time slice

time slice

[′tīm ‚slīs] (computer science) A time interval during which a time-sharing system is processing one particular computer program. Also known as time quantum.

time slice

(operating system)(Or "time quantum", "quantum") The periodof time for which a process is allowed to run uninterrupted ina pre-emptive multitasking operating system.

The scheduler is run once every time slice to choose thenext process to run. If the time slice is too short then thescheduler will consume too much processing time but if it istoo long then processes may not be able to respond to externalevents quickly enough.

time slice

A short interval of time allotted to each user or program in a multitasking or timesharing system. Time slices are typically in milliseconds.