A performance comparison of fast distributed mutual exclusion algorithms

Several fast and low-overhead distributed mutual exclusion algorithms have been proposed. Each of these algorithms required O(log n) messages per critical section entry and O(log n) bits of storage per processor. In this paper, we make a comparative performance study of four distributed mutual exclusion algorithms. Since the algorithms we study are the basis for distributed synchronization, distributed virtual memory, coherent caches, and distributed object systems, our results have implications about the best methods for their implementation. We find that the distributed synchronization algorithm of Chang, Singhal, and Liu (1990) has the overall best performance, though other algorithms are more efficient in special cases. In a system of 350 processors, the CSL algorithm requires only six messages per critical section entry, including the initial request and the token response messages.<
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