The operating system has no influence on the way the database system distributes its tasks to the available user kernel threads. Therefore, it cannot intervene, for example, if a user kernel thread uses one processor at 100% capacity while the computer’s other three processors are not being used at all.

Within a user kernel thread, tasks behave cooperatively, that is, they decide when to suspend themselves and let the next waiting task take over (for more information, see Task Switching). This behavior can lead to a single task blocking all other tasks in the same user kernel thread.

To distribute tasks optimally to the user kernel threads, the database system performs internal load balancing. In doing so, the database system ensures better distribution of resources, in particular on computers with multiple processors, and shorter response times for individual users.

During load balancing, the Timer (special thread) distributes the tasks to the individual user kernel threads. At regular intervals, the Timer analyzes how long the individual tasks have been waiting in the user kernel threads and adds up these wait times for each user kernel thread.

If the total of the wait times in one user kernel thread is much greater than in another, then the Timer has the task that has been waiting the longest in the first user kernel thread moved to the second user kernel thread.