Multilevel Simulation of Distributed-memory Program Traces

Abstract

Simulation of program traces is widely used in studying the impact of a system design on the beliavior of application programs. In this paper, we present a multilevel approach for simulating program traces. This approach provides the flexibility of selecting a desirable balance between tlie accuracy and the cost of simulation. We describe a case study of applying this approach to simulating traces of distributed-memory programs. The case study involves defining a hierarchical model of a parallel computer, defining a corresponding hierarchy of simulation levels, and defining the interface between successive simulation levels. The described case study resulted in a tool aimed at assisting designers of algorithms and applications for the IBM Vulcan distributed-memory parallel computer.