CS 5214 (Spring 2009)

Modeling and Evaluation of Computer Systems


- Class Instructor
- Catalog Description
- Topics to be Covered
- Textbook
- Grading Policies
- Class Schedule
- Important Dates
- FAQ
- Homeworks and Tests
- Lecture Slides
- Software

Class Instructor


Dr. Ing-Ray Chen , Professor of Computer Science Department

Catalog Description


5214: An overview of modeling, simulation and performance evaluation of computer systems, i.e., operating systems, database management systems, office automation systems, etc. Fundamentals of modeling, the life cycle of a simulation study, workload characterization, random number and variate generation, procurment, measurement principles, software and hardware monitors, capacity planning, system and program tuning, and analytic modeling.

Why do you need to take this course?

This course will cover two state-of-the-art performance and reliability modeling and analysis tools, namely, SHARPE (Symbolic Hierarchical Automated Reliability & Performance Evaluator) and SPNP (Stochastic Petri Nets Package), both developed by Duke University. SHARPE has its own language, while SPNP language is a subset of C. Users can use these tools to define a system and ask these tools to calculate system performance/reliability measures. This course will also cover discrete-event simulation. Students can use the tools and techniques learned in this course to evaluate computer system designs, e.g., control and scheduling algorithms, network communication protocols, distributed algorithms, location management algorithms in mobile wireless systems, admission and quality of service control algorithms in multimedia systems, fault-tolerant designs, replicated data control algorithms in databases, etc. This course is ideal for graduate students to equip themselves with mathematical modeling and analysis techniques for their research projects. Case studies will be drawn from distributed databases, mobile systems, and networked multimedia systems.

Topics to be Covered (Tentative)


Discrete event simulation (1 week)
Combinatorial reliability/availability modeling (1 week)
Fault trees, reliability graphs, network reliability model (1 week)
Reliability and availability modeling using SHARPE (1 week)
Dependency modeling (1 week)
Markov models for performance/reliability/availability evaluation (2 weeks)
Single queueing systems (1 week)
Product-form queueing networks (1 week)
Stochastic Petri nets modeling using SPNP (2 weeks)
Hierarchical modeling methods (1 week)
Performability modeling (1 week)
Case studies and paper discussion (2 weeks)

Textbook


R.A. Sahner, K.S. Trivedi and A. Puliafito, Performance and Reliability Analysis of Computer Systems: An Example-Based Approach Using the Sharpe Software Package, Springer, 1996, ISBN: 0-7923-9650-2, Price: $79.95.

Grading


  • 40% homework (4)
  • 25% exam 1
  • 25% exam 2
  • 10% participation and paper presentation



    Class Schedule


    Date HW/Test Source Subject
    1/20   S* Simulation modeling
    1/27 hw1 2,9 Reliability and availability modeling using SHARPE
    2/3   2,9 Fault trees, reliability graphs, network reliability models
    2/10 hw1 due, hw2 S* Queueing theory: single queueing systems
    2/17   4,9,6,12 Markov reward models, performability
    2/24 hw2 due, hw3 S*,5,10 Case study 1, queueing network models
    3/3   5,10,11 Queueing network models, hierarchical modeling
    3/10 hw3 due by email   Spring Break (no class)
    3/17 exam 1   4:00 - 6:45 p.m. in class
    3/24 hw4 7 Stochastic Petri net modeling using SPNP
    3/31   S* Case studies 2 & 3
    4/7 hw4 due [P1] [P2] Paper presentation
    4/14   [P3] [P4] Paper presentation
    4/21   [P5] [P6] Paper presentation
    5/5 exam 2 4:00 - 6:45 p.m. in class

    S* - supplement materials (slides)
    SHARPE - Symbolic Hierarchical Automated Reliability & Performance Evaluator.
    SPNP - Stochastic Petri Net Package
    P* - paper presentation material, to be determined in class.

    Presentation Schedule and List of Papers

  • [P1]

    D. Niyato and E. Hossain,
    "A Novel Analytical Framework for Integrated Cross-Layer Study of Call-Level and Packet-Level QoS in Wireless Mobile Multimedia Networks,"
    IEEE Transactions on Mobile Computing,
    Vol. 6, No. 3, 2007, pp. 322-335.
  • [P1]
    (4/1/08 - presented by Kolas, Browning and Yun)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    S. George and I.R. Chen,
    ``Movement-based checkpointing and logging for failure recovery of database applications in mobile environments,''
    Distributed and Parallel Databases,
    2008.

  • [P2]
    (4/1/08 - presented by Tilley, Kepple and Nguyen)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    W. He and I.R. Chen,
    ``Proxy-based hybrid cache management in Mobile IP systems,''
    Information Processing Letters,
    2008.

  • [P3]
    (4/8/08 - presented by Steward, Sudhir and Yeh)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    J.H. Cho, I.R. Chen and D.C. Wang,
    ``Performance optimization of region-based group key management in mobile ad hoc networks,''
    Performance Evaluation,
    Vol. 65, No. 5, 2008, pp 319-344.

  • [P4]
    (4/8/08 - presented by Rebecca and Singh)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    J.H. Cho, I.R. Chen, and M. Eltoweissy,
    ``On optimal batch rekeying for secure group communications in wireless networks,''
    ACM/Springer Wireless Networks,
    2008.

  • [P5]
    (4/22/08 - presented by Ding and Lee)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    I.R. Chen, W. He and B. Gu,
    ``DMAP: integrated mobility and service management scheme in Mobile IPv6 systems,''
    Wireless Personal Communications,
    Vol. 43, No. 2, Oct. 2007, pp.711-723.

  • [P6]
    (4/22/08 - presented by Geetanjali, Chaitanya, Bhavani)
    (Powerpoint Slide)
    I.R. Chen and D.C. Wang,
    ``Modeling and Analysis of Regional Registration Based Mobile Multicast Service Management,''
    3rd IEEE International Workshop on Performance Modelling and Analysis of Communication in Wired and Wireless Networks,
    Hsinchu, Taiwan, Dec. 2007.

    Presentation Policy

  • Each presentation should last for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, including 15 minutes for questioning/answering.
  • Each group of presenters should prepare a powerpoint file for the paper to be presented and send it to the instructor for posting on the class web site one day prior to the presentation date.
  • Every student is required to attend the presentation session. Class participation will be counted toward the presentation grade.
  • The presentation will be graded based on the following criteria: organization of presentation (20%), material understanding (30%), clearness of presentation (10%), and whether the presentation covers the main idea(40%).


    Important Dates


  • HW #1 due 2/10
  • HW #2 due 2/24
  • HW #3 due 3/10 (midnight by email)
  • Exam #1 3/17
  • HW #4 due 4/7
  • Exam #2 5/5


    Frequently Asked Questions and Answers