A distributed hardware algorithm for scheduling dependent tasks on multicore architectures

We present a novel hardware algorithm for scheduling tasks with dependency constraints on multicore architectures. This algorithm provides a deadlock-free scheduling over a large class of architectures by employing a generalization of a fundamental algorithm by Tomasulo. Performance measurements show that the proposed algorithm can deliver higher performance than a large increase in the number of processing cores. Several authors have already pointed out how the “threads” model of computation can lead to a painstaking and error-prone programming process. Our approach does not preclude backward compatibility and the use of traditional techniques, but still supports a different and more advanced programming model, which is generally better suited for many complex embedded multicore systems.