Capterra Glossary
Preemptive Multitasking
Preemptive multitasking is a computer operation, in which a computer’s operating system has the ability to switch between different computer programs. In preemptive multitasking, a computer operating system uses a set criteria to determine how long to run a specific computer task before letting another computer task make use of its computer resources, such as the computer’s central processing unit (CPU). Preemptive multitasking avoids the risk of a computer program dominating the CPU, which would prevent computer users from running multiple programs at once. The modern versions of WindowsOS and MacOS feature preemptive multitasking. This allows computer users to run multiple programs at the same time without their computer freezing up.
What Small and Midsize Businesses Need to Know About Preemptive Multitasking
It is important for small organizations to provide their company employees with a computer workstation that features a modern operating system, so that they can work as efficiently as possible. As opposed to the earlier versions of Windows and Mac operating systems, modern versions of these operating systems are capable of preemptive multitasking. By using modern operating systems that feature preemptive multitasking, small businesses can ensure that their employees’ workflows are not stalled by a lack of being able to run multiple business applications simultaneously.
Related Terms
- Synchronous
- Software as a Service (SaaS)
- Intranet
- Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR)
- Identity and Access Management (IAM)
- Managed Service Provider (MSP)
- Haptics
- WAN (Wide-Area Network)
- Service-oriented Architecture (SOA)
- Augmented Reality (AR)
- Chief Information Officer (CIO)
- Security Information and Event Management (SIEM)
- Platform as a Service (PaaS)
- Service-Level Agreement (SLA)
- Scalability
- Data Center
- Authorization
- Multitenancy