When a currently running process requests an I/O operation and another process…

2019

When a currently running process requests an I/O operation and another process is available in the ready queue, how many process state switches take place?

  1. A.

    One

  2. B.

    Four

  3. C.

    Three

  4. D.

    Two

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Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: D

Correct answer: Two

  • First switch: The currently running process leaves the Running state and moves to the Blocked/Waiting state for I/O.

  • Second switch: One process from the Ready queue is selected and moved to the Running state.

  • Note: This PYQ wording counts process state switches. If someone says one context switch, they are usually referring to the single CPU context-transfer event, not the two process state changes counted here.

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