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Title: Message-passing controller for a shared-memory multiprocessor

Journal Article · · Computer Architecture News; (USA)
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1145/77254.77265· OSTI ID:6893862

Although message-passing is a versatile communication paradigm in the multiprocessing area (AthSe88), a pure message-passing mechanism via special communication channels is inefficient. Shared-memory multiprocessor systems are usually much cheaper and efficient. Conventional approaches tend to implement message-passing on top of shared-memory architectures using a pure software approach. Even with special techniques (FinHe88), the performance of such systems is still worse than simple shared-memory communication systems. In this paper, the authors present a hardware approach and new message-passing mechanisms that the pure software approach does not support. Such an approach is quite cost effective. The resulting system is suitable for studying concurrent software, and scientific computations.

OSTI ID:
6893862
Journal Information:
Computer Architecture News; (USA), Vol. 17:6; ISSN 0163-5964
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English