What is the Difference Between Spooling and Buffering

The main difference between spooling and buffering is that spooling is the method of storing data temporarily in a memory area so that a device or a program can use it while buffering is the method of storing data temporarily in a memory area while processing other remaining data.

In spooling, the IO operations of one job overlap with the execution of another job. However, in buffering, the IO operations of one job overlap with the execution of the same job.  Both spooling and buffering help to increase the system performance.

Key Areas Covered

1. What is Spooling
     – Definition, Functionality
2. What is Buffering
     – Definition, Functionality
3. What is the Difference Between Spooling and Buffering
     – Comparison of Key Differences

Key Terms

Buffering, Spooling

What is Spooling

Spooling stands for Simultaneous Peripheral Operations online. It is the mechanism of putting data of various Input-Output (IO) jobs in a buffer. In other words, it uses a buffer to hold jobs for a device until it is ready to accept the job. A buffer is an area in main memory that holds data during input and output data transfers. In spooling, it is possible to read input of one job while printing the output of another job.

Figure 1: Spooling

For instance, assume an instance of reading data from the card reader and printing. First, there is a device such as a disk in between the high-speed device, which is the card reader, and the low-speed device, which is the printer.  There is no direct communication between these two devices. The card reader sends data and the printer receives data via the disk. The disk works as the spooling buffer. It is the waiting station to place data while the slower device catches up.

Overall, spooling supports multiple advantages. It increases the performance of the system. It allows the CPU and IO devices to work efficiently. Furthermore, it supports multiprogramming.

What is Buffering

Buffering is the process of storing data in a memory area temporarily while processing other remaining data.

An example is as follows.

Figure 2: Buffering

Assume an online buffering situation such as streaming music and video. It allows the user to watch or listen to the media by downloading a portion of the file and playing it while continuing to download the rest of the video. If the internet connection is fast, the buffering is required only for a few seconds before playing the media. If the internet connection is not fast enough, then it is necessary to use the buffer for some time. Overall, buffering helps to handle the speed mismatch between producers and consumers of data streams.

Difference Between Spooling and Buffering

Definition

Spooling is a specialized form of multi-programming for the purpose of copying data between different devices. In contrast, buffering is the process of storing data temporarily in a memory area while processing other remaining data.

Basis

In Spooling, the IO operations of one job overlap with the execution of another job. In Buffering, the IO operations of one job overlap with the execution of the same job. Thus, this is the main difference between spooling and buffering.

Size

Another difference between spooling and buffering is the size. Spooling uses a huge buffer while buffering uses a limited memory area.

Efficiency

Moreover, spooling is more efficient than buffering.

Usage

Furthermore, spooling helps to exchange data between different devices that have various data accessing rates. Buffering helps to adapt to speed mismatch between producers and consumers of data streams. Hence, this is another difference between spooling and buffering.

Conclusion

The difference between spooling and buffering is that spooling is the method of storing data temporarily in a memory area so that a device or a program can use it while buffering is the method of storing data temporarily in a memory area while processing other remaining data. Overall, both spooling and buffering help to increase the system performance.

Reference:

1. “5. Spooling and Buffering.” LinkedIn SlideShare, 12 Jan. 2013, Available here.
2. “What Is a Buffer?” Computer Hope, 1 Mar. 2018, Available here.
3. “Spooling.”Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 19 Sept. 2018, Available here.