Interval Scheduling on identical machines

Interval Scheduling problems (IS) address the situation where jobs with fixed start and fixed end times are to be processed on parallel identical machines. The optimization criteria of interest are the maximization of the number of jobs completed and, in case weights are associated with jobs, the subset of jobs with maximal total weight. We present polynomial solutions to several IS problems and study computational complexity issues in the situation where bounds are imposed on the total operating time of the machines. With this constraint, we show that tractability is achieved again when job preemption is allowed.