Parallel Computers -- Classic Overview
Parallel computers allow several CPUs to contribute to a computation simultaneously.
For our purposes, a parallel computer has three types of parts:
- Processors
- Memory modules
- Communication / synchronization network
Key points:
- All processors must be busy for peak speed.
- Local memory is directly connected to each processor.
- Accessing local memory is much faster than other memory.
- Synchronization is expensive, but necessary for correctness.
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