High-Resolution Timer

High-Resolution Timer

The high-resolution timer and clock is a timer that is synchronous across all processors, and is ideal to drive synchronous schedulers. On Challenge and Onyx systems this timer is based on the high resolution counter discussed under "Hardware Cycle Counter".

To use this timer, specify FRS_INTRSOURCE_CCTIMER, and the minor frame interval in microseconds, to frs_create().

The IRIX kernel uses this timer for managing timer events. When your program creates the master Frame Scheduler, the Frame Scheduler migrates all timeout events to CPU 0, leaving the timer on the scheduled CPU free.

An interrupt group is not required to coordinate multiple Frame Schedulers when this time base is used. The high-resolution timers in all CPUs are synchronized automatically.