Wait-free linked-lists

The linked-list data structure is fundamental and ubiquitous. Lockfree versions of the linked-list are well known. However, the existence of a practical wait-free linked-list has been open. In this work we designed such a linked-list. To achieve better performance, we have also extended this design using the fast-path-slow-path methodology. The resulting implementation achieves performance which is competitive with that of Harris’s lock-free list, while still guaranteeing non-starvation via wait-freedom. We have also developed a proof for the correctness and the wait-freedom of our design.

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2012
• Where: PPOPP
• Authors: Shahar Timnat, Anastasia Braginsky, Alex Kogan, Erez Petrank
• Keywords: Data Structure, Distributed And Parallel Computing, PPOPP 2012, Slow Path, Starvation