Busy lock and a passive lock for embedded load management

• US 9,830,200 B2
• Filed: 03/25/2015
• Issued: 11/28/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/16/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Duvuru, Srinath, Greco, Marco, McMahon, Jeffrey A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Wu, Benjamin
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huaracha, Willy W
• Application Number:
  US14/668,137
• Publication Number:
  US 20150301871A1
• Time in Patent Office: 979 Days
• Field of Search: 718100, 718104
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/52 Program synchronisation; Mutual exclusion, e.g. by means of semaphores
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/524 Deadlock detection or avoidance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/526 Mutual exclusion algorithms

Abstract

Embodiments relate to managing exclusive control of a shareable resource between a plurality of concurrently executing threads. An aspect includes determining the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource. Another aspect includes, responsive to a determination that the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeds a pre-determined value, one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource. Another aspect includes, responsive to a determination that the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource is less than a pre-determined value, one or more of said one or more concurrently executing threads which terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, restarting a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource.

Claims

1. A method for managing exclusive control of a shareable resource between a plurality of concurrently executing threads, the method comprising:

determining at intervals a number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource;

comparing the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the sharable resource to a pre-determined value;

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeding the pre-determined value and upon a determination that it is fair for one or more of said concurrently executing threads to terminate its wait, one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the terminating including dropping a current ticket for the sharable resource and returning resources associated with the shareable resource for use by others of the concurrently executing threads; and

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource not exceeding the pre-determined value, one or more of said one or more concurrently executing threads which terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, restarting a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the restarting including acquiring a new ticket for the sharable resource,

wherein when it is determined that a concurrently executing thread has previously terminated and restarted a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, it does not terminate its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, and wherein when an exclusive control of the shareable resource is granted in an ordered manner, concurrently executing threads do not terminate their wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource when a preceding thread has terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein upon said one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, another of the concurrently executing threads from a system ready queue begins execution.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising, before said terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, said one or more concurrently executing threads checking for the presence of others of said one or more concurrently executing threads in a system ready queue and not terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource if there are no other concurrently executing threads in the system ready queue.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein access to the shareable resource is controlled by a passive lock comprising a sequence of an outer busy lock and an inner busy lock, a first one of said concurrently executing threads wanting exclusive control of the shareable resource acquiring the outer busy lock, followed by the inner busy lock, the method further comprising:

on releasing control of the passive lock, said first one of said concurrently executing threads acquires the inner busy lock and determines the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource; and

further responsive to a determination that the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeds a pre-determined value and upon a determination that it is fair for one or more of said concurrently executing threads to terminate its wait, said first one of said concurrently executing threads passing ownership of the passive lock and the inner busy lock to a concurrently executing thread located at the front of a system ready queue.

5. A system for managing exclusive control of a shareable resource between a plurality of concurrently executing threads, the system comprising:

a memory having computer readable computer instructions; and

a processor for executing the computer readable computer instructions, the computer readable computer instructions comprising;

determining at intervals a number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource;

comparing, by the processor, the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the sharable resource to a pre-determined value;

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeding the pre-determined value and upon a determination that it is fair for one or more of said concurrently executing threads to terminate its wait, one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the terminating including dropping a current ticket for the sharable resource and returning resources associated with the shareable resource for use by others of the concurrently executing threads; and

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource not exceeding the pre-determined value, for one or more of said one or more concurrently executing threads which terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, restarting a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the restarting including acquiring a new ticket for the sharable resource,

wherein when it is determined that a concurrently executing thread has previously terminated and restarted a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, it does not terminate its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, and wherein when an exclusive control of the shareable resource is granted in an ordered manner, concurrently executing threads do not terminate their wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource when a preceding thread has terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the instructions further comprise, upon said one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, for beginning execution of another of the concurrently executing threads from a system ready queue.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the instructions further comprise for said one or more concurrently executing threads checking for the presence of others of said one or more concurrently executing threads in a system ready queue before terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource if there are no other concurrently executing threads in a system ready queue.

8. The system of claim 5, wherein access to the shareable resource is controlled by a passive lock comprising a sequence of an outer busy lock and an inner busy lock, a first one of said concurrently executing thread wanting exclusive control of the shareable resource acquiring the outer busy lock, followed by the inner busy lock, the system further comprising:

on releasing control of the passive lock, means for said first one of said concurrently executing thread to acquire the inner busy lock and determine the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource; and

wherein, responsive to a determination that the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeds a pre-determined value and upon a determination that it is fair for one or more of said concurrently executing threads to terminate its wait, for said first concurrently executing thread passing ownership of the passive lock and the inner busy lock to the concurrently executing thread located at the front of a system ready queue.

9. A computer program product for managing exclusive control of a shareable resource between a plurality of concurrently executing threads, the computer program product comprising:

a computer readable storage medium having computer readable program code embodied therewith, the computer readable program code adapted to perform the following method when said program is run on a computer;

determining at intervals a number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource;

comparing, by the processor, the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the sharable resource to a pre-determined value;

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource exceeding the pre-determined value and upon a determination that it is fair for one or more of said concurrently executing threads to terminate its wait, one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the terminating including dropping a current ticket for the sharable resource and returning resources associated with the sharable resource for use by others of the concurrently executing threads; and

responsive to the number of concurrently executing threads waiting for exclusive control of the shareable resource not exceeding the pre-determined value, one or more of said one or more concurrently executing threads which terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, restarting a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, the restarting including acquiring a new ticket for the sharable resource,

wherein when it is determined that a concurrently executing thread has previously terminated and restarted a wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, it does not terminate its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, and wherein when an exclusive control of the shareable resource is granted in an ordered manner, concurrently executing threads do not terminate their wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource when a preceding thread has terminated its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein upon said one or more of said concurrently executing threads terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, another of the concurrently executing threads from a system ready queue begins execution.

11. The computer program product of claim 10, further comprising, before terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource, said one or more concurrently executing threads checking for the presence of others of said one or more concurrently executing threads in a system ready queue and not terminating its wait for exclusive control of the shareable resource if there are no other concurrently executing threads in the system ready queue.