Multiprogrammed Parallel Application Scheduling in NUMA Multiprocessors

The invention, acceptance, and proliferation of multiprocessors are primarily a result of the quest to increase computer system performance. The most promising features of multiprocessors are their potential to solve problems faster than previously possible and to solve larger problems than previously possible. Large-scale multiprocessors offer the additional advantage of being able to execute multiple parallel applications simultaneously. The execution time of a parallel application is directly related to the number of processors it is allocated and, in shared-memory non-uniform memory access time (NUMA) multiprocessors, which processors it is allocated. As a result, efficient and effective scheduling becomes critical to overall system performance. In fact, it is likely to be a contributing factor in ultimately determining the success or failure of shared-memory NUMA multiprocessors. The subjects of this dissertation are the problems of processor allocation and application placement. ..