Re: LinuxThreads and NPTL

A. J.,

 From the RH9 release notes 
(http://www.redhat.com/docs/manuals/linux/RHL-9-Manual/release-notes/x86/):

    *

      Red Hat Linux 9 includes the Native POSIX Thread Library (NPTL), a
      new implementation of POSIX threads for Linux. This library
      provides performance improvements and increased scalability for
      i686 or better processors.

      This thread library is designed to be binary compatible with the
      old LinuxThreads implementation; however, applications that rely
      on the places where the LinuxThreads implementation deviates from
      the POSIX standard will need to be fixed. Notable differences include:

      - Signal handling has changed from per-thread signal handling to
      POSIX process signal handling.

      - getpid() returns the same value in all threads.

      - Thread handlers registered with pthread_atfork are not run if
      vfork() is used.

      - No manager thread.

      Applications that are known to have problems using NPTL include:

      - Sun JRE prior to version 1.4.1

      - IBM JRE

      If an application does not work properly with NPTL, it can be run
      using the old LinuxThreads implementation by setting the following
      environment variable:

      LD_ASSUME_KERNEL=<kernel-version>

      The following versions are available:

      - 2.4.1  Linuxthreads with floating stacks

      - 2.2.5  Linuxthreads without floating stacks

      NPTL support for all dynamically-linked applications can be
      disabled by using the following boot-time option:

      nosysinfo

-Bill Hilf
<[email protected]>

A.J. Blanchard wrote:

>Hello all,
>
>So, as a recent convert from NGPT, bear with me if I am asking redundant or
>obvious questions. I have been unable to track down any documentation that
>might answer these questions.
>
>1) Does the venerable old LinuxThreads co-exist with NPTL in the caned RH-9?
>
>2) By default, am I using NPTL on RH-9?
>
>3) I have seen that Glibc "contains" NPTL. How does this translate to the
>libpthread.so? Wrappers or extensions or ...?
>
>BTW, if I have overlooked some obvious FAQ, smite me and let me know.
>
>Many thanks ;-)
>
>A. J. Blanchard
>[email protected]
>
>
>
>  
>