Layered, Multi-Threaded, High-Level Performance Design

A primary goal of high-level modeling is to efficiently explore a broad design space, converging on an optimal or near-optimal system architecture before moving to a more detailed design. This paper evaluates a high-level, layered software-on-hardware performance modeling environment called MESH that captures coarse-grained, interacting system elements. The validity of the high-level model is established by comparing the outcome of the high-level model with a corresponding low-level, cycle-accurate instruction set simulator. We model a network processor and show that both high and low level models converge on the same architecture when design modifications are classified as good or bad performance impacts.

• Type: Conference
• Year: 2003
• Where: DATE
• Authors: Andrew S. Cassidy, JoAnn M. Paul, Donald E. Thomas
• Keywords: Broad Design Space, DATE 2003, Environment Called Mesh, Hardware, Layered Software-on-hardware Performance