Multitasking in high-speed interconnection systems

Abstract

This paper focuses on high-speed connection-oriented communication among high-end multitasking systems. This environment is characterized by very high interconnection bandwidth and by large, variable size data blocks. The HIPPI standard is being designed to provide a base for communication in such an environment. Multitasking in members of the system complex requires multiple source buffers for the interconnection system, an unusual feature of connection-oriented communication that requires special consideration in the design and performance evaluation. We define two connection management policies, the centralized and the broadcast policy and two service disciplines, the ALL discipline and the FIFO discipline. We then develop analytic models that can represent the salient features of such interconnection systems, including, the management policy, the service discipline and the number of buffers. The models are validated by comparing their results to results from simulations. The models are then used to evaluate the impact of the connection management policies, the service disciplines, and the number of buffers on the performance of these interconnection systems.