Thread Synchronization

Thread synchronization is the process of coordinating the execution of multiple threads to ensure safe concurrent access to shared resources. When multiple threads access shared resources simultaneously, it can lead to data corruption and inconsistent results. To avoid such issues, synchronization techniques are used to enforce thread safety.

There are several techniques for thread synchronization in JavaScript, such as:

1. Locking: This technique involves using locks or mutexes to ensure that only one thread can access a shared resource at a time. Locks can be implemented using JavaScript's built-in Lock object or by using synchronization mechanisms provided by frameworks like Node.js or the browser environment.

2. Semaphores: Semaphores are a synchronization mechanism that allows a specific number of threads to access a shared resource simultaneously. Semaphores maintain a counter that tracks the number of available resources. Threads can acquire and release a semaphore to access the shared resource.

3. Atomic Operations: Atomic operations are operations that are guaranteed to be executed as a single, indivisible unit. In JavaScript, atomic operations are provided by the Atomic objects, such as AtomicBoolean, AtomicInteger, and AtomicReference. These objects provide methods for performing atomic read-modify-write operations on shared variables.

By using these synchronization techniques, you can ensure thread safety and avoid race conditions and other concurrency issues.

1// Example of thread synchronization using locking
2
3const lock = new Lock();
4
5function criticalSection() {
6  lock.acquire();
7
8  // Critical section: Access shared resource
9  // ...
10
11  lock.release();
12}