A METHODOLOGY FOR THE EVALUATION OF MULTIPROCESSOR NONPREEMPTIVE ALLOCATION POLICIES

In this paper a methodology for the evaluation of non-preemptive adapt ive policies for multiprogramming multiprocessor systems is proposed. An evaluation criterion is derived based on a systematic and consisten t comparison of several allocation policies in a common framework. The comparison of the policies identifies the characteristic performance behavior of this type of policies. It suggests that equipartitioning s trategies are an effective solution to the allocation problem when the workload components are statistically similar. The envelope of static equipartitioning policies (SEPs) is proposed as an evaluation criteri on for non-preemptive adaptive policies. This criterion offers a guide line for the design of new policies and is useful in assessing the per formance of existing ones. Analytical validation of the proposed crite rion is presented for a simple case.