Multiprocessor thread scheduling strategies

Load Sharing: Processes are not assigned to a particular processor. A global queue of threads is maintained. Each processor, when idle, selects a thread from this queue. Note that load balancing refers to a scheme where work is allocated to processors on a more permanent basis.

Gang Scheduling: A set of related threads is scheduled to run on a set of processors at the same time, on a 1-to-1 basis. Closely related threads / processes may be scheduled this way to reduce synchronization blocking, and minimize process switching. Group scheduling predated this strategy.

Dedicated processor assignment: Provides implicit scheduling defined by assignment of threads to processors. For the duration of program execution, each program is allocated a set of processors equal in number to the number of threads in the program. Processors are chosen from the available pool.

Dynamic scheduling: The number of thread in a program can be altered during the course of execution.

What is Cygwin

Cygwin is an open source collection of tools that allows Unix or Linux applications to be compiled and run on a Windows operating system from within a Linux-like interface. This capability helps developers to migrate applications from Unix or Linux to Windows-based systems, and makes it easier to support their applications running on the Windows platform. Cygwin includes a dynamic link library (DLL) and a collection of tools. The DLL serves as a Linux emulator, and the tool set provides the Linux-like development environment.

Using Cygwin, developers can more easily provide remote support for applications running on Windows platforms. Because Unix and Linux are open to public input, administrators have contributed a great number of management scripts for these systems over the years, helping to assemble a large collection of available administrative tools. Cygwin makes it possible to use these scripts on computers running Windows, as well. An administrator can log in to a Windows-based computer and fix user problems within a Unix or Linux shell, and can also incorporate Windows command line interface tools into the shell script environment.

The name Cygwin was created from a combination of Cygnus and Windows

Know more about Cron Script

A CRON script is a list of one or more commands to a computer operating system or application server that are to be executed at a specified time. Each command is executed when its triggering time arrives. In Unix-based operating systems, the crontab command is a user interface command that creates or changes a file (called a crontab file). This file contains a list of UNIX shell commands, each with a specified time of execution. A CRON script is similar.