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Memory Referencing Behavior in Compiler-Parallelized Applications

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Abstract

Compiler-parallelized applications are increasing in importance as moderate-scale multiprocessors become common. This paper evaluates how features of advanced memory systems (e.g., longer cache lines) impact memory system behavior for applications amenable to compiler parallelization. Using full-sized input data sets and applications taken from the SPEC, NAS, PERFECT, and RICEPS benchmark suites, we measure statistics such as speedups, memory costs, causes of cache misses, cache line utilization, and data traffic. This exploration allows us to draw several conclusions. First, we find that larger granularity parallelism often correlates with good memory system behavior, good overall performance, and high speedup in these applications. Second, we show that when long (512 byte) cache lines are used, many of these applications suffer from false sharing and low cache line utilization. Third, we identify some of the common artifacts in compiler-parallelized codes that can lead to false sharing or other types of poor memory system performance, and we suggest methods for improving them. Overall, this study offers both an important snapshot of the behavior of applications compiled by state-of-the-art compilers, as well as an increased understanding of the interplay between cache line size, program granularity, and memory performance in moderate-scale multiprocessors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Computer Systems Laboratory, Stanford University, Stanford, USA

    Evan Torrie

  2. Department of Electrical Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, USA

    Margaret Martonosi

  3. Department of Computer Science, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, USA

    Mary W. Hall

  4. Department of Computer Science, University of Maryland, College Park, USA

    Chau-Wen Tseng

Authors
  1. Evan Torrie
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  2. Margaret Martonosi
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  3. Mary W. Hall
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  4. Chau-Wen Tseng
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Evan Torrie.

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Torrie, E., Martonosi, M., Hall, M.W. et al. Memory Referencing Behavior in Compiler-Parallelized Applications. Int J Parallel Prog 24, 349–376 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03356754

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