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Effects of partitioning and scheduling sparse matrix factorization on communication and load balance

A block based, automatic partitioning and scheduling methodology is presented for sparse matrix factorization on distributed memory systems. Using experimental results, this technique is analyzed for communication and load imbalance overhead. To study the performance effects, these overheads were compared with those obtained from a straightforward 'wrap mapped' column assignment scheme. All experimental results were obtained using test sparse matrices from the Harwell-Boeing data set. The results show that there is a communication and load balance tradeoff. The block based method results in lower communication cost whereas the wrap mapped scheme gives better load balance.

Venugopal, Sesh

A network flow model for load balancing in circuit-switched multicomputers

In multicomputers that utilize circuit switching or wormhole routing, communication overhead depends largely on link contention - the variation due to distance between nodes is negligible. This has a major impact on the load balancing problem. In this case, there are some nodes with excess load (sources) and others with deficit load (sinks) and it is required to find a matching of sources to sinks that avoids contention. The problem is made complex by the hardwired routing on currently available machines: the user can control only which nodes communicate but not how the messages are routed. Network flow models of message flow in the mesh and the hypercube were developed to solve this problem. The crucial property of these models is the correspondence between minimum cost flows and correctly routed messages. To solve a given load balancing problem, a minimum cost flow algorithm is applied to the network. This permits one to determine efficiently a maximum contention free matching of sources to sinks which, in turn, tells one how much of the given imbalance can be eliminated without contention.

Bokhari, Shahid H.

A network flow model for load balancing in circuit-switched multicomputers

In multicomputers that utilize circuit switching or wormhole routing, communication overhead depends largely on link contention - the variation due to distance between nodes is negligible. This has a major impact on the load balancing problem. In this case, there are some nodes with excess load (sources) and others with deficit load (sinks) and it is required to find a matching of sources to sinks that avoids contention. The problem is made complex by the hardwired routing on currently available machines: the user can control only which nodes communicate but not how the messages are routed. Network flow models of message flow in the mesh and the hypercube were developed to solve this problem. The crucial property of these models is the correspondence between minimum cost flows and correctly routed messages. To solve a given load balancing problem, a minimum cost flow algorithm is applied to the network. This permits one to determine efficiently a maximum contention free matching of sources to sinks which, in turn, tells one how much of the given imbalance can be eliminated without contention.

Bokhari, Shahid H.

Control Allocation with Load Balancing

Next generation aircraft with a large number of actuators will require advanced control allocation methods to compute the actuator commands needed to follow desired trajectories while respecting system constraints. Previously, algorithms were proposed to minimize the l1 or l2 norms of the tracking error and of the actuator deflections. The paper discusses the alternative choice of the l(infinity) norm, or sup norm. Minimization of the control effort translates into the minimization of the maximum actuator deflection (min-max optimization). The paper shows how the problem can be solved effectively by converting it into a linear program and solving it using a simplex algorithm. Properties of the algorithm are also investigated through examples. In particular, the min-max criterion results in a type of load balancing, where the load is th desired command and the algorithm balances this load among various actuators. The solution using the l(infinity) norm also results in better robustness to failures and to lower sensitivity to nonlinearities in illustrative examples.

Bodson, Marc

Load Balancing Strategies for Multi-Block Overset Grid Applications

The multi-block overset grid method is a powerful technique for high-fidelity computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations about complex aerospace configurations. The solution process uses a grid system that discretizes the problem domain by using separately generated but overlapping structured grids that periodically update and exchange boundary information through interpolation. For efficient high performance computations of large-scale realistic applications using this methodology, the individual grids must be properly partitioned among the parallel processors. Overall performance, therefore, largely depends on the quality of load balancing. In this paper, we present three different load balancing strategies far overset grids and analyze their effects on the parallel efficiency of a Navier-Stokes CFD application running on an SGI Origin2000 machine.

Djomehri, M. Jahed

Parallel Tetrahedral Mesh Adaptation with Dynamic Load Balancing

The ability to dynamically adapt an unstructured grid is a powerful tool for efficiently solving computational problems with evolving physical features. In this paper, we report on our experience parallelizing an edge-based adaptation scheme, called 3D_TAG. using message passing. Results show excellent speedup when a realistic helicopter rotor mesh is randomly refined. However. performance deteriorates when the mesh is refined using a solution-based error indicator since mesh adaptation for practical problems occurs in a localized region., creating a severe load imbalance. To address this problem, we have developed PLUM, a global dynamic load balancing framework for adaptive numerical computations. Even though PLUM primarily balances processor workloads for the solution phase, it reduces the load imbalance problem within mesh adaptation by repartitioning the mesh after targeting edges for refinement but before the actual subdivision. This dramatically improves the performance of parallel 3D_TAG since refinement occurs in a more load balanced fashion. We also present optimal and heuristic algorithms that, when applied to the default mapping of a parallel repartitioner, significantly reduce the data redistribution overhead. Finally, portability is examined by comparing performance on three state-of-the-art parallel machines.

Oliker, Leonid

Data Partitioning and Load Balancing in Parallel Disk Systems

Parallel disk systems provide opportunities for exploiting I/O parallelism in two possible waves, namely via inter-request and intra-request parallelism. In this paper we discuss the main issues in performance tuning of such systems, namely striping and load balancing, and show their relationship to response time and throughput. We outline the main components of an intelligent, self-reliant file system that aims to optimize striping by taking into account the requirements of the applications and performs load balancing by judicious file allocation and dynamic redistributions of the data when access patterns change. Our system uses simple but effective heuristics that incur only little overhead. We present performance experiments based on synthetic workloads and real-life traces.

Scheuermann, Peter

Novel techniques for data decomposition and load balancing for parallel processing of vision systems: Implementation and evaluation using a motion estimation system

Computer vision systems employ a sequence of vision algorithms in which the output of an algorithm is the input of the next algorithm in the sequence. Algorithms that constitute such systems exhibit vastly different computational characteristics, and therefore, require different data decomposition techniques and efficient load balancing techniques for parallel implementation. However, since the input data for a task is produced as the output data of the previous task, this information can be exploited to perform knowledge based data decomposition and load balancing. Presented here are algorithms for a motion estimation system. The motion estimation is based on the point correspondence between the involved images which are a sequence of stereo image pairs. Researchers propose algorithms to obtain point correspondences by matching feature points among stereo image pairs at any two consecutive time instants. Furthermore, the proposed algorithms employ non-iterative procedures, which results in saving considerable amounts of computation time. The system consists of the following steps: (1) extraction of features; (2) stereo match of images in one time instant; (3) time match of images from consecutive time instants; (4) stereo match to compute final unambiguous points; and (5) computation of motion parameters.

Choudhary, Alok Nidhi

Portable Parallel Programming for the Dynamic Load Balancing of Unstructured Grid Applications

The ability to dynamically adapt an unstructured -rid (or mesh) is a powerful tool for solving computational problems with evolving physical features; however, an efficient parallel implementation is rather difficult, particularly from the view point of portability on various multiprocessor platforms We address this problem by developing PLUM, tin automatic anti architecture-independent framework for adaptive numerical computations in a message-passing environment. Portability is demonstrated by comparing performance on an SP2, an Origin2000, and a T3E, without any code modifications. We also present a general-purpose load balancer that utilizes symmetric broadcast networks (SBN) as the underlying communication pattern, with a goal to providing a global view of system loads across processors. Experiments on, an SP2 and an Origin2000 demonstrate the portability of our approach which achieves superb load balance at the cost of minimal extra overhead.

Biswas, Rupak

Dynamic Load Balancing for Computational Plasticity on Parallel Computers

The simulation of the computational plasticity on a complex structure remains a formidable computational task, especially when a highly nonlinear, complex material model was used. It appears that the computational requirements for a such problem can only be satisfied by massively parallel architectures. In order to effectively harness the tremendous computational power provided by such architectures, it is imperative to investigate and to study the algorithmic and implementation issues pertaining to dynamic load balancing for computational plasticity on a highly parallel, distributed-memory, multiple-instruction, multiple-data computers. This paper will measure the effectiveness of the algorithms developed in handling the dynamic load balancing.

Pramono, Eddy

Gammon - A load balancing strategy for local computer systems with multiaccess networks

Consideration is given to an efficient load-balancing strategy, Gammon (global allocation from maximum to minimum in constant time), for distributed computing systems connected by multiaccess local area networks. The broadcast capability of these networks is utilized to implement an identification procedure at the applications level for the maximally and the minimally loaded processors. The search technique has an average overhead which is independent of the number of participating stations. An implementation of Gammon on a network of Sun workstations is described. Its performance is found to be better than that of other known methods.

Baumgartner, Katherine M.

Implementation of GAMMON - An efficient load balancing strategy for a local computer system

GAMMON (Global Allocation from Maximum to Minimum in cONstant time), an efficient load-balancing algorithm, is described. GAMMON uses the available broadcast capability of multiaccess networks to implement an efficient search technique for finding hosts with maximal and minimal loads. The search technique has an average overhead which is independent of the number of participating stations. The transition from the theoretical concept to a practical, reliable, and efficient implementation is described.

Baumgartner, Katherine M.

Evaluation of the Accuracy of the Load Prediction Equations of Low-Load Balance Calibration Data

Accuracy and reliability of the load prediction equations of a low-load calibration data set of a force balance were investigated. First, independent load prediction equations were generated from the data of a full-load and low-load machine calibration. Then, the low-load data set was processed as a set of precision check loads for the load prediction equations that were obtained from the full-load and low-load calibrations. Finally, the load prediction equations of the two calibrations were applied to four manual check load data sets that were recorded between 2009 and 2022. The residuals of the predicted calibration and check loads were compared in all cases. No systematic improvement of the load prediction accuracy was observed when the load prediction equations of the low-load calibration were applied to the check load data sets. Therefore, it is recommended to apply a full-load calibration to a six-component balance even if the balance is not used across its entire design envelope. This approach has the advantage that the resulting load prediction equations are less likely to be applied outside of the calibration load ranges. In addition, it is expected that the numerical estimates of the bridge sensitivities are more reliable assuming that the uncertainties of the applied loads and measured outputs of the calibration data are more or less constant across the load range of the balance.

strain-gage balance

Load balancing and task decomposition techniques for parallel implementation of integrated vision systems algorithms

Several techniques are presented to perform static and dynamic load balancing schemes for integrated vision systems. These techniques are novel in the sense that they capture the computational requirements of a task by examining the data when they are produced. Furthermore, they can be applied to many integrated vision systems because many algorithms in different systems are either the same or have similar computational characteristics. These techniques are evaluated by applying them to the algorithms in a motion estimation system. It is shown that the performance gains when these techniques are used are significant and the overhead of using these techniques is minimal. The performance is evaluated by implementing the algorithms using the presented techniques on a hypercube multiprocessor system.

Choudhary, Alok N.

Evaluation of the Accuracy of the Load Prediction Equations of Low-Load Balance Calibration Data

Accuracy and reliability of the load prediction equations of a low-load calibration data set of a force balance were investigated. First, independent load prediction equations were generated from the data of a full-load and low-load machine calibration. Then, the low- load data set was processed as a set of precision check loads for the load prediction equations that were obtained from the full-load and low-load calibrations. Finally, the load prediction equations of the two calibrations were applied to four manual check load data sets that were recorded between 2009 and 2022. The residuals of the predicted calibration and check loads were compared in all cases. No systematic improvement of the load prediction accuracy was observed when the load prediction equations of the low-load calibration were applied to the check load data sets. Therefore, it is recommended to apply a full-load calibration to a six-component balance even if the balance is not used across its entire design envelope. This approach has the advantage that the resulting load prediction equations are less likely to be applied outside of the calibration load ranges. In addition, it is expected that the numerical estimates of the gage sensitivities are more reliable assuming that the uncertainties of the applied loads and measured outputs of the calibration data are more or less constant across the load range of the balance.

strain-gage balance

PLUM: Parallel Load Balancing for Unstructured Adaptive Meshes

Dynamic mesh adaption on unstructured grids is a powerful tool for computing large-scale problems that require grid modifications to efficiently resolve solution features. By locally refining and coarsening the mesh to capture physical phenomena of interest, such procedures make standard computational methods more cost effective. Unfortunately, an efficient parallel implementation of these adaptive methods is rather difficult to achieve, primarily due to the load imbalance created by the dynamically-changing nonuniform grid. This requires significant communication at runtime, leading to idle processors and adversely affecting the total execution time. Nonetheless, it is generally thought that unstructured adaptive- grid techniques will constitute a significant fraction of future high-performance supercomputing. Various dynamic load balancing methods have been reported to date; however, most of them either lack a global view of loads across processors or do not apply their techniques to realistic large-scale applications.

Oliker, Leonid

Latency Hiding in Dynamic Partitioning and Load Balancing of Grid Computing Applications

The Information Power Grid (IPG) concept developed by NASA is aimed to provide a metacomputing platform for large-scale distributed computations, by hiding the intricacies of highly heterogeneous environment and yet maintaining adequate security. In this paper, we propose a latency-tolerant partitioning scheme that dynamically balances processor workloads on the.IPG, and minimizes data movement and runtime communication. By simulating an unsteady adaptive mesh application on a wide area network, we study the performance of our load balancer under the Globus environment. The number of IPG nodes, the number of processors per node, and the interconnected speeds are parameterized to derive conditions under which the IPG would be suitable for parallel distributed processing of such applications. Experimental results demonstrate that effective solution are achieved when the IPG nodes are connected by a high-speed asynchronous interconnection network.

Das, Sajal K.

PLUM: Parallel Load Balancing for Adaptive Unstructured Meshes

Mesh adaption is a powerful tool for efficient unstructured-grid computations but causes load imbalance among processors on a parallel machine. We present a novel method called PLUM to dynamically balance the processor workloads with a global view. This paper presents the implementation and integration of all major components within our dynamic load balancing strategy for adaptive grid calculations. Mesh adaption, repartitioning, processor assignment, and remapping are critical components of the framework that must be accomplished rapidly and efficiently so as not to cause a significant overhead to the numerical simulation. A data redistribution model is also presented that predicts the remapping cost on the SP2. This model is required to determine whether the gain from a balanced workload distribution offsets the cost of data movement. Results presented in this paper demonstrate that PLUM is an effective dynamic load balancing strategy which remains viable on a large number of processors.

Oliker, Leonid