Xinactive

Xinactive is a label used in certain systems to denote a transitional inactive state of a component, agent, or subsystem. It is not a universal standard but an informal designation found in model specifications, power management schemes, and protocol state machines. The core idea is that the entity is not performing its primary function but retains enough context to resume activity quickly.

In practice, an object labeled Xinactive typically consumes minimal resources while preserving crucial state data, identifiers, and open connections. It may be gated by a timer, policy, or external event, and its transitions out of Xinactive are defined to minimize latency and reinitialization overhead. Systems may treat Xinactive differently from a fully inactive state by reserving resources or maintaining readiness flags.

Transitions into Xinactive are driven by rules such as low workload, energy constraints, fault containment, or scheduling decisions. Reactivation moves to an active state (often called Xactive or a similar term) and may involve lightweight restoration steps rather than full startup sequences.

Common contexts include operating system power management, where devices enter low-power Xinactive states; embedded systems with long-lived devices; and protocol implementations that suspend periodic tasks while keeping session state. In formal methods and model checking, Xinactive can represent a class of frozen or suspended states used to reason about liveness and safety.

Related terms include inactive, suspended, and hibernated states. Xinactive differs by emphasizing rapid reactivation and preserved context, rather than complete shutdown.