Patent ID: 8230430

Claim:
A method of scheduling threads in a multiprocessor computer, the method comprising: selecting a thread in a ready queue to be dispatched to a processor; determining whether an interrupt mask flag is set in a thread control block associated with the thread, if the interrupt mask flag is set in the thread control block associated with the thread, selecting a processor from a plurality of processors included in the multiprocessor computer; setting a current processor priority register of the selected processor to least favored for interrupt processing, wherein the current processor priority register of the processor indicates priority of the processor for interrupt processing; maintaining a count of the number of processors in the multiprocessor computer having a current processor priority register set to least favored; and dispatching the thread from the ready queue to the selected processor; wherein selecting a processor further comprises: comparing the count of the number of processors having a current processor priority register set to least favored to a threshold value; and if the count of the number of processors having a current processor priority register set to least favored is less than a threshold value, selecting a processor having a current processor priority register not set to least favored.