Priority-Driven Scheduling of Periodic Task Systems on Multiprocessors

The scheduling of systems of periodic tasks upon multiprocessor platforms is considered. Utilization-based conditions are derived for determining whether a periodic task system meets all deadlines when scheduled using the earliest deadline first scheduling algorithm (EDF) upon a given multiprocessor platform. A new priority-driven algorithm is proposed for scheduling periodic task systems upon multiprocessor platforms: this algorithm is shown to successfully schedule some task systems for which EDF may fail to meet all deadlines.     

基于动态双向优先级的任务分配与调度算法

提出了一种基于动态双向优先级的任务分配与调度算法,称作动态双向优先级(DDDP)算法。该算法综合考虑了实时任务的优先级和子机的优先级,构造了动态双向优先级任务分配模型,实现了数据传输中主机/子机模式的任务动态分配与调度。在模拟实验中,通过使用正常负载和过载情况下的典型数据对算法进行仿真研究表明,这种算法比单纯考虑截止期的EDF算法在性能方面有明显的改进和提高。     

Allocating fixed-priority periodic tasks on multiprocessor systems

In this paper, we study the problem of allocating a set of periodic tasks on a multiprocessor system such that tasks are scheduled to meet their deadlines on individual processors by the Rate-Monotonic scheduling algorithm. A new schedulability condition is developed for the Rate-Monotonic scheduling that allows us to develop more efficient on-line allocation algorithms. Two on-line allocation algorithms—RM-FF and RM-BF are presented, and shown that their worst-case performance, over the optimal allocation, is upper bounded by 2.33 and lower bounded by 2.28. Then RM-FF and RM-BF are further improved to form two new algorithms: Refined-RM-FF (RRM-FF) and Refined-RM-BF (RRM-BF), both of which have a worst-case performance bound of 2. We also show that when the maximum allowable utilization of a task is small, the worst-case performance of all the new algorithms can be significantly improved. The worst-case performance bounds of RRM-FF and RRM-BF are currently the best bounds in the class of on-line scheduling algorithms proposed to solve the same scheduling problem. Simulation studies show that the average-case performance of the newly proposed algorithms is significantly superior to those in the existing literature.     

Lower bound algorithms for multiprocessor task scheduling with ready times

In this paper, we deal with multiprocessor task scheduling with ready times and prespecified processor allocation. We consider an on‐line scenario where tasks arrive over time, and, at any point in time, the scheduler only has knowledge of the released tasks. An application of this problem arises in wavelength division multiplexing broadcasting where the main future will be in the so‐called one‐to‐many transmission. We propose algorithms to find lower bounds of the minimum makespan, and present experiments on various scenarios.     

Minimum and maximum utilization bounds for multiprocessor rate monotonic scheduling

The utilization bound for real-time rate monotonic (RM) scheduling on uniprocessors is extended to multiprocessors with partitioning-based scheduling. This allows fast schedulability tests to be performed on multiprocessors and quantifies the influence of key parameters, such as the number of processors and task sizes on the schedulability of the system. The multiprocessor utilization bound is a function of the allocation algorithm, so among all the allocation algorithms there exists at least one allocation algorithm providing the minimum multiprocessor utilization bound, and one allocation algorithm providing the maximum multiprocessor utilization bound. We prove that the multiprocessor utilization bound associated with the allocation heuristic worst fit (WF) coincides with that minimum if we use Liu and Layland's bound (LLB) as the uniprocessor schedulability condition. In addition, we present a class of allocation algorithms sharing the same multiprocessor utilization bound which coincides with the aforementioned maximum using LLB. The heuristics first fit decreasing (FFD) and best fit decreasing (BFD) belong to this class. Thus, not even an optimal allocation algorithm can guarantee a higher multiprocessor utilization bound than that of FFD and BFD using LLB. Finally, the pessimism of the multiprocessor utilization bounds is estimated through extensive simulations.     

A New Approach for Scheduling of Parallelizable Tasks in Real-Time Multiprocessor Systems

In a parallelizable task model, a task can be parallelized and the component tasks can be executed concurrently on multiple processors. We use this parallelism in tasks to meet their deadlines and also obtain better processor utilisation compared to non-parallelized tasks. Non-preemptive parallelizable task scheduling combines the advantages of higher schedulability and lower scheduling overhead offered by the preemptive and non-preemptive task scheduling models, respectively. We propose a new approach to maximize the benefits from task parallelization. It involves checking the schedulability of periodic tasks (if necessary, by parallelizing them) off-line and run-time scheduling of the schedulable periodic tasks together with dynamically arriving aperiodic tasks. To avoid the run-time anomaly that may occur when the actual computation time of a task is less than its worst case computation time, we propose efficient run-time mechanisms.We have carried out extensive simulation to study the effectiveness of the proposed approach by comparing the schedulability offered by it with that of dynamic scheduling using Earliest Deadline First (EDF), and by comparing its storage efficiency with that of the static table-driven approach. We found that the schedulability offered by parallelizable task scheduling is always higher than that of the EDF algorithm for a wide variety of task parameters and the storage overhead incurred by it is less than 3.6% of the static table-driven approach even under heavy task loads.     

多处理器调度算法实现及其Petri网建模与仿真

多处理器调度算法在嵌入式实时系统领域中起着关键的作用。根据多处理器的特点,提出一种实时多处理器动态分割并行调度算法SPara。该算法解决了此前多处理器算法,如Myopic、EDPF等仅依据截止期对任务调度产生的问题,实现了增加任务紧迫度限制的调度策略,以及针对执行时间长、截止期紧迫任务的有效调度方法。同时算法结合高级颜色时间Petri网理论进行建模并仿真。测试结果表明,SPara算法在处理器利用率以及调度成功率方面较Myopic等算法有较大提高。     

An optimal boundary fair scheduling algorithm for multiprocessor real-time systems

With the emergence of multicore processors, the research on multiprocessor real-time scheduling has caught more researchers’ attention recently. Although the topic has been studied for decades, it is still an evolving research field with many open problems. In this work, focusing on periodic real-time tasks with quantum-based computation requirements and implicit deadlines, we propose a novel optimal scheduling algorithm, namely boundary fair (Bfair), which can achieve full system utilization as the well-known Pfair scheduling algorithms. However, different from Pfair algorithms that make scheduling decisions and enforce proportional progress (i.e., fairness) for all tasks at each and every time unit, Bfair makes scheduling decisions and enforces fairness to tasks only at tasks’ period boundaries (i.e., deadlines of periodic tasks). The correctness of the Bfair algorithm to meet the deadlines of all tasks’ instances is formally proved and its performance is evaluated through extensive simulations. The results show that, compared to that of Pfair algorithms, Bfair can significantly reduce the number of scheduling points (by up to 94%) and the overhead of Bfair at each scheduling point is comparable to that of the most efficient Pfair algorithm (i.e., PD²). Moreover, by aggregating the time allocation of tasks for the time interval between consecutive period boundaries, the resulting Bfair schedule can dramatically reduce the number of required context switches and task migrations (as much as 82% and 85%, respectively) when compared to those of Pfair schedules, which in turn reduces the run-time overhead of the system.     

Data‐aware task scheduling on heterogeneous hybrid memory multiprocessor systems

In this paper, we propose a method about task scheduling and data assignment on heterogeneous hybrid memory multiprocessor systems for real‐time applications. In a heterogeneous hybrid memory multiprocessor system, an important problem is how to schedule real‐time application tasks to processors and assign data to hybrid memories. The hybrid memory consists of dynamic random access memory and solid state drives when considering the performance of solid state drives into the scheduling policy. To solve this problem, we propose two heuristic algorithms called improvement greedy algorithm and the data assignment according to the task scheduling algorithm, which generate a near‐optimal solution for real‐time applications in polynomial time. We evaluate the performance of our algorithms by comparing them with a greedy algorithm, which is commonly used to solve heterogeneous task scheduling problem. Based on our extensive simulation study, we observe that our algorithms exhibit excellent performance and demonstrate that considering data allocation in task scheduling is significant for saving energy. We conduct experiments on two heterogeneous multiprocessor systems. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

基于Linux的多核实时任务调度算法改进

嵌入式实时系统通常被实现为多任务系统,以满足多个外部输入的响应时间的最后期限约束。Linux内核中已经实现了基于EDF(Earliest Deadline First)调度算法的DL调度器,使得实时任务能在截止期限内运行完成。但对于多核处理器,由于实时任务在EDF算法下会出现Dhall效应,论文对 Linux内核中实时任务调度算法进行了改进。在EDF算法的基础上,实现LLF(Least Laxity First)调度算法并对其加以改进,通过降低任务上下文切换频率以及减少松弛度的计算来减小调度过程中的颠簸现象。实验证明该方法既避免了Dhall效应,又减少了任务上下文切换带来的系统开销,并使得任务能在截止期限内完成调度,取得了较好的调度性能。     

容错多处理机中一种高效的实时调度算法

针对基于主副版本容错的多处理机中独立的、抢占性的硬实时任务,提出了一种高效的调度算法——TPFTRM(task partition based fault tolerant rate-monotonic)算法.该算法将单机实时RM 算法扩展到容错多处理机上,并且调度过程中从不使用主动执行的任务副版本,而仅使用被动执行和主副重叠方式执行的任务副版本,从而最大限度地利用副版本重叠和分离技术提高了算法调度性能.此外,TPFTRM 根据任务负载不同将任务集合划分成两个不相交的子集进行分配;还根据处理机调度的任务版本不同,将处理机集合划分成3 个不相交的子集进行调度,从而使TPFTRM 调度算法便于理解、实现以及减少了调度所需要的运行时间.模拟实验对各种具有不同周期和任务负载的任务集合进行了调度测试.实验结果表明,TPFTRM与目前所知同类算法相比,在调度相同参数的任务集合时不仅明显减少了调度所需要的处理机数目,还减少了调度所需要的运行时间,从而证实了TPFTRM 算法的高效性.     

Optimal virtual cluster-based multiprocessor scheduling

Scheduling of constrained deadline sporadic task systems on multiprocessor platforms is an area which has received much attention in the recent past. It is widely believed that finding an optimal scheduler is hard, and therefore most studies have focused on developing algorithms with good processor utilization bounds. These algorithms can be broadly classified into two categories: partitioned scheduling in which tasks are statically assigned to individual processors, and global scheduling in which each task is allowed to execute on any processor in the platform. In this paper we consider a third, more general, approach called cluster-based scheduling. In this approach each task is statically assigned to a processor cluster, tasks in each cluster are globally scheduled among themselves, and clusters in turn are scheduled on the multiprocessor platform. We develop techniques to support such cluster-based scheduling algorithms, and also consider properties that minimize total processor utilization of individual clusters. In the last part of this paper, we develop new virtual cluster-based scheduling algorithms. For implicit deadline sporadic task systems, we develop an optimal scheduling algorithm that is neither Pfair nor ERfair. We also show that the processor utilization bound of us-edf{m/(2m−1)} can be improved by using virtual clustering. Since neither partitioned nor global strategies dominate over the other, cluster-based scheduling is a natural direction for research towards achieving improved processor utilization bounds.

单调速率任务分配算法利用率的界限分析

通过对单调速率任务分配算法调度策略和可调度条件的分析，在多处理器周期任务抢占调度模型基础上，细致刻画了任务分配算法如何分配任务的行为。依据Liu和Layland定理，给出多处理器下任务分配算法的最小RM利用率界的定理。仿真结果表明，分配算法的利用率界是不同特征任务集选择不同分配算法进行任务划分的关键，通过对任务集总利用率与算法利用率界的比较,判断使用该算法对任务集是否可以产生可行分配。     

一种同构多处理机动态实时调度算法

本文提出一种新型线性复杂度多处理机实时任务启发式调度算法,利用并行技术为动态实时系统提供较优解．使用大量存在可行调度的任务集合测试多处理机实时任务调度算法的性能,分析了几种主要参数对调度成功率的影响．实验表明新调度算法调度成功率较高,适用于不完全知晓任务参数的动态多处理机实时系统．     

Energy efficient scheduling of parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers

In this paper, scheduling parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers with dynamically variable voltage and speed are addressed as combinatorial optimization problems. Two problems are defined, namely, minimizing schedule length with energy consumption constraint and minimizing energy consumption with schedule length constraint. The first problem has applications in general multiprocessor and multicore processor computing systems where energy consumption is an important concern and in mobile computers where energy conservation is a main concern. The second problem has applications in real-time multiprocessing systems and environments where timing constraint is a major requirement. Our scheduling problems are defined such that the energy-delay product is optimized by fixing one factor and minimizing the other. It is noticed that power-aware scheduling of parallel tasks has rarely been discussed before. Our investigation in this paper makes some initial attempt to energy-efficient scheduling of parallel tasks on multiprocessor computers with dynamic voltage and speed. Our scheduling problems contain three nontrivial subproblems, namely, system partitioning, task scheduling, and power supplying. Each subproblem should be solved efficiently, so that heuristic algorithms with overall good performance can be developed. The above decomposition of our optimization problems into three subproblems makes design and analysis of heuristic algorithms tractable. A unique feature of our work is to compare the performance of our algorithms with optimal solutions analytically and validate our results experimentally, not to compare the performance of heuristic algorithms among themselves only experimentally. The harmonic system partitioning and processor allocation scheme is used, which divides a multiprocessor computer into clusters of equal sizes and schedules tasks of similar sizes together to increase processor utilization. A three-level energy/time/power allocation scheme is adopted for a given schedule, such that the schedule length is minimized by consuming given amount of energy or the energy consumed is minimized without missing a given deadline. The performance of our heuristic algorithms is analyzed, and accurate performance bounds are derived. Simulation data which validate our analytical results are also presented. It is found that our analytical results provide very accurate estimation of the expected normalized schedule length and the expected normalized energy consumption and that our heuristic algorithms are able to produce solutions very close to optimum.     

可变负载动态反馈弹性调度模型及其算法研究

由于工作负载的动态变化,以多媒体应用为代表的软实时系统的运行具有很大的不确定性.在这种情况下,依靠任务的静态属性进行调度分析和决策不足以为系统提供高效、实用的资源分配支持.提出一种弹性资源调度算法,该算法周期地采集系统的作业总数和作业丢失数,并以此为根据改变部分软实时任务的作业周期,以调整系统在下一个采样周期内的作业总数,达到满足任务的QoS(quality of service)、接纳尽可能多的服务请求、提高系统的并发服务能力的目的.详细分析了模型结构和核心算法的实现机制,并利用模拟平台对该算法进行了验证.实验结果表明,该算法在提高资源利用效率的同时,还具有良好的稳定性和收敛性.     

Parameter adaptation for generalized multiframe tasks: schedulability analysis,case study,and applications to self-suspending tasks

The generalized multiframe task model (GMF) extends the sporadic task model and multiframe task model. Each frame in the GMF model contains an execution time, a relative deadline, and a minimum inter-arrival time. These parameters are fixed after task specification time in the GMF model. However, multimedia and adaptive control systems may be overloaded and no longer stabilized when the task parameters in such systems are not flexible. In order to address this problem, deadlines and periods of frames may change to alleviate temporal overload, e.g., in the parameter adaptation and elastic scheduling model. In this paper, we propose a new model GMF-PA (the GMF model with parameter adaptation). This model allows task parameters to be flexible in arbitrary-deadline systems. A necessary schedulability test based on mixed-integer linear programming is given to check the schedulability under EDF scheduling and optimally assign frame deadlines and periods at the same time. We also prove that the test is a sufficient and necessary schedulability test when frame deadlines and periods must be integers. An approximation algorithm is also deployed to reduce computational running time and indicates a sufficient schedulability test in general. The speed-up factor of our approximation algorithm is \(1+\epsilon \) where \(\epsilon \) can be arbitrarily small, with respect to the exact schedulability test of GMF-PA tasks under EDF. We also apply the GMF model to self-suspending tasks. By extending recent work on scheduling self-suspending tasks, we remove the assumption that frame deadlines are equally assigned in self-suspending tasks, and the system is extended from constrained-deadline systems to arbitrary-deadline systems. We have done extensive experiments to show that the schedulability ratio is improved using our techniques in our GMF-PA model.     

A non-preemptive scheduling algorithm for soft real-time systems

Real-time systems are often designed using preemptive scheduling and worst-case execution time estimates to guarantee the execution of high priority tasks. There is, however, an interest in exploring non-preemptive scheduling models for real-time systems, particularly for soft real-time multimedia applications. In this paper, we propose a new algorithm that uses multiple scheduling strategies for efficient non-preemptive scheduling of tasks. Our goal is to improve the success ratio of the well-known Earliest Deadline First (EDF) approach when the load on the system is very high and to improve the overall performance in both underloaded and overloaded conditions. Our approach, known as group-EDF (gEDF) is based on dynamic grouping of tasks with deadlines that are very close to each other, and using Shortest Job First (SJF) technique to schedule tasks within the group. We will present results comparing gEDF with other real-time algorithms including, EDF, Best-effort, and Guarantee, by using randomly generated tasks with varying execution times, release times, deadlines and tolerance to missing deadlines, under varying workloads. We believe that grouping tasks dynamically with similar deadlines and utilizing a secondary criteria, such as minimizing the total execution time (or other metrics such as power or resource availability) for scheduling tasks within a group, can lead to new and more efficient real-time scheduling algorithms.     

基于分批优化的实时多处理器系统的集成动态调度算法

提出了一种基于分批优化的实时多处理器系统的集成动态调度算法，该算法采用在每次扩充当前局部调度时，通过对所选取的一批任务进行优化分配的策略以及软实时任务的服务质量QoS（quality of service）降级策略，以统一方式实现了对实时多处理器糸统中硬、软实时任务的集成动态调度．进行了大量的模拟研究，结果表明．在多种任务参数取值下，新算法的调度成功率均高于近视算法（Myopic Algorithm）．     

A Feasibility Decision Algorithm for Rate Monotonic and Deadline Monotonic Scheduling

Rate monotonic and deadline monotonic scheduling are commonly used for periodic real-time task systems. This paper discusses a feasibility decision for a given real-time task system when the system is scheduled by rate monotonic and deadline monotonic scheduling. The time complexity of existing feasibility decision algorithms depends on both the number of tasks and maximum periods or deadlines when the periods and deadlines are integers. This paper presents a new necessary and sufficient condition for a given task system to be feasible and proposes a new feasibility decision algorithm based on that condition. The time complexity of this algorithm depends solely on the number of tasks. This condition can also be applied as a sufficient condition for a task system using priority inheritance protocols to be feasible with rate monotonic and deadline monotonic scheduling.