Interleaved all-to-all reliable broadcast on meshes and hypercubes

All-to-all (ATA) reliable broadcast is the problem of reliably distributing information from every node to every other node in point-to-point interconnection networks. A good solution to this problem is essential for clock synchronization, distributed agreement, etc. We propose a novel solution in which the reliable broadcasts from individual nodes are interleaved in such a manner that no two packets contend for the same link at any given time-this type of method is particularly suited for systems which use virtual cut-through or wormhole routing for fast communication between nodes. Our solution, called the IHC Algorithm, can be used on a large class of regular interconnection networks including regular meshes and hypercubes. By adjusting a parameter /spl eta/ referred to as the interleaving distance, we can flexibly decrease the link utilization of the IHC algorithm (for normal traffic) at the expense of an increase in the time required for ATA reliable broadcast. We compare the IHC algorithm to several other possible virtual cut-through solutions and a store-and-forward solution. The IHC algorithm with the minimum value of /spl eta/ is shown to be optimal in minimizing the execution time of ATA reliable broadcast when used in a dedicated mode (with no other network traffic).<
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