<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN"> <html> <head> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> <meta name="Copyright" content="Copyright (c) 2006 by IBM Corporation"> <title>Thread ID vs. Pthread Handle (pthread_t)</title> <!-- Begin Header Records ========================================== --> <!-- All rights reserved. Licensed Materials Property of IBM --> <!-- US Government Users Restricted Rights --> <!-- Use, duplication or disclosure restricted by --> <!-- GSA ADP Schedule Contract with IBM Corp. --> <!-- Change History: --> <!-- YYMMDD USERID Change description --> <!-- NETMG2 SCRIPT A converted by B2H R4.1 (346) (CMS) by HOLTJM at --> <!-- RCHVMW2 on 29 Jan 1999 at 10:01:37 --> <!--File Edited November 2001 --> <!--End Header Records --> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" href="../rzahg/ic.css"> </head> <body> <!-- Java sync-link --> <script language="Javascript" src="../rzahg/synch.js" type="text/javascript"> </script> <h2>Thread ID vs. Pthread Handle (pthread_t)</h2> <p>In many threads implementations, the pthread_t abstract type is implemented as an integer (4 byte) thread ID. In the iSeries implementation of Pthreads, the thread ID is a 64-bit integral value and the pthread_t is an abstraction (structure) that contains that value and others. This abstraction helps to allow the implementation to scale to thousands of threads in a process.</p> <p>Do not allow your program to rely on the internal structure or size of the pthread_t in a non-portable fashion, such as comparisons of thread IDs. For portable comparison, use the pthread_equal() API. This documentation occasionally refers to the pthread_t as a Pthread handle to try to prevent the misconception that it represents a single integer value.</p> <hr> <center> <table cellpadding="2" cellspacing="2"> <tr align="center"> <td valign="middle" align="center"> <a href="rzah4mst.htm">Pthread APIs</a> | <a href="aplist.htm">APIs by category</a></td> </tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>