Table of Content

Introduction to Asynchronous Programming

• Asynchronous Programming:
  • Allows multiple tasks to run simultaneously without waiting for each to finish before starting the next.
  • Improves efficiency and responsiveness by overlapping tasks.
• Synchronous vs. Asynchronous:
  • Synchronous: Tasks are executed one after another, in a specific order, which can slow down the program.
  • Asynchronous: Tasks can overlap, running at the same time without waiting for others to finish.
• Advantages of Asynchronous Programming:
  • Concurrency: Multiple tasks can run concurrently, improving the program's efficiency.
  • Non-blocking: The program can continue other tasks while waiting for long-running operations to complete.
  • Efficiency: By not waiting idly for tasks to complete, the program can handle more tasks in less time.
• Challenges of Asynchronous Programming:
  • Complexity in Control Flow: Managing the sequence of tasks can become complicated.
  • Error Handling: Errors in async code can be harder to manage and debug.
  • Testing and Debugging: Testing asynchronous code requires careful consideration of timing and order of execution.

Introduction to Processes and Threads

• Processes vs. Threads:
  • Process: An active instance of a program, with its own memory space and system resources.
  • Thread: The smallest unit of processing within a process, allowing multiple operations to run concurrently within the same application.
• Memory Components of a Process:
  • Stack: Stores temporary data like function arguments and local variables.
  • Heap: Used for dynamic memory allocation.
  • Text: Contains the compiled machine code of the program.
  • Data: Stores global and static variables.
• Multithreading:
  • Allows a single program to perform multiple tasks simultaneously, making better use of resources and improving efficiency.

Thread Lifecycle and Concurrency

• Thread Lifecycle Stages:
  • New: Thread is created but not yet started.
  • Runnable: Thread is ready to run and waiting for CPU time.
  • Blocked: Thread is paused, waiting for a resource.
  • Waiting: Thread is waiting for another thread's action or a specific time to proceed.
  • Terminated: Thread has completed its task and ends.
• Difference Between Running and Runnable:
  • Runnable: Thread is ready to run but waiting for the operating system to schedule its execution.
  • Running: The thread is actively executing on a CPU core.

Race Conditions and Synchronization

• Race Condition:
  • Occurs when multiple threads access and modify shared resources simultaneously, leading to unpredictable results.
• Synchronization:
  • Ensures that only one thread can access a critical section of code at a time, preventing race conditions.
  • Synchronized Methods: Locks the entire method for a single thread.
  • Synchronized Blocks: Locks a specific section of code within a method.