Kernel Threads
Kernel threads are handled entirely by the kernel. They need not be associated with a process; a kernel can create them whenever it needs to perform a particular task. Kernel threads cannot execute in user mode. LWPs (in systems where they are a separate layer) bind to kernel threads and provide a user-level context. This includes a link to the shared resources of the process to which the LWP belongs. When an LWP is suspended, it needs to store its user-level registers until it resumes, and the underlying kernel thread must also store its own kernel-level registers.
Read more about this topic: Light-weight Process
Famous quotes containing the words kernel and/or threads:
“After night’s thunder far away had rolled
The fiery day had a kernel sweet of cold”
—Edward Thomas (1878–1917)
“Parents are like shuttles on a loom. They join the threads of the past with threads of the future and leave their own bright patterns as they go.”
—Fred Rogers (20th century)