Scalable computing with parallel tasks

Abstract

Recent and future parallel clusters and supercomputers use SMPs and multi-core processors as basic nodes, providing a huge amount of parallel resources. These systems often have hierarchically structured interconnection networks combining computing resources at different levels, starting with the interconnect within multi-core processors up to the interconnection network combining nodes of the cluster or supercomputer. The challenge for the programmer is that these computing resources should be utilized efficiently by exploiting the available degree of parallelism of the application programs and by structuring the application in a way which is sensitive to the heterogeneous interconnect.