Approximate Analysis of Reader/Writer Queues

We analyze the performance of queues that serve readers and writers. Readers are served concurrently , while writers require exclusive service. We approximately analyze a rst-come-rst-serve (FCFS) reader/writer queue, and derive simple formulae for computing waiting times and capacity under the assumption of Poisson arrivals and exponential service. We extend the analysis to handle a one-writer queue, and a queue that includes write-intention locks. The simple analyses that we present can be used as rules-of-thumb for designing concurrent systems.