10. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the forwarding of the first message to the first daemon is in response to the changing of the first daemon process importance.

11. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the user process is a process for a user application that is executing in the foreground.

12. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the first daemon process is running in the background.

13. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 1, wherein a process importance is indicates that an action is needed on behalf of the user.

14. A non-transitory machine-readable medium having executable instructions to cause one or more processing units to perform a method to change a importance of an adaptive daemon process, the method comprising:

receiving a message from an importance donor process destined for an adaptive daemon, wherein the adaptive daemon has yet to be launched;

determining if the message indicates that the importance of the adaptive daemon process can be changed;

if the message indicates the importance of the adaptive daemon process can be changed,

launching the adaptive daemon process with an importance that is different a default importance associated with the adaptive daemon process; and

forwarding the message to the launched adaptive daemon process.

15. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the adaptive daemon process is a daemon process with a changeable process importance.

16. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the importance donor process is a process that can donate an importance to another process.

17. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 16, wherein an importance donor process is selected from the group consisting of a user application process and another adaptive daemon process whose importance has been promoted.

18. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the adaptive daemon process importance is promoted to an importance of the importance donor.

19. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the message is a service request from the importance donor process to the adaptive daemon process.

20. A apparatus to change an importance of a first daemon process, the system comprising:

means for determining if the first message indicates that the importance of the first daemon process can be changed;

if the first message indicates the importance of the first daemon process can be changed,

means for changing the importance of the first daemon process; and

means for forwarding the first message to the first daemon process.