ps -ef processor column "C"

[Robert S. White]

When ps -ef is entered on the command line,
the column labled "C" provides information on the "processor utilization for scheduling".

I read this to mean the processor used for a given application.

When I execute the ps -ef command I get:
UID PID PPID C STIME TTY TIME COMMAND
root 18533 18287 10 12:29:04 pts/ta 0:00 ps -ef
root 18287 18286 1 Jul 24 pts/ta 0:00 -sh

These two line only show something other than a 0 in the C column. Can someone please explain this? Thanks!

[Mark van Hassel]

Hi,

It probably means that the processor uses some of the CPU time of that particular proces for its scheduling mechanism.

[Rodney Hills]

The schedular takes into account many factors, some of which are how well balanced the process is using the CPU.

I believe that the C column is the schedular indicator of a cpu utilization factor. This way processes that use the CPU a little and give it up right away will get a little higher position in the queue.

[James R. Ferguson]

Hi Robert:

The "C" column in the 'ps' output is a processor utilization metric used by the kernel in computing process priority. The number increases in proportion to the CPU-intensity of a process.

...JRF...

[Zafar A. Mohammed]

C means cpu Process Utilization for scheduling. Check the man page of ps under Output Format.




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