What Does computer process Mean
Process is a term with multiple uses, which appear in very diverse contexts. In the field of computing , the concept refers to the execution of various instructions by the microprocessor , according to what a program indicates.
The operating system of the computer (computer) is responsible for managing the processes. This software manages the instructions that other computer programs send to the microprocessor, analyzes the execution status and organizes the memory dedicated to tasks.
The operating system is responsible for creating and deleting processes and for establishing communications between them. The way of management, however, depends on the way of working of each operating system in particular.
There are several ways to create a computer process, such as the start of the system itself , the request of a user or the call made by another process. As for the termination of a process, it can take place in a normal way, from an error or at the request of another process.
A computer process, on the other hand, can go through different states . It can be running (when you are using the microprocessor), blocked (executing it requires another event to take place), or ready (when you release the microprocessor so that it can be dedicated to another process).
It is possible to distinguish between different types of processes. The cooperative processes , for example, are managed by various configurations of hardware . The distributed processes , however, are distributed among various elements of a system. There are also parallel processes , which are characterized by being executed simultaneously .
The completion of a computer process is the last phase of its life , the previous two being its creation and the execution of instructions. Termination can occur for different reasons, which are manifested through the state that the process goes through at the time of being eliminated:
* normal output : takes place when the process is terminated by the will of the user, something that happens constantly during normal use of a device. For example, every time a program is closed;
* Exit by error : this is the opposite case to the previous one, since the termination of the computer process is due to the impossibility of continuing in execution . A common example of this is when the data is insufficient, that is, when a process requires a file that it cannot find at the address provided by the program;
* fatal error : this state tends to cause fear to less experienced users, since its way of manifesting itself is not exactly friendly. Its cause is an error in the program, something that can occur for various reasons, such as trying to write to a part of memory that is not accessible, or requiring a division by 0;
* Killed by another process : Some operating systems display messages such as "the program is not responding" to their users in situations where the program does not seem to be working. The reality is usually very different, since in most cases it happens that you have been "trapped" in an infinite cycle , that is, just the opposite. In these cases, the only recourse to terminate the computing process seems to be the help of another, which, depending on the environment, can be executed through the press of a button or instructions written in the command window.
To achieve optimal performance of a computer, one of the fundamental points is to know the computer processes that the operating system executes by default and distinguish those that are really useful for us, in order to stop the rest and avoid unnecessary use of the processor and memory.