Technical Report (TR01-01) Cover Page

Title:

A Study on Memory-Based Communications and Synchronization in Distributed-Memory Systems

Authors:

Takashi MATSUMOTO

Key words and phrases:

memory-based communication, distributed shared memory,light-weight communication, memory-based processor, MBCF, parallel processing, PC cluster, workstation cluster

Abstract:

In terms of facilities for communications and synchronization in parallel programs, the descriptive power of the shared-memory model is equal to that of the message-passing-style (send-and-receive-type) model. From the viewpoint of performance, however,the situation is different. A very convenient way of improving performance or increasing the variety of functions is to have the communication/synchronization subsystems handle information related to the memory locations at which target data are stored. In other words, communication/synchronization subsystems based on the shared-memory model are superior to message-passing-style subsystems which simply relay data from one task to another. This conclusion holds whether the subsystem is implemented in hardware or software. % In this thesis, the Memory-Based Communications and Synchronization (MBCS) scheme is proposed. In this scheme, recognition and exploitation of information on the locations of target data by communication/synchronization subsystems is proposed, along with brand-new mechanisms based on this scheme. Three communication/synchronization mechanisms based on the MBCS scheme are then proposed. The first mechanism, called the Memory-Based Processor (MBP), is a hardware-implemented fine-grained communication/synchronization mechanism. The MBP is also a building-block for hardware-based distributed shared memory. The second is the Memory-Based Communication Facility (MBCF) which is a software-implemented medium-grained communication/synchronization mechanism made with off-the-shelf network hardware. The third is the the Memory-Based Processor II (MBP2), a hardware-implemented medium-grained mechanism which was designed and developed on the basis of research results on the MBCF. In this thesis, (1) brand-new functions to run on these mechanisms are proposed, (2) explanations of their behaviors and of high-speed implementation methods are given, (3) comparisons are made with other existing mechanisms, qualitative discussions are presented, and (4) experimental verification is described. Through these discussions, the effectiveness of the MBCS scheme will be made clear.

Report date:

October 15, 2001

Written language:

English

Total number of pages:

131

Number of references:

82

Any other identifying information of this report:

Distribution statement:

First issue 30 copies.

Supplementary notes: