EXTRA: Towards an Efficient Open Platform for Reconfigurable High Performance Computing

Abstract

Abstract-To handle the stringent performance requirements of future exascale-class applications, High Performance Computing (HPC) systems need ultra-efficient heterogeneous compute nodes. To reduce power and increase performance, such compute nodes will require hardware accelerators with a high degree of specialization. Ideally, dynamic reconfiguration will be an intrinsic feature, so that specific HPC application features can be optimally accelerated, even if they regularly change over time.In the EXTRA project, we create a new and flexible exploration platform for developing reconfigurable architectures, design tools and HPC applications with run-time reconfiguration built-in as a core fundamental feature instead of an add-on. EXTRA covers the entire stack from architecture up to the application, focusing on the fundamental building blocks for run-time reconfigurable exascale HPC systems: new chip architectures with very low reconfiguration overhead, new tools that truly take reconfiguration as a central design concept, and applications that are tuned to maximally benefit from the proposed run-time reconfiguration techniques. Ultimately, this open platform will improve Europe's competitive advantage and leadership in the field.

EDRA: A Hardware-Assisted Decoupled Access/Execute Framework on the Digital Market

“…To alleviate this hurdle, the FET project "EXTRA" (Exploiting eXascale Technology with Reconfigurable Architectures -GA 671653) [2] focused on devising efficient ways to deploy ultra-efficient heterogeneous compute nodes in order to meet the massive performance requirements of future exascale High Performance Computing (HPC) applications. A major outcome was the design and implementation of a novel framework that maps applications onto FPGAs employing a Decoupled Access Execute Reconfigurable (DAER) architecture for HPC platforms [1], originally based on the idea of Decoupled Access-Execute architectures [7].…”

Extra

“…The open platform is described in Section 3. Developed in the context of the Exploiting eXascale Technology with Reconfigurable Architectures (EXTRA) project [6][7][8][9], the platform provides an integrated environment for application design, development, and deployment on reconfigurable architectures. The idea of this new and flexible exploration platform is to enable the joint optimization of architecture, tools, applications, and reconfiguration technology in order to prepare for the HPC machines of the future.…”