Parallel and Sequential Job Scheduling in Heterogeneous Clusters: A Simulation Study Using Software in the Loop

The task of designing and optimizing job scheduling algorithms for heterogeneous computing environments requires the ability to predict scheduling performance. The complexity of heterogeneous scheduling issues requires that the experiments devised to test a scheduling paradigm be both flexible and extensive. Experimentally determined models for the prediction of job execution times on both sequential and parallel computing resources are combined with the implementation of a novel scheduling algorithm and a software-in-the-loop (SWIL) simulation. The result is a potent design and analysis approach for job scheduling algorithms and implementations intended for heterogeneous environments. This paper develops the concepts, mechanisms, and results of a SWIL design and analysis approach. The merits of this approach are shown in four case studies, which determine overhead, scheduling performance, and the impact of preemption and priority policies. These case studies illustrate the contributions of this research in the form of a new parallel job scheduling algorithm for heterogeneous computing and in the novel application of SWIL simulation to the analysis of job scheduling systems.