Hierarchical resource management method

• US 5,682,530 A
• Filed: 05/25/1995
• Issued: 10/28/1997
• Est. Priority Date: 05/27/1994
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Original Assignee: NEC Corporation
• Inventors: Shimamura, Nobuaki
• Primary Examiner(s): TOPLU, LUCIEN
• Application Number:
  US08/450,783
• Time in Patent Office: 887 Days
• Field of Search: 395/600, 395/674, 395/651, 395/497.02, 395/497.03, 395/676, 395/492, 364/200, 370/58.2
• US Class Current: 718/104
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/52 Program synchronisation; Mutual exclusion, e.g. by means of semaphores

Abstract

With a time-sharing-oriented operating system, resource management groups are hierarchically formed including a plurality of processes. Each resource management group includes a resource management process for managing resources allocated to its group, at least one process which is a descendant of the resource management process and not included in other resource management groups, and a resource management block for storing information on the resources managed by its own group. Resource management processes are linked to each other in accordance with parent-child relationships between the respective resource management groups to form a resource management tree. At the generation of a new resource management group, resources necessary for the newly generated resource management group are distributed from resources owned by a parent resource management group of the newly generated resource management group in accordance with the resource management tree.

Claims

1. A hierarchical resource management method by a time-sharing-oriented operating system for controlling process generation in accordance with parent-child relationships of a tree structure and dynamically managing resources available to the whole operating system on a process basis, comprising the steps of:

forming a plurality of resource management groups, each resource management group including a plurality of processes, in a hierarchical tree structure;

a highest-order resource management group of the plurality of resource management groups including as one of the plurality of processes a resource management route process for managing resources of the whole system, at least one process which is a descendant of the resource management route process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by the highest-order resource management group including information on resources secured and in use by the highest order resource management group; and

each resource management group other than said highest-order resource management group including a resource management process for managing resources allocated to said resource management group, at least one process which is a descendant of the resource management process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by said resource management group including information on resources secured and in use by said resource management group;

forming a resource management tree by linking said resource management route process as the highest-order parent and each resource management process of each resource management group other than the highest-order resource management group in accordance with parent-child relationships between the respective resource management groups of the hierarchical tree structure; and

at the generation of a new resource management group other than said highest-order resource management group, distributing a necessary amount of resources for the newly generated resource management group from those secured by a parent resource management group of said newly generated resource management group in accordance with said resource management tree.

2. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 1, comprising the steps of:

at the generation of a new resource management group, when a necessary amount of resources for the newly generated resource management group is not more than resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the newly generated resource management group, distributing the resources to said newly generated resource management group;

when the resources secured and not used by the immediate parent resource management group of said newly generated resource management group are less than the amount of resources necessary for said newly generated resource management group, tracing back to a further preceding parent resource management group, distributing resources from the preceding parent resource management group to descending resource management groups to secure the necessary amount and then allocating the resources to said newly generated resource management group;

when the resource shortage can not be covered by tracing back to the highest-order resource management group, if queuing for release of resources is designated as not possible for said new resource management group, distributing resources securable in the resource management route process and the respective resource management processes to child resource management groups to allocate the resources to said newly generated resource management group; and

when queuing for release of resources is designated as possible, queuing for release of resources from child resource management groups in the resource management route process and sequentially distributing resources to child resource management groups upon acquisition of resources to allocate the resources to said newly generated resource management group.

3. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 1, further comprising the step of, when a resource management group disappears, releasing resources secured by the resource management group to disappear and combining the resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the resource management group to disappear.

4. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 1, wherein distribution of resources to an individual process in a resource management group is made within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

5. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 2, further comprising the step of, when a resource management group disappears, releasing resources secured by the resource management group to disappear and combining the resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the resource management group to disappear.

6. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 2, wherein distribution of resources to an individual process in a resource management group is made within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

7. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 2, further comprising the step of, when a resource management group disappears, releasing resources secured by the resource management group to disappear and combining the resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the resource management group to disappear, wherein

distribution of resources to an individual process in a resource management group is made within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

8. A hierarchical resource management method by a time-sharing-oriented operating system for conducting control including generation and disappearance of processes in accordance with parent-child relationships of a tree structure and dynamically managing resources available to the whole operating system on a process basis, comprising the steps of:

forming a plurality of resource management groups, each resource management group including a plurality of processes in a hierarchical tree structure;

a highest-order resource management group of the plurality of resource management groups including as one of the plurality of processes a resource management route process for managing resources of the whole system, at least one process which is a descendant of the resource management route process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by the resource management group including information on resources secured and in use by said resource management group; and

each resource management group other than said highest-order resource management group including a resource management process for managing resources allocated to said resource management group, at least one process which is a descendant of the resource management process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by said resource management group including information on resources secured and in use by said resource management group;

at the generation of a new resource management group, when a necessary amount of resources for the newly generated resource management group is covered by resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the newly generated resource management group, distributing the resources to said newly generated resource management group;

when the resources secured and not used by the immediate parent resource management group of said newly generated resource management group are less than the amount of resources necessary for said newly generated resource management group, tracing back to a further preceding parent resource management group, distributing resources from the preceding parent resource management group to descending resource management groups to secure the necessary amount and then allocating the resources to said newly generated resource management group;

when the resource shortage can not be covered by tracing back to the highest-order resource management group, if queuing for release of resources is designated as not possible for said new resource management group, distributing resources securable in the resource management route process and the respective resource management processes to child resource management groups to allocate the resources to said newly generated resource management group; and

when queuing for release of resources is designated as possible, queuing for release of resources from child resource management groups in the resource management route process and sequentially distributing resources to child resource management groups upon acquisition of resources to allocate the resources to said newly generated resource management group.

9. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 8, further comprising the step of, when a resource management group disappears, releasing resources secured by the resource management group to disappear and combining the resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the resource management group to disappear.

10. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 8, wherein distribution of resources to an individual process in a resource management group is made within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

11. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 8, further comprising the step of, when a resource management group disappears, releasing resources secured by the resource management group to disappear and combining the resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the resource management group to disappear, wherein

distribution of resources to an individual process in a resource management group is made within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

12. A hierarchical resource management method by a time-sharing-oriented operating system for conducting control including generation and disappearance of processes in accordance with parent-child relationships of a tree structure and dynamically managing resources available to the whole operating system on a process basis, comprising the steps of:

forming a plurality of resource management groups, each resource management group including a plurality of process management units, in a hierarchical tree structure, for managing said processes;

a highest-order resource management group of the plurality of resource management groups including as one of the plurality of process management units, a process management unit for managing a resource management route process which manages resources of the whole system, at least one process management unit for managing a process which is a descendant of the resource management route process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by the resource management group including information on resources secured and in use by said resource management group, said each process management unit linking to said resource management block and said resource management block linking to the process management unit for managing said resource management route process; and

each resource management group other than said highest-order resource management group including a process management unit for managing a resource management process which manages resources allocated to said resource management group, at least one process management unit for managing a process which is a descendant of the resource management process and not included in any other resource management group, and a resource management block for storing information on resources managed by said resource management group, said each process management unit linking to said resource management block, said resource management block linking to the process management unit which manages said resource management process, and said resource management block linking to a resource management block of a parent resource management group of its own group;

forming a resource management tree ensuring a hierarchical structure between the respective resource management groups by linking a resource management block of a child resource management group to a resource management block of a parent resource management group and linking said resource management block to the process management unit for managing said resource management route process or to the process management unit for managing said resource management process; and

securing resources necessary for the resource management group from its parent resource management group by the process management unit for managing said resource management process in accordance with said resource management tree.

13. A hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 12, further comprising the steps of:

when a necessary amount of resources for a group is covered by resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of the group, securing the necessary amount of resources for the group by a process management unit of the group for managing a resource management process;

when the resources secured and not used by the immediate parent resource management group of its own group are insufficient to satisfy the amount of resources necessary for a newly generated resource management group, sequentially acquiring resources from at least one further preceding parent resource management group to secure the necessary amount;

when the resource shortage can not be covered by sequentially acquiring resources from the highest-order resource management group, if queuing for release of resources is designated as not possible by the process management unit which manages said resource management process, securing resources in the resource management route process and the respective resource management processes; and

when queuing for release of resources is designated as possible, queuing for release of resources from child resource management groups in the resource management route process and securing the necessary amount of resources upon acquisition of resources.

14. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 12, wherein a process management unit for managing a resource management process of a resource management group to disappear releases resources secured by its own group and combines the released resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of its own group.

15. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 12, wherein a process management unit for managing a resource management process distributes resources to an individual process in a resource management group within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

16. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 13, wherein a process management unit for managing a resource management process of a resource management group to disappear releases resources secured by its own group and combines the released resources with resources secured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of its own group.

17. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 13, wherein a process management unit for managing a resource management process distributes resources to an individual process in a resource management group within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.

18. The hierarchical resource management method as set forth in claim 13, wherein

a process management unit for managing a resource management process of a resource management group to disappear releases resources secured by its own group and combines the released resources with resources unsecured and not used by an immediate parent resource management group of its own group;

and

a process management unit for managing a resource management process distributes resources to an individual process in a resource management group within a total amount of resources allocated to the resource management group.