On the tailoring of CAST-32A certification guidance to real COTS multicore architectures

The use of Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) multicores in real-time industry is on the rise due to multicores' potential performance increase and energy reduction. Yet, the unpredictable impact on timing of contention in shared hardware resources challenges certification. Furthermore, most safety certification standards target single-core architectures and do not provide explicit guidance for multicore processors. Recently, however, CAST-32A has been presented providing guidance for software planning, development and verification in multicores. In this paper, from a theoretical level, we provide a detailed review of CAST-32A objectives and the difficulty of reaching them under current COTS multicore design trends; at experimental level, we assess the difficulties of the application of CAST-32A to a real multicore processor, the NXP P4080.This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) under grant TIN2015-65316-P and the HiPEAC Network of Excellence. Jaume Abella has been partially supported by the MINECO under Ramon y Cajal grant RYC-2013-14717.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Congestion avoidance in overlay networks through multipath routing

Overlay networks relying on traditional multicast routing approaches use only a single path between a sender and a receiver. This path is selected based on latency, with the goal of achieving fast delivery. Content is routed through links with low latency, ignoring slower links of the network which remain unused. With the increasing size of content on the Internet, this leads to congestion, messages are dropped and have to be retransmitted. A multicast multipath congestion-avoidance routing scheme which uses multiple bottleneck-disjoint paths between senders and receivers was developed, as was a linear programming model of the network to distribute messages intelligently across these paths according to two goals: minimum network usage and load-balancing. The former aims to use as few links as possible to perform routing, while the latter spreads messages across as many links as possible, evenly distributing the traffic. Another technique, called message splitting, was also used. This allows nodes to send a single copy of a message with multiple receivers, which will then be duplicated by a node closer to the receivers and sent along separate paths only when required. The model considers all of the messages in the network and is a global optimisation. Nevertheless, it can be solved quickly for large networks and workloads, with the cost of routing remaining almost entirely the cost of finding multiple paths between senders and receivers. The Gurobi linear programming solver was used to find solutions to the model. This routing approach was implemented in the NS-3 network simulator. The work is presented as a messaging middleware scheme, which can be applied to any overlay messaging network.Open Acces

NoCo: ILP-based worst-case contention estimation for mesh real-time manycores

Manycores are capable of providing the computational demands required by functionally-advanced critical applications in domains such as automotive and avionics. In manycores a network-on-chip (NoC) provides access to shared caches and memories and hence concentrates most of the contention that tasks suffer, with effects on the worst-case contention delay (WCD) of packets and tasks' WCET. While several proposals minimize the impact of individual NoC parameters on WCD, e.g. mapping and routing, there are strong dependences among these NoC parameters. Hence, finding the optimal NoC configurations requires optimizing all parameters simultaneously, which represents a multidimensional optimization problem. In this paper we propose NoCo, a novel approach that combines ILP and stochastic optimization to find NoC configurations in terms of packet routing, application mapping, and arbitration weight allocation. Our results show that NoCo improves other techniques that optimize a subset of NoC parameters.This work has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under grant TIN2015- 65316-P and the HiPEAC Network of Excellence. It also received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (agreement No. 772773). Carles Hernández is jointly supported by the MINECO and FEDER funds through grant TIN2014-60404-JIN. Jaume Abella has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under Ramon y Cajal postdoctoral fellowship number RYC-2013-14717. Enrico Mezzetti has been partially supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness under Juan de la Cierva-Incorporaci´on postdoctoral fellowship number IJCI-2016-27396.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

A Multi-core processor for hard real-time systems

The increasing demand for new functionalities in current and future hard real-time embedded systems, like the ones deployed in automotive and avionics industries, is driving an increment in the performance required in current embedded processors. Multi-core processors represent a good design solution to cope with such higher performance requirements due to their better performance-per-watt ratio while maintaining the core design simple. Moreover, multi-cores also allow executing mixed-criticality level workloads composed of tasks with and without hard real-time requirements, maximizing the utilization of the hardware resources while guaranteeing low cost and low power consumption. Despite those benefits, current multi-core processors are less analyzable than single-core ones due to the interferences between different tasks when accessing hardware shared resources. As a result, estimating a meaningful Worst-Case Execution Time (WCET) estimation - i.e. to compute an upper bound of the application's execution time - becomes extremely difficult, if not even impossible, because the execution time of a task may change depending on the other threads running at the same time. This makes the WCET of a task dependent on the set of inter-task interferences introduced by the co-running tasks. Providing a WCET estimation independent from the other tasks (time composability property) is a key requirement in hard real-time systems. This thesis proposes a new multi-core processor design in which time composability is achieved, hence enabling the use of multi-cores in hard real-time systems. With our proposals the WCET estimation of a HRT is independent from the other co-running tasks. To that end, we design a multi-core processor in which the maximum delay a request from a Hard Real-time Task (HRT), accessing a hardware shared resource can suffer due to other tasks is bounded: our processor guarantees that a request to a shared resource cannot be delayed longer than a given Upper Bound Delay (UBD). In addition, the UBD allows identifying the impact that different processor configurations may have on the WCET by determining the sensitivity of a HRT to different resource allocations. This thesis proposes an off-line task allocation algorithm (called IA3: Interference-Aware Allocation Algorithm), that allocates tasks in a task set based on the HRT's sensitivity to different resource allocations. As a result the hardware shared resources used by HRTs are minimized, by allowing Non Hard Real-time Tasks (NHRTs) to use the rest of resources. Overall, our proposals provide analyzability for the HRTs allowing NHRTs to be executed into the same chip without any effect on the HRTs. The previous first two proposals of this thesis focused on supporting the execution of multi-programmed workloads with mixed-criticality levels (composed of HRTs and NHRTs). Higher performance could be achieved by implementing multi-threaded applications. As a first step towards supporting hard real-time parallel applications, this thesis proposes a new hardware/software approach to guarantee a predictable execution of software pipelined parallel programs. This thesis also investigates a solution to verify the timing correctness of HRTs without requiring any modification in the core design: we design a hardware unit which is interfaced with the processor and integrated into a functional-safety aware methodology. This unit monitors the execution time of a block of instructions and it detects if it exceeds the WCET. Concretely, we show how to handle timing faults on a real industrial automotive platform.La creciente demanda de nuevas funcionalidades en los sistemas empotrados de tiempo real actuales y futuros en industrias como la automovilística y la de aviación, está impulsando un incremento en el rendimiento necesario en los actuales procesadores empotrados. Los procesadores multi-núcleo son una solución eficiente para obtener un mayor rendimiento ya que aumentan el rendimiento por vatio, manteniendo el diseño del núcleo simple. Por otra parte, los procesadores multi-núcleo también permiten ejecutar cargas de trabajo con niveles de tiempo real mixtas (formadas por tareas de tiempo real duro y laxo así como tareas sin requerimientos de tiempo real), maximizando así la utilización de los recursos de procesador y garantizando el bajo consumo de energía. Sin embargo, a pesar los beneficios mencionados anteriormente, los actuales procesadores multi-núcleo son menos analizables que los de un solo núcleo debido a las interferencias surgidas cuando múltiples tareas acceden simultáneamente a los recursos compartidos del procesador. Como resultado, la estimación del peor tiempo de ejecución (conocido como WCET) - es decir, una cota superior del tiempo de ejecución de la aplicación - se convierte en extremadamente difícil, si no imposible, porque el tiempo de ejecución de una tarea puede cambiar dependiendo de las otras tareas que se estén ejecutando concurrentemente. Determinar una estimación del WCET independiente de las otras tareas es un requisito clave en los sistemas empotrados de tiempo real duro. Esta tesis propone un nuevo diseño de procesador multi-núcleo en el que el tiempo de ejecución de las tareas se puede componer, lo que permitirá el uso de procesadores multi-núcleo en los sistemas de tiempo real duro. Para ello, diseñamos un procesador multi-núcleo en el que la máxima demora que puede sufrir una petición de una tarea de tiempo real duro (HRT) para acceder a un recurso hardware compartido debido a otras tareas está acotado, tiene un límite superior (UBD). Además, UBD permite identificar el impacto que las diferentes posibles configuraciones del procesador pueden tener en el WCET, mediante la determinación de la sensibilidad en la variación del tiempo de ejecución de diferentes reservas de recursos del procesador. Esta tesis propone un algoritmo estático de reserva de recursos (llamado IA3), que asigna tareas a núcleos en función de dicha sensibilidad. Como resultado los recursos compartidos del procesador usados por tareas HRT se reducen al mínimo, permitiendo que las tareas sin requerimiento de tiempo real (NHRTs) puedas beneficiarse del resto de recursos. Por lo tanto, las propuestas presentadas en esta tesis permiten el análisis del WCET para tareas HRT, permitiendo así mismo la ejecución de tareas NHRTs en el mismo procesador multi-núcleo, sin que estas tengan ningún efecto sobre las tareas HRT. Las propuestas presentadas anteriormente se centran en el soporte a la ejecución de múltiples cargas de trabajo con diferentes niveles de tiempo real (HRT y NHRTs). Sin embargo, un mayor rendimiento puede lograrse mediante la transformación una tarea en múltiples sub-tareas paralelas. Esta tesis propone una nueva técnica, con soporte del procesador y del sistema operativo, que garantiza una ejecución analizable del modelo de ejecución paralela software pipelining. Esta tesis también investiga una solución para verificar la corrección del WCET de HRT sin necesidad de ninguna modificación en el diseño de la base: un nuevo componente externo al procesador se conecta a este sin necesidad de modificarlo. Esta nueva unidad monitorea el tiempo de ejecución de un bloque de instrucciones y detecta si se excede el WCET. Esta unidad permite detectar fallos de sincronización en sistemas de computación utilizados en automóviles

Contention in multicore hardware shared resources: Understanding of the state of the art

The real-time systems community has over the years devoted considerable attention to the impact on execution timing that arises from contention on access to hardware shared resources. The relevance of this problem has been accentuated with the arrival of multicore processors. From the state of the art on the subject, there appears to be considerable diversity in the understanding of the problem and in the “approach” to solve it. This sparseness makes it difficult for any reader to form a coherent picture of the problem and solution space. This paper draws a tentative taxonomy in which each known approach to the problem can be categorised based on its specific goals and assumptions.Postprint (published version

Energy efficient data collection and dissemination protocols in self-organised wireless sensor networks

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are used for event detection and data collection in a plethora of environmental monitoring applications. However a critical factor limits the extension of WSNs into new application areas: energy constraints. This thesis develops self-organising energy efficient data collection and dissemination protocols in order to support WSNs in event detection and data collection and thus extend the use of sensor-based networks to many new application areas. Firstly, a Dual Prediction and Probabilistic Scheduler (DPPS) is developed. DPPS uses a Dual Prediction Scheme combining compression and load balancing techniques in order to manage sensor usage more efficiently. DPPS was tested and evaluated through computer simulations and empirical experiments. Results showed that DPPS reduces energy consumption in WSNs by up to 35% while simultaneously maintaining data quality and satisfying a user specified accuracy constraint. Secondly, an Adaptive Detection-driven Ad hoc Medium Access Control (ADAMAC) protocol is developed. ADAMAC limits the Data Forwarding Interruption problem which causes increased end-to-end delay and energy consumption in multi-hop sensor networks. ADAMAC uses early warning alarms to dynamically adapt the sensing intervals and communication periods of a sensor according to the likelihood of any new events occurring. Results demonstrated that compared to previous protocols such as SMAC, ADAMAC dramatically reduces end-to-end delay while still limiting energy consumption during data collection and dissemination. The protocols developed in this thesis, DPPS and ADAMAC, effectively alleviate the energy constraints associated with WSNs and will support the extension of sensorbased networks to many more application areas than had hitherto been readily possible

A time-predictable many-core processor design for critical real-time embedded systems

Critical Real-Time Embedded Systems (CRTES) are in charge of controlling fundamental parts of embedded system, e.g. energy harvesting solar panels in satellites, steering and breaking in cars, or flight management systems in airplanes. To do so, CRTES require strong evidence of correct functional and timing behavior. The former guarantees that the system operates correctly in response of its inputs; the latter ensures that its operations are performed within a predefined time budget. CRTES aim at increasing the number and complexity of functions. Examples include the incorporation of \smarter" Advanced Driver Assistance System (ADAS) functionality in modern cars or advanced collision avoidance systems in Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). All these new features, implemented in software, lead to an exponential growth in both performance requirements and software development complexity. Furthermore, there is a strong need to integrate multiple functions into the same computing platform to reduce the number of processing units, mass and space requirements, etc. Overall, there is a clear need to increase the computing power of current CRTES in order to support new sophisticated and complex functionality, and integrate multiple systems into a single platform. The use of multi- and many-core processor architectures is increasingly seen in the CRTES industry as the solution to cope with the performance demand and cost constraints of future CRTES. Many-cores supply higher performance by exploiting the parallelism of applications while providing a better performance per watt as cores are maintained simpler with respect to complex single-core processors. Moreover, the parallelization capabilities allow scheduling multiple functions into the same processor, maximizing the hardware utilization. However, the use of multi- and many-cores in CRTES also brings a number of challenges related to provide evidence about the correct operation of the system, especially in the timing domain. Hence, despite the advantages of many-cores and the fact that they are nowadays a reality in the embedded domain (e.g. Kalray MPPA, Freescale NXP P4080, TI Keystone II), their use in CRTES still requires finding efficient ways of providing reliable evidence about the correct operation of the system. This thesis investigates the use of many-core processors in CRTES as a means to satisfy performance demands of future complex applications while providing the necessary timing guarantees. To do so, this thesis contributes to advance the state-of-the-art towards the exploitation of parallel capabilities of many-cores in CRTES contributing in two different computing domains. From the hardware domain, this thesis proposes new many-core designs that enable deriving reliable and tight timing guarantees. From the software domain, we present efficient scheduling and timing analysis techniques to exploit the parallelization capabilities of many-core architectures and to derive tight and trustworthy Worst-Case Execution Time (WCET) estimates of CRTES.Los sistemas críticos empotrados de tiempo real (en ingles Critical Real-Time Embedded Systems, CRTES) se encargan de controlar partes fundamentales de los sistemas integrados, e.g. obtención de la energía de los paneles solares en satélites, la dirección y frenado en automóviles, o el control de vuelo en aviones. Para hacerlo, CRTES requieren fuerte evidencias del correcto comportamiento funcional y temporal. El primero garantiza que el sistema funciona correctamente en respuesta de sus entradas; el último asegura que sus operaciones se realizan dentro de unos limites temporales establecidos previamente. El objetivo de los CRTES es aumentar el número y la complejidad de las funciones. Algunos ejemplos incluyen los sistemas inteligentes de asistencia a la conducción en automóviles modernos o los sistemas avanzados de prevención de colisiones en vehiculos aereos no tripulados. Todas estas nuevas características, implementadas en software,conducen a un crecimiento exponencial tanto en los requerimientos de rendimiento como en la complejidad de desarrollo de software. Además, existe una gran necesidad de integrar múltiples funciones en una sóla plataforma para así reducir el número de unidades de procesamiento, cumplir con requisitos de peso y espacio, etc. En general, hay una clara necesidad de aumentar la potencia de cómputo de los actuales CRTES para soportar nueva funcionalidades sofisticadas y complejas e integrar múltiples sistemas en una sola plataforma. El uso de arquitecturas multi- y many-core se ve cada vez más en la industria CRTES como la solución para hacer frente a la demanda de mayor rendimiento y las limitaciones de costes de los futuros CRTES. Las arquitecturas many-core proporcionan un mayor rendimiento explotando el paralelismo de aplicaciones al tiempo que proporciona un mejor rendimiento por vatio ya que los cores se mantienen más simples con respecto a complejos procesadores de un solo core. Además, las capacidades de paralelización permiten programar múltiples funciones en el mismo procesador, maximizando la utilización del hardware. Sin embargo, el uso de multi- y many-core en CRTES también acarrea ciertos desafíos relacionados con la aportación de evidencias sobre el correcto funcionamiento del sistema, especialmente en el ámbito temporal. Por eso, a pesar de las ventajas de los procesadores many-core y del hecho de que éstos son una realidad en los sitemas integrados (por ejemplo Kalray MPPA, Freescale NXP P4080, TI Keystone II), su uso en CRTES aún precisa de la búsqueda de métodos eficientes para proveer evidencias fiables sobre el correcto funcionamiento del sistema. Esta tesis ahonda en el uso de procesadores many-core en CRTES como un medio para satisfacer los requisitos de rendimiento de aplicaciones complejas mientras proveen las garantías de tiempo necesarias. Para ello, esta tesis contribuye en el avance del estado del arte hacia la explotación de many-cores en CRTES en dos ámbitos de la computación. En el ámbito del hardware, esta tesis propone nuevos diseños many-core que posibilitan garantías de tiempo fiables y precisas. En el ámbito del software, la tesis presenta técnicas eficientes para la planificación de tareas y el análisis de tiempo para aprovechar las capacidades de paralelización en arquitecturas many-core, y también para derivar estimaciones de peor tiempo de ejecución (Worst-Case Execution Time, WCET) fiables y precisas

Green Carbon Footprint for Model Inference Serving via Exploiting Mixed-Quality Models and GPU Partitioning

This paper presents a solution to the challenge of mitigating carbon emissions from large-scale high performance computing (HPC) systems and datacenters that host machine learning (ML) inference services. ML inference is critical to modern technology products, but it is also a significant contributor to datacenter compute cycles and carbon emissions. We introduce Clover, a carbon-friendly ML inference service runtime system that balances performance, accuracy, and carbon emissions through mixed-quality models and GPU resource partitioning. Our experimental results demonstrate that Clover is effective in substantially reducing carbon emissions while maintaining high accuracy and meeting service level agreement (SLA) targets. Therefore, it is a promising solution toward achieving carbon neutrality in HPC systems and datacenters

BB-RTE: a Budget-Based RunTime Engine for Mixed and Safety Critical Systems

International audienceThe safety critical industry is considering a shift from single-core COTS to multi-core COTS processor for safety and time critical computers in order to maximize performance while reducing costs.In a domain where time predictability is a major concern due to the regulation standards, multi-core processors are introducing new sources of time variations due to the electronic competition when the software is accessing shared hardware resources, and characterized by timing interference.The solutions proposed in the literature to deal with timing interference are all proposing a trade-off between performance efficiency, time predictability and intrusiveness in the software. Especially, none of them is able to fully exploit the multi-core efficiency while allowing untouched, already-certified legacy software to run.In this paper, we introduce and evaluate BB-RTE, a Budget-Based RunTime Engine for Mixed and Safety Critical Systems, that especially focuses on mixed critical systems. BB-RTE guarantees the deadline of high-critical tasks 1) by computing for each shared hardware resource a budget in terms of extra accesses that the critical tasks can support before their runtime is significantly impacted; 2) by temporarily suspending low-critical tasks at runtime once this budget as been consumed