Multicore soft error rate stabilization using adaptive dual modular redundancy

Abstract

The use of dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) in contemporary multicores provides significant protection from unpredictable thermal events. A side effect of DVFS can be an increased processor exposure to soft errors. To address this issue, a flexible fault prevention mechanism has been developed to selectively enable a small amount of per-core dual modular redundancy (DMR) in response to increased vulnerability, as measured by the processor architectural vulnerability factor (AVF). Our new algorithm for DMR deployment aims to provide a stable effective soft error rate (SER) by using DMR in response to DVFS caused by thermal events. The algorithm is implemented in real-time on the multicore using a dedicated monitor network-on-chip and controller which evaluates thermal information and multicore performance statistics. Experiments with a multicore simulator using standard benchmarks show an average 6% improvement in overall power consumption and a stable SER by using selective DMR versus continuous DMR deployment.