Load balancing strategies for dense linear algebra kernels on heterogeneous two-dimensional grids

Abstract

We study the implementation of dense linear algebra computations, such as matrix multiplication and linear system solvers, on two-dimensional (2D) grids of heterogeneous processors. For these operations, 2D-grids are the key to scalability and efficiency. The uniform block-cyclic data distribution scheme commonly used for homogeneous collections of processors limits the performance-of-these operations on heterogeneous grids to the speed of the slowest processor. We present and study more sophisticated data allocation strategies that balance the load on heterogeneous 2D-grids with respect to the performance of the processors. The usefulness of these strategies is demonstrated by simulation measurements for a heterogeneous network of workstations.