03 Interrupts

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Buffer almost empty

This interrupt signals that a buffer, which temporarily stores data being transferred between components, is running low and may need replenishment to prevent data loss or processing delays.

Signals the completion of a data transfer between devices

This interrupt occurs when a data transfer operation, such as a Direct Memory Access (DMA) transfer or file copy operation, has been successfully completed, notifying the system that resources can be freed or the next operation can proceed.

Shutdown to start triggered by the user pressing the off button

This interrupt is generated when a user initiates a shutdown or restart by pressing the power button. The system handles this by saving work, closing applications, and either turning off or rebooting.

Memory parity error

This occurs when an error is detected in memory due to corruption or failure in data integrity checks, such as parity bit mismatches in RAM, leading to potential system instability.

Illegal instruction encountered in interpreted code

This interrupt is triggered when the CPU encounters an instruction that it cannot execute, often due to software bugs, corrupted files, or compatibility issues with the processor architecture.

Arithmetic overflow

This happens when an arithmetic operation produces a result that exceeds the storage capacity of the register or memory location assigned to it, leading to an error that must be handled to avoid incorrect computations

Internal clock triggers suspending a running process

This interrupt is generated by the system timer to manage multitasking. It temporarily suspends the execution of the current process, allowing the CPU to switch to another task as part of time-sharing in operating systems.