Monitoring and Evaluation of Parallel and Distributed Systems

Due to the complex interactions between activities in parallel processes, the dynamic behavior of the system cannot be quantified a priori. However, a profound knowledge about what is going on in the system is the basis for balancing the load in order to optimally utilize the potential power of such a parallel system. Monitoring is a valuable aid in getting the necessary insight into this dynamic behavior of interacting processes. In the first part of the tutorial, the principles of measurement -based performance analysis in parallel and distributed systems are discussed. General topics, concerned with hardware, software, and hybrid monitoring are presented with examples, and rules are given for choosing the appropriate monitoring technique. As an example, ZM4, a universal distributed monitor system is introduced. The second part of the tutorial deals with all tasks related to the process of presenting the meaning of trace data to human beings. Trace evaluation can be performed with ..