Load balancing in distributed memory multiprocessors

It is argued that multiuser distributed memory multiprocessors with dynamic mapping of the application onto the hardware structure are needed to make available the advantages of this type of architecture to a wider user community. It is shown, based on an abstract model, that such architectures may be used efficiently. It is also shown that future developments in interconnection hardware will allow the fulfillment of the assumptions made in the model. Since a dynamic load balancing procedure will be one of the most important components in the systems software, the elements of its implementation are discussed and first results based on a testbed implementation are presented