Process Scheduling

Process scheduling is the OS function that decides which process or thread gets to use the CPU at any given moment. In a high-performance trading system, the standard scheduler may not be efficient enough to prioritize the trading application over other system tasks.

Engineers often use real-time scheduling policies, such as SCHED_FIFO or SCHED_RR, to ensure that the trading process is never preempted by lower-priority tasks. By gaining control over the scheduler, developers can ensure that their algorithms always have the CPU resources they need when a market event occurs.

This level of control is vital for firms that require low-latency execution in competitive cryptocurrency and derivatives markets.