What is the difference between a process and a thread?

A process is an instance of a running program that has its own dedicated address space, resources (such as file descriptors, sockets, etc.), and at least one thread of execution.

A thread is a unit of execution within a process. Multiple threads can exist within a single process, sharing its resources and address space.

Attribute	Process	Thread
Address space	Own, isolated	Shared with other threads of the process
Resources	Own (file descriptors, sockets)	Shared with other threads of the process
Creation	Requires more resources, slower	Requires fewer resources, faster
Context switch	Takes more time, switches everything	Takes less time, switches only registers and stack
Isolation	High: an error in one does not affect others	Low: an error in one can affect others