What is a multiprocessing system?

Multiprocessor systems are those systems that use additional than a single processor for program execution. It is done for raising the execution speed of the entire system. The initiative behind multiprocessing is that a single process can be divided into sections which can be executed singly in different processors. Mainframes and Super computers make use of multiprocessing. Multiprocessing is applied in two ways they are:

a. Parallel processing or tightly coupled systems

b. Loosely coupled systems.

In Tightly coupled systems or Parallel processing systems the resources like memory are shared with different processors. This may decrease the cost for memories but the realistic implementation of tightly coupled systems isn’t so easy.

In loosely coupled systems every processor will be having it own memory and they will be sharing the system bus and I/O etc. Its execution is comparatively easier to parallel processing.