Mapping concurrently-communicating modules onto mesh multicomputers equipped with virtual channels

It is difficult to define and evaluate a meaningful performance metric when many packets are generated and exchanged concurrently in mesh-connected multicomputers equipped with wormhole switching and virtual channels. Thus, an approximate metric/cost function must be chosen so that when, task modules are mapped by optimizing this function, the actual performance of the mapping is also optimized. Several low-complexity cost functions are evaluated using the simulated annealing optimization process. The mappings found by optimizing these cost functions are then fed into a flit-level simulator to evaluate their actual performance. One particular cost function is found to be very effective