ThreadPool.GetMinThreads(Int32, Int32) Method

Definition

Retrieves the minimum number of threads the thread pool creates on demand, as new requests are made, before switching to an algorithm for managing thread creation and destruction.

public:
 static void GetMinThreads([Runtime::InteropServices::Out] int % workerThreads, [Runtime::InteropServices::Out] int % completionPortThreads);
public static void GetMinThreads (out int workerThreads, out int completionPortThreads);
static member GetMinThreads : int * int -> unit
Public Shared Sub GetMinThreads (ByRef workerThreads As Integer, ByRef completionPortThreads As Integer)

Parameters

workerThreads
Int32

When this method returns, contains the minimum number of worker threads that the thread pool creates on demand.

completionPortThreads
Int32

When this method returns, contains the minimum number of asynchronous I/O threads that the thread pool creates on demand.

Examples

The following example sets the minimum number of worker threads to four, and preserves the original value for the minimum number of asynchronous I/O completion threads.

using namespace System;
using namespace System::Threading;
int main()
{
   int minWorker;
   int minIOC;
   
   // Get the current settings.
   ThreadPool::GetMinThreads( minWorker, minIOC );
   
   // Change the minimum number of worker threads to four, but
   // keep the old setting for minimum asynchronous I/O
   // completion threads.
   if ( ThreadPool::SetMinThreads( 4, minIOC ) )
   {
      
      // The minimum number of threads was set successfully.
   }
   else
   {
      
      // The minimum number of threads was not changed.
   }
}
using System;
using System.Threading;

public class Test
{
    public static void Main()
    {
        int minWorker, minIOC;
        // Get the current settings.
        ThreadPool.GetMinThreads(out minWorker, out minIOC);
        // Change the minimum number of worker threads to four, but
        // keep the old setting for minimum asynchronous I/O 
        // completion threads.
        if (ThreadPool.SetMinThreads(4, minIOC))
        {
            // The minimum number of threads was set successfully.
        }
        else
        {
            // The minimum number of threads was not changed.
        }
    }
}
Imports System.Threading

Public Class Test

    <MTAThread> _
    Public Shared Sub Main()
        Dim minWorker, minIOC As Integer
        ' Get the current settings.
        ThreadPool.GetMinThreads(minWorker, minIOC)
        ' Change the minimum number of worker threads to four, but
        ' keep the old setting for minimum asynchronous I/O 
        ' completion threads.
        If ThreadPool.SetMinThreads(4, minIOC) Then
            ' The minimum number of threads was set successfully.
        Else
            ' The minimum number of threads was not changed.
        End If
    End Sub
End Class

Remarks

The thread pool provides new worker threads or I/O completion threads on demand until it reaches the minimum for each category. By default, the minimum number of threads is set to the number of processors on a system. When the minimum is reached, the thread pool can create additional threads in that category or wait until some tasks complete. Beginning with the .NET Framework 4, the thread pool creates and destroys threads in order to optimize throughput, which is defined as the number of tasks that complete per unit of time. Too few threads might not make optimal use of available resources, whereas too many threads could increase resource contention.

Note

When demand is low, the actual number of thread pool threads can fall below the minimum values.

Applies to

See also