1.3. Implications for Resource Management

Because a task can belong to only a single cgroup in any one hierarchy, there is only one way that a task can be limited or affected by any single subsystem. This is logical: a feature, not a limitation.

You can group several subsystems together so that they affect all tasks in a single hierarchy. Because cgroups in that hierarchy have different parameters set, those tasks will be affected differently.

It may sometimes be necessary to refactor a hierarchy. An example would be removing a subsystem from a hierarchy that has several subsystems attached, and attaching it to a new, separate hierarchy.

Conversely, if the need for splitting subsystems among separate hierarchies is reduced, you can remove a hierarchy and attach its subsystems to an existing one.

The design allows for simple cgroup usage, such as setting a few parameters for specific tasks in a single hierarchy, such as one with just the cpu and memory subsystems attached.

The design also allows for highly specific configuration: each task (process) on a system could be a member of each hierarchy, each of which has a single attached subsystem. Such a configuration would give the system administrator absolute control over all parameters for every single task.