What are the differences between mutexes and condition variables?

What are the differences between mutexes and condition variables?

Mutexes are used to protect shared resources by ensuring that only one thread can access the resource at a time. Condition variables, on the other hand, are used for signaling between threads, allowing one thread to wait for a condition to be met before continuing.

Can you give an example of when to use each?

Sure! Use a mutex when you need to protect a shared variable from concurrent access. Use a condition variable when a thread needs to wait for a specific condition to be true before proceeding, like waiting for a buffer to have data.

Are there any performance considerations I should be aware of?

Yes, using mutexes can lead to contention if many threads are trying to access the same resource, which can slow down performance. Condition variables can help reduce this contention by allowing threads to sleep until they are needed.

What happens if I forget to unlock a mutex?

If you forget to unlock a mutex, it can lead to a deadlock situation where other threads are unable to access the resource, causing your program to hang.