[Xitami] SMP Problem (WAS: Xitami 2.4d9/Xitami 2.5b5)

[Brian {Hamilton Kelly}]

In message <200106231814.GAA05367@pagoda.wgtn.cat-it.co.nz>
   Ewen McNeill writes:
> In message <E15Dre5-0001ll-00@Mail.MH-Hannover.DE>, "Dr. Martin R. Hadam"
>  writes:
> > I've done some deep thinking <g> and then tested one thing I'd
> >apparently  forgotten (shame on me!): since the problem [see below] is
> >occuring on an SMP machine, I've disabled the use of both processors
> >using execmode and voilą - Xitami is now perfectly stable again. 
> 
> Ah ha. 
[snip]
> Our development version makes even less use of thread-related things, so
> it's possible the problem might go away with that.  Unfortunately we
> don't curerntly have an OS/2 development system, let alone a SMP-capable
> OS/2 development system available.  However I do have a SMP Linux
> development system, and I might try playing there and see if anything
> breaks.

I've not done any multi-threaded development myself either, but AIUI, the
support for multi-threading in OS/2 is an order of magnitude more
efficient than that in ANY dialect of Unix.  If you cannot properly
"corral" multiple execution threads, perhaps Xitami needs to make a
conscious effort to disable threading.  (Given that OS/2's multi-
threading support runs to 64 processors; also given that eComStation is
going to make a cheap SMP O/S available to all those with dual Pentium
motherboards.)

> And it's useful to know that single-threaded Xitami is very stable. 

Indeed.

-- 
Brian {Hamilton Kelly}                                          bhk@dsl.co.uk
    "We have gone from a world of concentrated knowledge and wisdom to one of
    distributed ignorance.  And we know and understand less while being incr-
    easingly capable."              Prof. Peter Cochrane, formerly of BT Labs