Process Management (computing) - Process Description and Control

Process Description and Control

Each process in the system is represented by a data structure called a Process Control Block (PCB), or Process Descriptor in Linux, which performs the same function as a traveller's passport. The PCB contains the basic information about the job including:

  • What it is
  • Where it is going
  • How much of its processing has been completed
  • Where it is stored
  • How much it has “spent” in using resources

Process Identification: Each process is uniquely identified by the user’s identification and a pointer connecting it to its descriptor.

Process Status: This indicates the current status of the process; READY, RUNNING, BLOCKED, READY SUSPEND, BLOCKED SUSPEND.

Process State: This contains all of the information needed to indicate the current state of the job.

Accounting: This contains information used mainly for billing purposes and for performance measurement. It indicates what kind of resources the process has used and for how long.

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