Dynamic load balancing for a grid application

Abstract. Grids functionally combine globally distributed computers and information systems for creating a universal source of computing power and information. A key characteristic of grids is that resources (e.g., CPU cycles and network capacities) are shared among numerous applications, and therefore, the amount of resources available to any given application highly fluctuates over time. In this paper we analyze the impact of the fluctuations in the processing speed on the performance of grid applications. Extensive lab experiments show that the burstiness in processing speeds has a dramatic impact on the running times, which heightens the need for dynamic load balancing schemes to realize good performance. Our results demonstrate that a simple dynamic load balancing scheme based on forecasts via exponential smoothing is highly effective in reacting to the burstiness in processing speeds.