Difference Between Process And Program Process Vs Program

In this tutorial, we will differentiate between process and program, and learn:

What is Program in OS? What is Process? Features of Program
Features of Process
What is the Difference between Program and Process?

Features of Program

A program is a passive entity. It stores a group of instructions to be executed. Various processes may be related to the same program. A user may run multiple programs where the operating systems simplify its internal programmed activities like memory management. The program can’t perform any action without a run. It needs to be executed to realize the steps mentioned in it. The operating system allocates main memory to store programs instructions.

Features of Process

A process has a very limited lifespan. They also generate one or more child processes, and they die like a human being. Like humans, even process has information like who is a parent when it is created, address space of allocated memory, security properties which includes ownership credentials and privileges. Processes are allocated system resources like file descriptors and network ports.

Summary

A Program is an executable file which contains a certain set of instructions written to complete the specific job or operation on your computer. A Process is an execution of a specific program. It is an active entity that actions the purpose of the application. A program is a passive entity. It stores a group of instructions to be executed. Processes are allocated system resources like file descriptors and network ports.