Year: 2024

GIL or Global Interpreter Lock can be disabled in Python version 3.13. This is currently experimental.

What is GIL? It is a mechanism used by the CPython interpreter to ensure that only one thread executes the Python bytecode at a time.

https://medium.com/@r_bilan/python-3-13-without-the-gil-a-game-changer-for-concurrency-5e035500f0da

Advantages of the GIL

1. Simplicity of Implementation: The GIL simplifies memory management in CPython by preventing concurrent access to Python objects, which can help avoid race conditions and other threading issues.
2. Ease of Use for Single-Threaded Programs: For applications that are single-threaded, the GIL eliminates the overhead associated with managing thread safety, allowing for straightforward and efficient code execution.
3. Compatibility with C Extensions: The GIL allows C extensions to operate without needing to implement complex threading models, which simplifies the development of Python extensions that interface with C libraries.
4. Performance for I/O-Bound Tasks: In I/O-bound applications, the GIL does not significantly hinder performance since threads can be switched out during I/O operations, allowing other threads to run.

Disadvantages of the GIL

1. Limited Multithreading Performance: The GIL can severely restrict the performance of CPU-bound multithreaded applications, as it only allows one thread to execute Python bytecode at a time, leading to underutilization of multicore processors.
2. Thread Management Complexity: Although the GIL simplifies memory management, it can complicate the design of concurrent applications, forcing developers to carefully manage threading issues or use multiprocessing instead.
3. Hindrance to Parallel Processing: With the GIL enabled, achieving true parallelism in Python applications is challenging, making it difficult for developers to leverage multicore architectures effectively.
4. Inefficiency in Context Switching: Frequent context switching due to the GIL can introduce overhead, especially in applications with many threads, leading to performance degradation.

https://geekpython.in/gil-become-optional-in-python