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A New Thread Implementation for OpenBSD
Ted Unangst
The existing userland pthreads library in use by OpenBSD is hampered by poor
performance, inability to utilize multiple CPUs, and unnecessary complexity. A
replacement library, rthreads, utilizes a modified rfork() system call to
create kernel threads. It is both simpler and more scaleable than the library
it replaces. A comparison with other kernel assisted threading implementations
is included.
About the Author
Ted Unangst has BA in Classics and an interest in OS kernel development, likes
to drink vodka, and is looking for a warmer place to live. He has been an
OpenBSD developer for two years.
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