Virtual

Lightweight, user-mode threads designed to simplify and improve the scalability of high-throughput concurrent applications

  • Virtual threads are instances of java.lang.Thread
    • Similar to traditional platform Threads
    • Key difference: not tied one-to-one with OS threads

Why It Matters

  • Recently introduced in Java (Project Loom)
  • Changes how concurrent tasks are handled
  • Unlike OS threads (limited in number), you can now create:

Benefits

  • Massive scalability → handle many requests simultaneously
  • Already adopted in production by major companies like 배민

Relation to Spring

  • Closely connected to WebFlux
    • Spring’s reactive, non-blocking framework
    • Designed to efficiently handle massive concurrency