Managing processes within suspend states and execution states

• US 8,621,494 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2011
• Issued: 12/31/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 09/12/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Singh, Neeraj Kumar, Pulapaka, Hari, Kishan, Arun
• Primary Examiner(s): Truong, Lechi
• Assistant Examiner(s): SEYE, ABDOU K
• Application Number:
  US13/230,714
• Publication Number:
  US 20130067475A1
• Time in Patent Office: 841 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 719/328
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3203 Power management, i.e. event-based initiation of a power-saving mode
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/3228 Monitoring task completion, e.g. by use of idle timers, stop commands or wait commands
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/329 by task scheduling
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/485 Task life-cycle, e.g. stopping, restarting, resuming execution G06F9/4881 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: Y02D 10/00 Energy efficient computing, e.g. low power processors, power management or thermal management

Abstract

One or more techniques and/or systems are provided for suspending logically related processes associated with an application, determining whether to resume a suspended process based upon a wake policy, and/or managing an application state of an application, such as timer and/or system message data. That is, logically related processes associated with an application, such as child processes, may be identified and suspended based upon logical relationships between the processes (e.g., a logical container hierarchy may be traversed to identify logically related processes). A suspended process may be resumed based upon a wake policy. For example, a suspended process may be resumed based upon an inter-process communication call policy that may be triggered by an application attempting to communicate with the suspended process. Application data may be managed while an application is suspended so that the application may be resumed in a current and/or relevant state.

Claims

1. A method for determining whether to resume a suspended process based upon a wake policy, comprising:

maintaining a wake policy associated with a logical container assigned to a suspended process within a logical container hierarchy, the wake policy comprising a counter indicative of a number of wake notifications associated with the wake policy that are currently pending for the suspended process;

incrementing the counter based upon receiving a wake notification associated with the wake policy;

decrementing the counter based upon receiving a notification that the wake notification is not currently pending;

upon determining a value of the counter is above a threshold that is not zero;

placing the suspended process into an execution state;

traversing the logical container hierarchy to identify one or more additional suspended processes associated with the suspended process based upon determining that the one or more additional suspended processing are assigned to logical containers associated with the logical container of the suspended process; and

placing the one or more additional suspended processes into the execution state; and

upon determining the value of the counter is below the threshold, retaining the suspended process in a suspend state.

2. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to

an inter-process communication call from a requesting application.

3. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to a transition of a suspended application from a background state to a foreground state.

4. The method of claim 1, comprising at least one of:

upon determining the suspended process is in the execution state, filtering a wake notification transitioning the counter from a 0 value to a 1 value;

or

upon determining the suspended process is in the suspend state, filtering a wake notification transitioning the counter from a 1 value to a 0 value.

5. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to user input associated with a suspended application.

6. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to a component requesting access to the suspended process.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising:

adjusting the value based upon one or more weights associated with one or more wake policies.

8. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to an application.

9. The method of claim 1, the wake policy comprised in a set of wake policies.

10. The method of claim 1, the wake policy indicative of a reason to place the suspended process into the execution state.

11. The method of claim 1, the wake policy corresponding to a text editor application.

12. The method of claim 1, comprising:

upon determining that the suspended process is to be placed into the execution state, restoring memory content associated with the suspended process from a storage device.

13. A computer readable storage memory comprising computer executable instructions that when executed via a processing unit on a computer perform a method for determining whether to resume a suspended process based upon a wake policy, the method comprising:

maintaining a wake policy associated with a logical container assigned to a suspended process within a logical container hierarchy, the wake policy comprising a counter indicative of a number of wake notifications associated with the wake policy that are currently pending for the suspended process;

incrementing the counter based upon receiving a wake notification associated with the wake policy;

decrementing the counter based upon receiving a notification that the wake notification is not currently pending;

upon determining a value of the counter is above a threshold that is not zero;

placing the suspended process into an execution state;

traversing the logical container hierarchy to identify one or more additional suspended processes associated with the suspended process based upon determining that the one or more additional suspended processing are assigned to logical containers associated with the logical container of the suspended process; and

placing the one or more additional suspended processes into the execution state; and

upon determining the value of the counter is below the threshold, retaining the suspended process in a suspend state.

14. The computer readable storage memory of claim 13, the wake policy corresponding to an application.

15. The computer readable storage memory of claim 13, the wake policy corresponding to a text editor application.

16. A system for determining whether to resume a suspended process based upon a wake policy, comprising:

one or more processing units; and

memory comprising instructions that when executed by at least one of the one or more processing units implement at least some of;

a wake component configured to;

maintain a wake policy associated with a logical container assigned to a suspended process within a logical container hierarchy, the wake policy comprising a counter indicative of a number of wake notifications associated with the wake policy that are currently pending for the suspended process;

increment the counter based upon receiving a wake notification associated with the wake policy;

decrement the counter based upon receiving a notification that the wake notification is not currently pending;

upon determining a value of the counter is above a threshold that is not zero;

place the suspended process into an execution state;

traverse the logical container hierarchy to identify one or more additional suspended processes associated with the suspended process based upon determining that the one or more additional suspended processing are assigned to logical containers associated with the logical container of the suspended process; and

place the one or more additional suspended processes into the execution state; and

upon determining the value of the counter is below the threshold, retain the suspended process in a suspend state.

17. The system of claim 16, the wake policy corresponding to an application.

18. The system of claim 16, the wake policy corresponding to a text editor application.

19. The system of claim 16, the wake policy corresponding to at least one of:

an inter-process communication call from a requesting application to the suspended process;

a transition of a suspended application associated with the suspended process from a background state to a foreground state;

user input associated with the suspended application;

or

a component requesting access to the suspended process.

20. The system of claim 16, the wake component configured to:

upon determining that the suspended process is to be placed into the execution state, restore memory content associated with the suspended process from a storage device.