Approximate Slack Stealing Algorithms for Fixed Priority Pre-emptive Systems

Recent research into the problem of jointly scheduling tasks with both hard and soft time constraints has focused on the development of optimal slack stealing algorithms. Theoretically, these optimal algorithms offer significant performance improvements over previous bandwidth preserving algorithms such as the Sporadic Server or Extended Priority Exchange algorithm. However, there are problems associated with the practical application of both static and dynamic variants of optimal slack stealing algorithms. In this report, we address these problems by providing approximate slack stealing algorithms which offer close to optimal performance with practical utility.