Understanding the Four Core I/O Models: Blocking, Non‑Blocking, Multiplexing, and Asynchronous
Explore the four fundamental I/O models—Blocking, Non‑Blocking, I/O Multiplexing (Reactor), and Asynchronous (Proactor)—with clear explanations and illustrative diagrams, helping readers grasp how each model works, their typical use cases, and why technologies like epoll or Redis benefit from multiplexing.
Before diving in, let's review the basic I/O models.
1. Synchronous Blocking I/O (Blocking Io) : the traditional model where a call blocks the thread until the operation completes.
2. Synchronous Non‑Blocking I/O (Non‑blocking Io) : sockets are created in blocking mode by default; non‑blocking requires setting the socket to NONBLOCK. Note this is not Java NIO.
3. I/O Multiplexing : also known as the classic Reactor pattern (sometimes called asynchronous blocking I/O). Implementations include Java's Selector and Linux's epoll. Redis’s single‑threaded speed partly comes from this model combined with caching.
4. Asynchronous I/O (Asynchronous Io) : the classic Proactor pattern, also referred to as asynchronous non‑blocking I/O.
Diagram
Source: blog.csdn.net/lzb348110175/article/details/98941378
After reviewing these diagrams, you should have a clearer understanding of the different I/O models.
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Liangxu Linux
Liangxu, a self‑taught IT professional now working as a Linux development engineer at a Fortune 500 multinational, shares extensive Linux knowledge—fundamentals, applications, tools, plus Git, databases, Raspberry Pi, etc. (Reply “Linux” to receive essential resources.)
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