ThreadPriority Enum

Definition

Namespace:

System.Threading

Assembly:

System.Threading.Thread.dll

Specifies the scheduling priority of a Thread.

public enum class ThreadPriority

public enum ThreadPriority

type ThreadPriority = 

Public Enum ThreadPriority

Inheritance

Object

ValueType

Enum

ThreadPriority

Fields

Name	Value	Description
Lowest	0	The Thread can be scheduled after threads with any other priority.
BelowNormal	1	The Thread can be scheduled after threads with Normal priority and before those with Lowest priority.
Normal	2	The Thread can be scheduled after threads with AboveNormal priority and before those with BelowNormal priority. Threads have Normal priority by default.
AboveNormal	3	The Thread can be scheduled after threads with Highest priority and before those with Normal priority.
Highest	4	The Thread can be scheduled before threads with any other priority.

Examples

The following code example shows the result of changing the priority of a thread. Three threads are created, the priority of one thread is set to BelowNormal, and the priority of a second is set to AboveNormal. Each thread increments a variable in a while loop and runs for a set time.

using System;
using System.Threading;
using Timers = System.Timers;

class Test
{
    static void Main()
    {
        PriorityTest priorityTest = new PriorityTest();

        Thread thread1 = new Thread(priorityTest.ThreadMethod);
        thread1.Name = "ThreadOne";
        Thread thread2 = new Thread(priorityTest.ThreadMethod);
        thread2.Name = "ThreadTwo";
        thread2.Priority = ThreadPriority.BelowNormal;
        Thread thread3 = new Thread(priorityTest.ThreadMethod);
        thread3.Name = "ThreadThree";
        thread3.Priority = ThreadPriority.AboveNormal;

        thread1.Start();
        thread2.Start();
        thread3.Start();
        // Allow counting for 10 seconds.
        Thread.Sleep(10000);
        priorityTest.LoopSwitch = false;
    }
}

class PriorityTest
{
    static volatile bool loopSwitch;
    [ThreadStatic] static long threadCount = 0;

    public PriorityTest()
    {
        loopSwitch = true;
    }

    public bool LoopSwitch
    {
        set{ loopSwitch = value; }
    }

    public void ThreadMethod()
    {
        while(loopSwitch)
        {
            threadCount++;
        }
        Console.WriteLine("{0,-11} with {1,11} priority " +
            "has a count = {2,13}", Thread.CurrentThread.Name, 
            Thread.CurrentThread.Priority.ToString(), 
            threadCount.ToString("N0")); 
    }
}
// The example displays output like the following:
//    ThreadOne   with      Normal priority has a count =   755,897,581
//    ThreadThree with AboveNormal priority has a count =   778,099,094
//    ThreadTwo   with BelowNormal priority has a count =     7,840,984

Imports System.Threading
Imports Timers = System.Timers

Public Module Example
   Dim t As Timers.Timer
   Private priorityTest As New PriorityTest()

    Public Sub Main()
        Dim thread1 As New Thread(AddressOf priorityTest.ThreadMethod)
        thread1.Name = "ThreadOne"
        Dim thread2 As New Thread(AddressOf priorityTest.ThreadMethod)
        thread2.Name = "ThreadTwo"
        thread2.Priority = ThreadPriority.BelowNormal
        Dim thread3 As New Thread(AddressOf priorityTest.ThreadMethod)
        thread3.Name = "ThreadThree"
        thread3.Priority = ThreadPriority.AboveNormal
        thread1.Start()
        thread2.Start()
        thread3.Start()

        ' Allow threads to execute for about 10 seconds.
        t = New Timers.Timer()
        t.AutoReset = False
        t.Interval = 10000
        AddHandler t.Elapsed, AddressOf Elapsed
        t.Start()
    End Sub

    Private Sub Elapsed(sender As Object, e As Timers.ElapsedEventArgs)
       priorityTest.LoopSwitch = False
    End Sub
End Module

Public Class PriorityTest
    Private Shared loopSwitchValue As Boolean
    <ThreadStatic> Shared threadCount As Long

    Sub New()
        loopSwitchValue = True
    End Sub

    WriteOnly Property LoopSwitch As Boolean
        Set
            loopSwitchValue = Value
        End Set
    End Property

    Sub ThreadMethod()
        Do While True
            threadCount += 1
            If Not loopSwitchValue Then Exit Do
        Loop

        Console.WriteLine("{0,-11} with {1,11} priority " &
            "has a count = {2,13}", Thread.CurrentThread.Name,
            Thread.CurrentThread.Priority.ToString(),
            threadCount.ToString("N0")) 
    End Sub
End Class
' The example displays the following output:
'    ThreadOne   with      Normal priority has a count =   755,897,581
'    ThreadThree with AboveNormal priority has a count =   778,099,094
'    ThreadTwo   with BelowNormal priority has a count =     7,840,984

Remarks

ThreadPriority defines the set of all possible values for a thread priority. Thread priorities specify the relative priority of one thread versus another.

Every thread has an assigned priority. Threads created within the runtime are initially assigned the Normal priority, while threads created outside the runtime retain their previous priority when they enter the runtime. You can get and set the priority of a thread by accessing its Priority property.

Threads are scheduled for execution based on their priority. The scheduling algorithm used to determine the order of thread execution varies with each operating system. The operating system can also adjust the thread priority dynamically as the user interface's focus is moved between the foreground and the background.

The priority of a thread does not affect the thread's state; the state of the thread must be Running before the operating system can schedule it.

See also

• Thread
• Scheduling threads