A spanning tree based recursive refinement algorithm for fast task mapping

The early version of recursive refinement, an algorithm, for fast task mapping is reported in this paper. An intended application for this algorithm is dynamic load balancing on a parallel/distributed system, including a network of workstations. Since this requires a fast mapping, the algorithm restricts the range of tasks movement during optimization and maps groups of tasks to groups of PE's in each iteration. Tasks are allowed to be swapped only between the two partitions that comprise the parent partition from the previous iteration. More freedom of task movement is unnecessary because structural characteristics of the problem graph are used to guide the mapping. The groups are derived from a spanning tree that is constructed from the original problem graph and is used to identify the structural characteristics required for the algorithm. Experimental results show that the algorithm is able to achieve a mapping quality as good as that by another mapping scheme characteristic of a class of algorithms that require an order of magnitude more time.