Written with computer scientists and engineers in mind, this book brings queueing theory decisively back to computer science.

This book constitutes the thoroughly refereed proceedings of the 5th International Workshop, PMBS 2014 in New Orleans, LA, USA in November 2014. The 12 full and 2 short papers presented in this volume were carefully reviewed and selected from 53 submissions. The papers cover topics on performance benchmarking and optimization; performance analysis and prediction; and power, energy and checkpointing.

As computers become more complex, the number and complexity of the tasks facing the computer architect have increased. Computer performance often depends in complex way on the design parameters and intuition that must be supplemented by performance studies to enhance design productivity. This book introduces computer architects to computer system performance models and shows how they are relatively simple, inexpensive to implement, and sufficiently accurate for most purposes. It discusses the development of performance models based on queuing theory and probability. The text also shows how they are used to provide quick approximate calculations to indicate basic performance tradeoffs and narrow the range of parameters to consider when determining system configurations. It illustrates how performance models can demonstrate how a memory system is to be configured, what the cache structure should be, and what incremental changes in cache size can have on the miss rate. A particularly deep knowledge of probability theory or any other mathematical field to understand the papers in this volume is not required.

Engineering mechanics is one of the fundamental branches of science that is important in the education of professional engineers of any major. Most of the basic engineering courses, such as mechanics of materials, fluid and gas mechanics, machine design, mechatronics, acoustics, vibrations, etc. are based on engineering mechanics courses. In order to absorb the materials of engineering mechanics, it is not enough to consume just theoretical laws and theorems—a student also must develop an ability to solve practical problems. Therefore, it is necessary to solve many problems independently. This book is a part of a four-book series designed to supplement the engineering mechanics courses. This series instructs and applies the principles required to solve practical engineering problems in the following branches of mechanics: statics, kinematics, dynamics, and advanced kinetics. Each book contains between 6 and 8 topics on its specific branch and each topic features 30 problems to be assigned as homework, tests, and/or midterm/final exams with the consent of the instructor. A solution of one similar sample problem from each topic is provided. This first book contains seven topics of statics, the branch of mechanics concerned with the analysis of forces acting on construction systems without an acceleration (a state of the static equilibrium). The book targets the undergraduate students of the sophomore/junior level majoring in science and engineering.

Computer Performance Modeling Handbook

Performance and Reliability Analysis of Computer Systems: An Example-Based Approach Using the SHARPE Software Package provides a variety of probabilistic, discrete-state models used to assess the reliability and performance of computer and communication systems. The models included are combinatorial reliability models (reliability block diagrams, fault trees and reliability graphs), directed, acyclic task precedence graphs, Markov and semi-Markov models (including Markov reward models), product-form queueing networks and generalized stochastic Petri nets. A practical approach to system modeling is followed; all of the examples described are solved and analyzed using the SHARPE tool. In structuring the book, the authors have been careful to provide the reader with a methodological approach to analytical modeling techniques. These techniques are not seen as alternatives but rather as an integral part of a single process of assessment which, by hierarchically combining results from different kinds of models, makes it possible to use state-space methods for those parts of a system that require them and non-state-space methods for the more well-behaved parts of the system. The SHARPE (Symbolic Hierarchical Automated Reliability and Performance Evaluator) package is the `toolchest' that allows the authors to specify stochastic models easily and solve them quickly, adopting model hierarchies and very efficient solution techniques. All the models described in the book are specified and solved using the SHARPE language; its syntax is described and the source code of almost all the examples discussed is provided. Audience: Suitable for use in advanced level courses covering reliability and performance of computer and communications systems and by researchers and practicing engineers whose work involves modeling of system performance and reliability.