diff --git a/core/store/dist/pom.xml b/core/store/dist/pom.xml
index ead1ab0..e5c3e40 100644
--- a/core/store/dist/pom.xml
+++ b/core/store/dist/pom.xml
@@ -53,6 +53,12 @@
 
         <dependency>
             <groupId>org.onosproject</groupId>
+            <artifactId>onlab-misc</artifactId>
+            <version>${project.version}</version>
+        </dependency>
+
+        <dependency>
+            <groupId>org.onosproject</groupId>
             <artifactId>onos-core-common</artifactId>
         </dependency>
 
diff --git a/core/store/dist/src/main/java/org/onosproject/store/ecmap/EventuallyConsistentMapImpl.java b/core/store/dist/src/main/java/org/onosproject/store/ecmap/EventuallyConsistentMapImpl.java
index 8de348a..eecb20d 100644
--- a/core/store/dist/src/main/java/org/onosproject/store/ecmap/EventuallyConsistentMapImpl.java
+++ b/core/store/dist/src/main/java/org/onosproject/store/ecmap/EventuallyConsistentMapImpl.java
@@ -54,8 +54,8 @@
 import static com.google.common.base.Preconditions.checkNotNull;
 import static com.google.common.base.Preconditions.checkState;
 import static java.util.concurrent.Executors.newSingleThreadScheduledExecutor;
+import static org.onlab.util.BoundedThreadPool.newFixedThreadPool;
 import static org.onlab.util.Tools.groupedThreads;
-import static org.onlab.util.Tools.minPriority;
 
 /**
  * Distributed Map implementation which uses optimistic replication and gossip
@@ -149,16 +149,23 @@
         items = new ConcurrentHashMap<>();
         removedItems = new ConcurrentHashMap<>();
 
-        executor = Executors //FIXME
-                .newFixedThreadPool(4, groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-fg-%d"));
+        // should be a normal executor; it's used for receiving messages
+        //TODO make # of threads configurable
+        executor = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(8, groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-fg-%d"));
 
-        broadcastMessageExecutor = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor(groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-notify"));
+        // sending executor; should be capped
+        //TODO make # of threads configurable
+        broadcastMessageExecutor = //newSingleThreadExecutor(groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-notify"));
+                newFixedThreadPool(4, groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-notify"));
 
         backgroundExecutor =
-                newSingleThreadScheduledExecutor(minPriority(
-                        groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-bg-%d")));
+                //FIXME anti-entropy can take >60 seconds and it blocks fg workers
+                // ... dropping minPriority to try to help until this can be parallel
+                newSingleThreadScheduledExecutor(//minPriority(
+                        groupedThreads("onos/ecm", mapName + "-bg-%d"))/*)*/;
 
         // start anti-entropy thread
+        //TODO disable anti-entropy for now in testing (it is unstable)
         backgroundExecutor.scheduleAtFixedRate(new SendAdvertisementTask(),
                                                initialDelaySec, periodSec,
                                                TimeUnit.SECONDS);
@@ -494,8 +501,8 @@
                 clusterService.getLocalNode().id(),
                 subject,
                 serializer.encode(event));
-        //broadcastMessageExecutor.execute(() -> clusterCommunicator.broadcast(message));
-        clusterCommunicator.broadcast(message);
+        broadcastMessageExecutor.execute(() -> clusterCommunicator.broadcast(message));
+//        clusterCommunicator.broadcast(message);
     }
 
     private void unicastMessage(NodeId peer,
diff --git a/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBoolean.java b/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBoolean.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..cffdc1a
--- /dev/null
+++ b/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBoolean.java
@@ -0,0 +1,97 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2015 Open Networking Laboratory
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.onlab.util;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+import java.util.concurrent.locks.AbstractQueuedSynchronizer;
+
+/**
+ * Mutable boolean that allows threads to wait for a specified value.
+ */
+public class BlockingBoolean extends AbstractQueuedSynchronizer {
+
+    private static final int TRUE = 1;
+    private static final int FALSE = 0;
+
+    /**
+     * Creates a new blocking boolean with the specified value.
+     *
+     * @param value the starting value
+     */
+    public BlockingBoolean(boolean value) {
+        setState(value ? TRUE : FALSE);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Causes the current thread to wait until the boolean equals the specified
+     * value unless the thread is {@linkplain Thread#interrupt interrupted}.
+     *
+     * @param value specified value
+     * @throws InterruptedException
+     */
+    public void await(boolean value) throws InterruptedException {
+        acquireSharedInterruptibly(value ? TRUE : FALSE);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Causes the current thread to wait until the boolean equals the specified
+     * value unless the thread is {@linkplain Thread#interrupt interrupted},
+     * or the specified waiting time elapses.
+     *
+     * @param value specified value
+     * @param timeout the maximum time to wait
+     * @param unit the time unit of the {@code timeout} argument
+     * @return {@code true} if the count reached zero and {@code false}
+     *         if the waiting time elapsed before the count reached zero
+     * @throws InterruptedException
+     */
+    public boolean await(boolean value, long timeout, TimeUnit unit)
+            throws InterruptedException {
+        return tryAcquireSharedNanos(value ? TRUE : FALSE, unit.toNanos(timeout));
+    }
+
+    protected int tryAcquireShared(int acquires) {
+        return (getState() == acquires) ? 1 : -1;
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Sets the value of the blocking boolean.
+     *
+     * @param value new value
+     */
+    public void set(boolean value) {
+        releaseShared(value ? TRUE : FALSE);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Gets the value of the blocking boolean.
+     *
+     * @return current value
+     */
+    public boolean get() {
+        return getState() == TRUE;
+    }
+
+    protected boolean tryReleaseShared(int releases) {
+        // Signal on state change only
+        int state = getState();
+        if (state == releases) {
+            return false;
+        }
+        return compareAndSetState(state, releases);
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPool.java b/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPool.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..6fb1c90
--- /dev/null
+++ b/utils/misc/src/main/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPool.java
@@ -0,0 +1,174 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2015 Open Networking Laboratory
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.onlab.util;
+
+import org.slf4j.LoggerFactory;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.Callable;
+import java.util.concurrent.Future;
+import java.util.concurrent.LinkedBlockingQueue;
+import java.util.concurrent.RejectedExecutionHandler;
+import java.util.concurrent.ThreadFactory;
+import java.util.concurrent.ThreadPoolExecutor;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicLong;
+
+/**
+ * Implementation of ThreadPoolExecutor that bounds the work queue.
+ * <p>
+ * When a new job would exceed the queue bound, the job is run on the caller's
+ * thread rather than on a thread from the pool.
+ * </p>
+ */
+public final class BoundedThreadPool extends ThreadPoolExecutor {
+
+    private static final org.slf4j.Logger log = LoggerFactory.getLogger(BoundedThreadPool.class);
+
+    protected static int maxQueueSize = 80_000; //TODO tune this value
+    //private static final RejectedExecutionHandler DEFAULT_HANDLER = new CallerFeedbackPolicy();
+    private static final long STATS_INTERVAL = 5_000; //ms
+
+    private final BlockingBoolean underHighLoad;
+
+    private BoundedThreadPool(int numberOfThreads,
+                              ThreadFactory threadFactory) {
+        super(numberOfThreads, numberOfThreads,
+              0L, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS,
+              new LinkedBlockingQueue<>(maxQueueSize),
+              threadFactory,
+              new CallerFeedbackPolicy());
+        underHighLoad = ((CallerFeedbackPolicy) getRejectedExecutionHandler()).load();
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns a single-thread, bounded executor service.
+     *
+     * @param threadFactory thread factory for the worker thread.
+     * @return the bounded thread pool
+     */
+    public static BoundedThreadPool newSingleThreadExecutor(ThreadFactory threadFactory) {
+        return new BoundedThreadPool(1, threadFactory);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Returns a fixed-size, bounded executor service.
+     *
+     * @param threadFactory thread factory for the worker threads.
+     * @return the bounded thread pool
+     */
+    public static BoundedThreadPool newFixedThreadPool(int numberOfThreads, ThreadFactory threadFactory) {
+        return new BoundedThreadPool(numberOfThreads, threadFactory);
+    }
+
+    //TODO Might want to switch these to use Metrics class Meter and/or Gauge instead.
+    private final Counter submitted = new Counter();
+    private final Counter taken = new Counter();
+
+    @Override
+    public Future<?> submit(Runnable task) {
+        submitted.add(1);
+        return super.submit(task);
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public <T> Future<T> submit(Runnable task, T result) {
+        submitted.add(1);
+        return super.submit(task, result);
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public void execute(Runnable command) {
+        submitted.add(1);
+        super.execute(command);
+    }
+
+    @Override
+    public <T> Future<T> submit(Callable<T> task) {
+        submitted.add(1);
+        return super.submit(task);
+    }
+
+
+    @Override
+    protected void beforeExecute(Thread t, Runnable r) {
+        super.beforeExecute(t, r);
+        taken.add(1);
+        periodicallyPrintStats();
+        updateLoad();
+    }
+
+    // TODO schedule this with a fixed delay from a scheduled executor
+    private final AtomicLong lastPrinted = new AtomicLong(0L);
+    private void periodicallyPrintStats() {
+        long now = System.currentTimeMillis();
+        long prev = lastPrinted.get();
+        if (now - prev > STATS_INTERVAL) {
+            if (lastPrinted.compareAndSet(prev, now)) {
+                log.warn("queue size: {} jobs, submitted: {} jobs/s, taken: {} jobs/s",
+                         getQueue().size(),
+                         submitted.throughput(), taken.throughput());
+                submitted.reset();
+                taken.reset();
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    // TODO consider updating load whenever queue changes
+    private void updateLoad() {
+        underHighLoad.set(getQueue().remainingCapacity() / (double) maxQueueSize < 0.2);
+    }
+
+    /**
+     * Feedback policy that delays the caller's thread until the executor's work
+     * queue falls below a threshold, then runs the job on the caller's thread.
+     */
+    private static final class CallerFeedbackPolicy implements RejectedExecutionHandler {
+
+        private final BlockingBoolean underLoad = new BlockingBoolean(false);
+
+        public BlockingBoolean load() {
+            return underLoad;
+        }
+
+        /**
+         * Executes task r in the caller's thread, unless the executor
+         * has been shut down, in which case the task is discarded.
+         *
+         * @param r the runnable task requested to be executed
+         * @param e the executor attempting to execute this task
+         */
+        public void rejectedExecution(Runnable r, ThreadPoolExecutor e) {
+            if (!e.isShutdown()) {
+                // Wait for up to 1 second while the queue drains...
+                boolean notified = false;
+                try {
+                    notified = underLoad.await(false, 1, TimeUnit.SECONDS);
+                } catch (InterruptedException exception) {
+                    log.debug("Got exception waiting for notification:", exception);
+                } finally {
+                    if (!notified) {
+                        log.info("Waited for 1 second on {}. Proceeding with work...",
+                                 Thread.currentThread().getName());
+                    } else {
+                        log.info("FIXME we got a notice");
+                    }
+                }
+                // Do the work on the submitter's thread
+                r.run();
+            }
+        }
+    }
+}
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBooleanTest.java b/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBooleanTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..087b692
--- /dev/null
+++ b/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BlockingBooleanTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,208 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2015 Open Networking Laboratory
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.onlab.util;
+
+import org.apache.commons.lang.mutable.MutableBoolean;
+import org.junit.Ignore;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
+import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+
+/**
+ * Tests of the BlockingBoolean utility.
+ */
+public class BlockingBooleanTest  {
+
+    @Test
+    public void basics() {
+        BlockingBoolean b = new BlockingBoolean(false);
+        assertEquals(false, b.get());
+        b.set(true);
+        assertEquals(true, b.get());
+        b.set(true);
+        assertEquals(true, b.get());
+        b.set(false);
+        assertEquals(false, b.get());
+    }
+
+    private void waitChange(boolean value, int numThreads) {
+        BlockingBoolean b = new BlockingBoolean(!value);
+
+        CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(numThreads);
+        ExecutorService exec = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(numThreads);
+        for (int i = 0; i < numThreads; i++) {
+            exec.submit(() -> {
+                try {
+                    b.await(value);
+                    latch.countDown();
+                } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                    fail();
+                }
+            });
+        }
+        b.set(value);
+        try {
+            assertTrue(latch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        exec.shutdown();
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void waitTrueChange() {
+        waitChange(true, 4);
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void waitFalseChange() {
+        waitChange(false, 4);
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void waitSame() {
+        BlockingBoolean b = new BlockingBoolean(true);
+
+        CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+        ExecutorService exec = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor();
+        exec.submit(() -> {
+            try {
+                b.await(true);
+                latch.countDown();
+            } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                fail();
+            }
+        });
+        try {
+            assertTrue(latch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        exec.shutdown();
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void someWait() {
+        BlockingBoolean b = new BlockingBoolean(false);
+
+        int numThreads = 4;
+        CountDownLatch sameLatch = new CountDownLatch(numThreads / 2);
+        CountDownLatch waitLatch = new CountDownLatch(numThreads / 2);
+
+        ExecutorService exec = Executors.newFixedThreadPool(numThreads);
+        for (int i = 0; i < numThreads; i++) {
+            final boolean value = (i % 2 == 1);
+            exec.submit(() -> {
+                try {
+                    b.await(value);
+                    if (value) {
+                        waitLatch.countDown();
+                    } else {
+                        sameLatch.countDown();
+                    }
+                } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                    fail();
+                }
+            });
+        }
+        try {
+            assertTrue(sameLatch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+            assertEquals(waitLatch.getCount(), numThreads / 2);
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        b.set(true);
+        try {
+            assertTrue(waitLatch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        exec.shutdown();
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void waitTimeout() {
+        BlockingBoolean b = new BlockingBoolean(true);
+
+        CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+        ExecutorService exec = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor();
+        exec.submit(() -> {
+            try {
+                if (!b.await(false, 1, TimeUnit.NANOSECONDS)) {
+                    latch.countDown();
+                } else {
+                    fail();
+                }
+            } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                fail();
+            }
+        });
+        try {
+            assertTrue(latch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        exec.shutdown();
+
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    @Ignore
+    public void samePerf() {
+        int iters = 10_000;
+
+        BlockingBoolean b1 = new BlockingBoolean(false);
+        long t1 = System.nanoTime();
+        for (int i = 0; i < iters; i++) {
+            b1.set(false);
+        }
+        long t2 = System.nanoTime();
+        MutableBoolean b2 = new MutableBoolean(false);
+        for (int i = 0; i < iters; i++) {
+            b2.setValue(false);
+        }
+        long t3 = System.nanoTime();
+        System.out.println((t2 - t1) + " " + (t3 - t2) + " " + ((t2 - t1) <= (t3 - t2)));
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    @Ignore
+    public void changePerf() {
+        int iters = 10_000;
+
+        BlockingBoolean b1 = new BlockingBoolean(false);
+        boolean v = true;
+        long t1 = System.nanoTime();
+        for (int i = 0; i < iters; i++) {
+            b1.set(v);
+            v = !v;
+        }
+        long t2 = System.nanoTime();
+        MutableBoolean b2 = new MutableBoolean(false);
+        for (int i = 0; i < iters; i++) {
+            b2.setValue(v);
+            v = !v;
+        }
+        long t3 = System.nanoTime();
+        System.out.println((t2 - t1) + " " + (t3 - t2) + " " + ((t2 - t1) <= (t3 - t2)));
+    }
+
+}
diff --git a/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPoolTest.java b/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPoolTest.java
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c6132de
--- /dev/null
+++ b/utils/misc/src/test/java/org/onlab/util/BoundedThreadPoolTest.java
@@ -0,0 +1,227 @@
+/*
+ * Copyright 2015 Open Networking Laboratory
+ *
+ * Licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0 (the "License");
+ * you may not use this file except in compliance with the License.
+ * You may obtain a copy of the License at
+ *
+ *     http://www.apache.org/licenses/LICENSE-2.0
+ *
+ * Unless required by applicable law or agreed to in writing, software
+ * distributed under the License is distributed on an "AS IS" BASIS,
+ * WITHOUT WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, either express or implied.
+ * See the License for the specific language governing permissions and
+ * limitations under the License.
+ */
+package org.onlab.util;
+
+import com.google.common.collect.Lists;
+import org.junit.Test;
+
+import java.util.List;
+import java.util.concurrent.CountDownLatch;
+import java.util.concurrent.ExecutionException;
+import java.util.concurrent.ExecutorService;
+import java.util.concurrent.Executors;
+import java.util.concurrent.Future;
+import java.util.concurrent.TimeUnit;
+import java.util.concurrent.atomic.AtomicBoolean;
+
+import static org.junit.Assert.*;
+import static org.onlab.util.BoundedThreadPool.*;
+import static org.onlab.util.Tools.namedThreads;
+
+/**
+ * Test of BoundedThreadPool.
+ */
+public final class BoundedThreadPoolTest {
+
+    @Test
+    public void simpleJob() {
+        final Thread myThread = Thread.currentThread();
+        final AtomicBoolean sameThread = new AtomicBoolean(true);
+        final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+
+        BoundedThreadPool exec = newSingleThreadExecutor(namedThreads("test"));
+        exec.submit(() -> {
+            sameThread.set(myThread.equals(Thread.currentThread()));
+            latch.countDown();
+        });
+
+        try {
+            assertTrue("Job not run", latch.await(100, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+            assertFalse("Runnable used caller thread", sameThread.get());
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        } finally {
+            exec.shutdown();
+        }
+
+        // TODO perhaps move to tearDown
+        try {
+            assertTrue(exec.awaitTermination(1, TimeUnit.SECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+    }
+
+    private List<CountDownLatch> fillExecutor(BoundedThreadPool exec) {
+        int numThreads = exec.getMaximumPoolSize();
+        List<CountDownLatch> latches = Lists.newArrayList();
+        final CountDownLatch started = new CountDownLatch(numThreads);
+        List<CountDownLatch> finished = Lists.newArrayList();
+
+        // seed the executor's threads
+        for (int i = 0; i < numThreads; i++) {
+            final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+            final CountDownLatch fin = new CountDownLatch(1);
+            latches.add(latch);
+            finished.add(fin);
+            exec.submit(() -> {
+                try {
+                    started.countDown();
+                    latch.await();
+                    fin.countDown();
+                } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                    fail();
+                }
+            });
+        }
+        try {
+            assertTrue(started.await(100, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+        // fill the queue
+        CountDownLatch startedBlocked = new CountDownLatch(1);
+        while (exec.getQueue().remainingCapacity() > 0) {
+            final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+            latches.add(latch);
+            exec.submit(() -> {
+                try {
+                    startedBlocked.countDown();
+                    latch.await();
+                } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                    fail();
+                }
+            });
+        }
+
+        latches.remove(0).countDown(); // release one of the executors
+        // ... we need to do this because load is recomputed when jobs are taken
+        // Note: For this to work, 1 / numThreads must be less than the load threshold (0.2)
+
+        // verify that the old job has terminated
+        try {
+            assertTrue("Job didn't finish",
+                       finished.remove(0).await(100, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+
+        // verify that a previously blocked thread has started
+        try {
+            assertTrue(startedBlocked.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+
+
+        // add another job to fill the queue
+        final CountDownLatch latch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+        latches.add(latch);
+        exec.submit(() -> {
+            try {
+                latch.await();
+            } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+                fail();
+            }
+        });
+        assertEquals(exec.getQueue().size(), maxQueueSize);
+
+        return latches;
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void releaseOneThread() {
+        maxQueueSize = 10;
+        BoundedThreadPool exec = newFixedThreadPool(4, namedThreads("test"));
+        List<CountDownLatch> latches = fillExecutor(exec);
+
+        CountDownLatch myLatch = new CountDownLatch(1);
+        ExecutorService myExec = Executors.newSingleThreadExecutor();
+        Future<Thread> expected = myExec.submit(Thread::currentThread);
+
+        assertEquals(exec.getQueue().size(), maxQueueSize);
+        long start = System.nanoTime();
+        Future<Thread> actual = myExec.submit(() -> {
+            return exec.submit(() -> {
+                myLatch.countDown();
+                return Thread.currentThread();
+            }).get();
+        });
+
+        try {
+            assertFalse("Thread should still be blocked",
+                        myLatch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+
+            latches.remove(0).countDown(); // release the first thread
+            assertFalse("Thread should still be blocked",
+                        myLatch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+            latches.remove(0).countDown(); // release the second thread
+
+            assertTrue("Thread should be unblocked",
+                       myLatch.await(10, TimeUnit.MILLISECONDS));
+            long delta = System.nanoTime() - start;
+            double load = exec.getQueue().size() / (double) maxQueueSize;
+            assertTrue("Load is greater than threshold", load <= 0.8);
+            assertTrue("Load is less than threshold", load >= 0.6);
+            assertEquals("Work done on wrong thread", expected.get(), actual.get());
+            assertTrue("Took more than one second", delta < Math.pow(10, 9));
+        } catch (InterruptedException | ExecutionException e) {
+            fail();
+        } finally {
+            latches.forEach(CountDownLatch::countDown);
+            exec.shutdown();
+        }
+
+        // TODO perhaps move to tearDown
+        try {
+            assertTrue(exec.awaitTermination(1, TimeUnit.SECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+
+    }
+
+    @Test
+    public void highLoadTimeout() {
+        maxQueueSize = 10;
+        BoundedThreadPool exec = newFixedThreadPool(2, namedThreads("test"));
+        List<CountDownLatch> latches = fillExecutor(exec);
+
+        // true if the job is executed and it is done on the test thread
+        final AtomicBoolean sameThread = new AtomicBoolean(false);
+        final Thread myThread = Thread.currentThread();
+        long start = System.nanoTime();
+        exec.submit(() -> {
+            sameThread.set(myThread.equals(Thread.currentThread()));
+        });
+
+        long delta = System.nanoTime() - start;
+        assertEquals(maxQueueSize, exec.getQueue().size());
+        assertTrue("Work done on wrong thread (or didn't happen)", sameThread.get());
+        assertTrue("Took less than one second. Actual: " + delta / 1_000_000.0 + "ms",
+                   delta > Math.pow(10, 9));
+        assertTrue("Took more than two seconds", delta < 2 * Math.pow(10, 9));
+        latches.forEach(CountDownLatch::countDown);
+        exec.shutdown();
+
+        // TODO perhaps move to tearDown
+        try {
+            assertTrue(exec.awaitTermination(1, TimeUnit.SECONDS));
+        } catch (InterruptedException e) {
+            fail();
+        }
+    }
+}
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