1. Multi-threading
OOSSE - Programming with Java
Lecture 11
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 1

2. Objectives
In this lecture, we will:
• Introduce threads
• Discuss the Thread class and the Runnable interface
• Discuss interrupting threads
• Introduce concepts of thread synchronization
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 2

3. Introduction
• A thread is a path of execution through a program
• Many programs exist with just a single path of execution
• Operating systems (OS) often allow multiple processes to
co-exist and the OS shares processor time between them
– The processes are isolated from each by the OS
– They should not be able to overwrite each other’s memory
• Languages like Java, C++ and C# allow a single
application to have more than one thread of execution
– a thread is the smallest unit of execution in the OS
– Multiple threads in an application share the same process
space; they have access to the same memory
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 3

4. Why use threads?
• A lot of the time a computer is doing nothing!
– Often waiting for user input or a slow peripheral device
• A computer can use any spare time by:
– Multitasking – more than one process competing for the CPU
– Mulit-threading - more than one thread competing for the CPU
• Threads can be used to:
– Allow the application to do something else while it is waiting
– Start more than one task at a time rather than wait for one to
complete before starting another
• Start processing data before all the data has loaded
– Maintain an active user interface
• The interface does not die while processing takes place
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 4

5. Threads in Java
• There are two ways of creating threads in Java:
• The Thread class can be subclassed and an instance of
this class used
– This is most appropriate when the functionality of the thread
is largely independent
• Any class can implement the Runnable interface
– An instance of the Thread class is constructed using an
instance of the Runnable class as an argument
– This is appropriate when the thread must work in the context
of a specific object
• In either case the key method is run
– The life of the thread exists through the execution of run
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 5

6. Subclassing the Thread class
public class MyThread extends Thread {
private String msg;
private int num;
public MyThread(String m, int n)
{
msg = m;
num = n;
}
public void run(){
// the work of the thread takes place within the run method
// the thread terminates when the method ends
}
}
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 6

7. Implementing the Runnable Interface
public class SimpleRun implements Runnable {
private String msg;
private int num;
public SimpleRun(String m, int n)
{
msg = m;
num = n;
}
public void run(){
// the work of the thread takes place within the run method
// the thread terminates when the method ends
}
}
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 7

8. Starting a Thread
• Although the thread lives through the method run it is
started by the method start
MyThread t1;
t1 = new MyThread("Hello",5);
t1.start();
Thread t2;
t2 = new Thread(new SimpleRun("Pete", 20));
t2.start();
• Any code can be placed in the run method but the method
can be interrupted and must handle the exception
– InterruptedException
• A thread can sleep if it wishes – normally while waiting
– Thread.sleep( )
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 8

9. Sample Code for the run Method
public void run(){
// output msg num times
for (int i = 0; i < num; ++i)
{
System.out.println(msg + " " + i) ;
try
{
Thread.sleep(100);
}
catch (InterruptedException e)
{
System.out.println("Thread interrupted: " + e);
}
}
}
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 9

10. Potential Problems with Threads
• It is very easy to start multiple threads
• If the threads are largely independent then the design is
somewhat easier
• However, at some stage threads normally want to share
some data
– All threads in an application have access to the same memory
space
• When a thread may lose its time slice is unpredictable in
most cases
• Access to shared resources by multiple threads may lead to:
– Deadlock
– Thread starvation
– Race conditions
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 10

11. Thread Synchronization
• Thread safe applications can only be built by careful
design and appropriate use synchronization facilities
• The most obvious problem is when one data object is
accessed by more than one thread
– If an update of the data is not completed then the data may
be in an inconsistent state if accessed by another thread
• It is possible to use locks to prevent multiple access to
contentious code
• Java provides:
– Synchronized methods
– Synchronized blocks
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 11

12. Synchronized Methods
• A thread can lock an object temporarily
– Typically until it has finished using it
– When another object tries to access the same object it is
blocked
• Synchronized methods are used for object locking
– Once a thread starts executing a synchronized method it
completes the method before any other thread can execute
a synchronized method on the same object
– For example:
public class MyData{
public synchronized void add ( … ) { … }
public synchronized void renove ( … ) { … }
}
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 12

13. Wait and Notify
• If a synchronized cannot run to completion because it
needs a resource then it cannot simply sleep
– Sleeping does not release the lock
– If the resource is provided by another synchronized thread
on the same object the supplying thread is blocked
• Instead of sleeping the thread can wait
– Calling wait inside a synchronized method not only makes
the thread wait but also allows another thread to acquire the
lock
• A waiting thread is blocked until another thread calls
notifyAll or notify on the object for which the thread is
waiting
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 13

14. Wait and Notify
• Consider adding to and removing from a data structure
that can hold a limited amount of data:
public synchronized void add( … ) throws InterruptedException
{
while ( dataStructureIsFull() ) wait( ) ;
// now add data …
}
public synchronized void remove ( … ) {
// assuming there is some data
// remove data – space is now available to add
notifyAll( ); // unblock all threads waiting on this lock
}
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 14

15. Synchronized Blocks
• Synchronized methods automatically lock and unlock
objects
• It is possible to apply a lock to a block of code
– The lock is based upon a specific object
• The syntax is:
synchronized ( someObject )
{
// only one thread in the block of code at a time
}
• It is normally better to think about thread safe code at the class
level
– Think about using synchronized methods in preference to
synchronized blocks
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 15

16. Summary
In this lecture we have:
• Introduced threads
• Discussed the Thread class and the Runnable interface
• Discussed interrupting threads
• Introduced concepts of thread synchronization
Dec 21, 2012 OOSSE - Java Lecture 11 16