What is a watchdog timer?

A Watchdog timer is an electronic part of the hardware that detects computer malfunction and anomalies in the software. During a check for any activity, the timer starts counting from zero, and the software restarts. If the software has not restarted and the timer is at zero then it signifies the malfunctioning of the software. When you restart the counter of the watchdog timer then this process is known as kicking the dog. The watchdog timer is really effective in preventing your system from several dangerous situations by detecting the activity in advance. In the case of multitasking, deadlock can also occur. The watchdog timer is embedded in microcontrollers and triggers the restart whenever needed.