Definition

1. Noun:
   • (Computing) Command Overhead: The fixed amount of time, processing, or system resources required to initiate, prepare for, and manage the execution of a command or operation before the actual, useful work begins. It is the inherent cost of issuing and setting up a task.

Usage

• Noun:
  • The command overhead for this database query is high, so it's inefficient for fetching small amounts of data.
  • Reducing command overhead is a key goal in optimizing network protocols.
  • The new software update significantly decreased the command overhead associated with file transfers.

Advanced Usage

• "To incur overhead": To experience or be subject to this processing cost.
  • Each remote procedure call incurs a significant command overhead.
• "Overhead cost": A more general business/finance term for ongoing expenses; in computing, it can be synonymous with processing overhead like command overhead.
  • We must consider both the computational and the financial overhead costs.

Variants and Related Words

• Overhead (n): A more general term for any extra, indirect cost or resource consumption (time, memory, processing) required to perform a primary task. Command overhead is a specific type of processing overhead.
  • The system's memory overhead was too high for the old hardware.
• Latency (n): The delay before a transfer of data begins following an instruction. Command overhead is often a component of total latency.
  • Network latency can be caused by propagation delay and command overhead.

Synonyms

• Setup time: The time required to prepare a system or process.
• Initialization cost: The resource cost of starting a process.
• Fixed cost of execution: (In context) The unavoidable processing required to begin a task.

Related Phrases

• "The overhead of": Used to describe the burden or cost associated with a specific action.
  • The overhead of establishing a secure connection must be minimized.

Noun

1. (computer science) the processing time required by a device prior to the execution of a command