CPU I/O Burst Cycle:
The execution of a process consists of an alternation of CPU bursts and I/O
bursts. A process begins and ends with a CPU burst. In between, CPU activity is
suspended whenever an I/O operation is needed.
- If the CPU bursts are relatively short compared to the I/O bursts, then the
process is said to be I/O bound. For example, a typical data processing task
involves reading a record, some minimal computation and writing a record.
- If CPU bursts are relatively long compared to I/O bursts, a process is said to
be CPU bound. A number crunching task involves an I/O burst to read parameters.
A very long CPU burst and another I/O burst is required to write results.
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