ABSTRACT
The first part of this chapter contains an introduction to schedulability analysis, a set of mathematical tools to predict the worst-case timing behavior of a task-based system. Although only the most basic techniques can be discussed here due to lack of space, additional references are provided to interested readers.
In the second part of the chapter, we move to more practical considerations on interrupt handling, using a popular microprocessor architecture as a reference. Further information is also given about how the RTEMS operating system implements some key activities in this area, most notably task context switch. This information is essential to fully understand how operating systems implement the theoretical concepts and algorithms presented in Chapter 3.
The chapter ends with a discussion of how interrupt handling fits in the schedulability analysis framework, a topic of significant practical importance since most real-time systems comprise multiple interrupt sources whose impact cannot be neglected.
