Messaging on gigabit ethernet: some experiments with GAMMA and other systems

摘要: The Genoa Active Message MAchine (GAMMA) is a lightweight communication system based on the Ports paradigm, originally designed for efficient implementation over low-cost Fast Ethernet interconnects. In this paper we report about recently completed porting of GAMMA to Packet Engines GNIC-II and Netgear GA620 Gigabit adapters, provide comparison among GAMMA, MPI/GAMMA, TCP/IP, MPICH, such commodity interconnects, using different performance metrics. With combination low end-to-end latency (9.5 μs with GNIC-II, 32 GA620) high transmission throughput (almost 97 MByte/s 125 GA620, latter obtained without changing firmware adapter), demonstrates potential protocols yield messaging comparable best Myrinet-based systems. This result interest, given envisaged drop in cost due transition from fiber optic UTP cabling ever increasing mass market production standard interconnect. We also reports technique message fragmentation that commonly exploited increase short message. When different, though more widely used, metrics considered, results into loss rather than improvement.