Process (computing): Difference between revisions

Revision as of 12:36, 6 December 2005

Revision as of 11:45, 11 December 2005

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In [[computing]], a '''process''' is a running [[instance]] of a [[program]], including all variables and other state. A multitasking operating system switches between processes to give the appearance of simultaneous execution, though in fact only one process can be executing at once per [[CPU]] [[core]].

A process always corresponds to a program, and a program can have multiple processes corresponding to it. In other words, the relation between process and program is [[many-to-one]].

Roughly speaking, a process is a task being run by a computer, often simultaneously with many other tasks. Many processes may exist simultaneously, each taking turns on a [[Central processing unit|CPU]].