Synchronization and concurrent control in communication network simulation

A fundamental problem in parallel and distributed discrete event simulation is to guarantee causal event ordering for each and every entity in the simulation system. A conservative synchronization algorithm CCT (critical channel traversing) has demonstrated, in an ATM network simulation, phenomenal performance unseen before. Some of the major factors that contribute to the performance are the ability of CCT to schedule simulation at the largest possible computation grains and the use of a set of lock-free concurrent control mechanisms. This paper presents the features and properties of CCT from the performance perspective. It also describes the concurrent control mechanisms that are designed to work with CCT to support fast simulation of large communication networks