CSR-DMSS, SM: Operating System Abstractions for Modern Hardware

随着CPU向着越来越高的并行性发展，以及新的内存技术的开发，硬件的操作系统抽象在过去30年中几乎没有变化。然而，计算机体系结构正在向动态改变处理元件的数量、性能、功率和可靠性的异类多核体系结构发展。闪存、磁阻和相变RAM等存储技术有望实现大量的快速、非易失性存储。该项目旨在确定将在未来的处理平台上过时的当前操作系统抽象，发明更准确地捕获平台行为范围的新抽象，并在现有操作系统的上下文中实现这些新抽象。研究的重点是扩展：(1)抽象对同步的硬件支持，如事务存储器、线程队列或满/空位；(2)抽象异类多核处理器，如具有不同指令集的处理器或可融合在一起形成更强大的处理单元的处理器；(3)向程序员公开非易失性存储器；以及(4)抽象微体系结构对存储器带宽、高速缓存空间和共享处理单元的争用，以降低调度算法的复杂性。这项研究将导致更高的系统性能，因为更快的持久存储和更好地利用执行资源，由于更快的数据持久存储而更可靠的系统，以及由于特定硬件的一般抽象而更可编程的系统。此外，操作系统和体系结构研究社区将受益于对新硬件技术的更好的软件支持。这项工作本质上是跨学科的，学生将从接触其他领域的新研究中受益。

As CPUs move towards increasing parallelism and new memory technologies are developed, operating system abstractions of hardware have changed little in the past 30 years. However, computer architecture is moving towards heterogeneous multi-core architectures that dynamically vary the number, performance, power, and reliability of processing elements. Memory technologies such as flash, magnetoresistive and phase-change RAM promise large quantities of fast, non-volatile memory. This project seeks to identify current OS abstractions that will be outdated on future processing platforms, invent new abstractions that more accurately capture the range of platform behavior, and implement these new abstractions in the context of existing operating systems. The research focuses on extensions: (1) abstracting hardware support for synchronization, such as transactional memory, thread queues, or full/empty bits, (2) abstracting heterogeneous multi-core processors, such as processors that have differing instruction sets or that can be fused together to form more powerful processing elements, (3) exposing non-volatile memory to programmers, and (4) abstracting microarchitectural contention for memory bandwidth, cache space, and shared processing elements to reduce the complexity of scheduling algorithms. The research will lead to higher-performing systems, due to both faster persistent storage and better use of execution resources, more reliable systems, due to faster persisting of data, and more programmable systems, due to general abstractions of specific hardware. In addition, the OS and architecture research communities will benefit from better software support for new hardware technologies. This work is inherently interdisciplinary and students will benefit from exposure to new research in other fields.