GATE 2011 CS (CS1) – Question 16

Operating System · System Calls, Processes, Threads and IPC · 1 mark · Multiple choice

User-to-kernel mode switch time is t₁; switching between two processes takes t₂. Which is true?

t₁>t₂
t₁=t₂
t₁<t₂
No relation can be stated

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Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: (C) t₁<t₂

Explanation

A mode switch changes privilege while retaining the current process context. A process switch additionally saves/restores execution state and may change address-space context. Under the conventional comparison it costs more, so t₁<t₂, C.

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