THE WHATIS.COM WORD-OF-THE-DAY   
November 15, 2001

watchdog timer 
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TODAY'S WORD: watchdog timer 

See our definition with hyperlinks at
http://searchwindowsmanageability.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid33_gci781540,00.html

A watchdog timer (WDT) is a device or electronic card that performs a
specific operation after a certain period of time if something goes
wrong with an electronic system and the system does not recover on
its own. 

A common problem is for a machine or operating system to lock up if
two parts or programs conflict, or, in an operating system, if memory
management trouble occurs. In some cases, the system will eventually
recover on its own, but this may take an unknown and perhaps extended
length of time. A WDT contains a digital counter that counts down to
zero at a constant speed from a preset number. The counter speed is
kept constant by a clock circuit. If the counter reaches zero before
the computer recovers, a signal is sent to designated circuits to
perform the desired action. 

A watchdog timer can be programmed to perform a warm boot (restarting
the system) after a certain number of seconds during which a program
or computer fails to respond following the most recent mouse click or
keyboard action. The timer can also be used for other purposes, for
example, to actuate the refresh (or reload) button in a Web browser
if a Web site does not fully load after a certain length of time
following the entry of a Uniform Resource Locator (URL). 

RELATED TERMS:

card 
http://searchebusiness.techtarget.com/sDefinition/0,,sid19_gci211746,00.html 
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SELECTED LINKS

Embedded.com includes an article that describes how a watchdog timer
works. 
http://www.embedded.com/story/OEG20010920S0064 

B and B Electronics makes several watchdog timers. 
http://www.bb-europe.com/dept.asp?dept%5Fid=49 

Tality describes the watchdog timers that they make. 
http://www.tality.com/solutions/ip/docs/wdt_index.html 

SearchWindowsManageability.com provides links to more information
about event monitoring. 
http://searchwindowsmanageability.techtarget.com/bestWebLinks/0,289521,sid33_tax287672,00.html
 
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QUIZ #15 | HP

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KNOW IT ALL QUESTION | #64

This is a computer containing programs that collectively serve the
needs of a large group rather than that of a single user or
specialized application. 

a. terminal server 
b. Web server 
c. central processing unit 
d. enterprise server 
e. complex instruction set computer 

>>See correct answer:
http://searchwindowsmanageability.techtarget.com/originalContent/0,289142,sid33_gci781627,00.html
 
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[5] Wayback Machine
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