Abstract
It is desirable in a distributed system to have the system load balanced evenly among the nodes so that the mean job response time is minimized. In this paper, we present a dynamic load balancing mechanism (DLB). It adopts a centralized approach and is network topology independent. The DLB mechanism employs a set of thresholds which are automatically adjusted as the system load changes. It also provides a simple mechanism for the system to switch between periodic and instantaneous load balancing policies with ease. The performance of the proposed algorithm is evaluated by intensive simulations for various parameters. The simulation results show that the mean job response time in a system implementing DLB algorithm is significantly lower than the same system without load balancings. Furthermore, compared with a previously proposed algorithm, DLB algorithm demonstrates improved performance, especially when the system is heavily loaded and the load is unevenly distributed.
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LAN Youran received his B.S. degree in radio electronics from Tsinghua University, Beijing, China; his M.S. degree in electrical engineering and his Ph.D. degree in computer science from Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan. In 1988, he joined the Department of Computer Science at the University of Missouri-Columbia, where he is currently an Associate Professor. His research interests include parallel and distributed systems, multicomputer interconnection networks, parallel algorithms design, and computer networks. Dr. Lan is a member of the IEEE Computer Society and the ACM.
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Lan, Y. A dynamic load balancing mechanism for distributed systems. J. of Comput. Sci. & Technol. 11, 195–207 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02943129
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02943129