Performance evaluation of direct access storage devices with a fixed head per track
Trilok Manocha, William L. Martin, Karl W. Stevens · 1971
Computer designers agree that the slow response of input and output devices is the most critical factor limiting the performance of a computer system. When a program requests an access to one of these devices, the request is put on a queue. The members of the queue are usually serviced on a first-come-first-served basis or on the basis of preassigned priorities. Devices with large capacity are able to store a number of data sets belonging to various programs in a multi-programming environment. This usually leads to a queue build-up for these devices, thereby creating a bottleneck in the system.