Architecture of High Performance Computers

Course: COL718
Semester I, 2021-22
Credits: 4 (3-0-2)



Instructor: Dr. Smruti R. Sarangi

Lectures: [Online on Youtube] We will use Teams, Impartus, Acadly and Moodle.
                Slot D: Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday: 9 to 10 AM
Course Description: This course will give an introduction to designing and programming high performance processors.

Evaluation: 
  1. Assignments (10% + 15% + 20%)
  2. Minor (25%)
  3. Major (30%)

Teaching Assistants: 
         1. Akshin Singh

Piazza:  piazza.com/iit_delhi/fall2021/col718

Textbook:
Main Textbook: Advanced Computer Architecture: Advanced Computer Architecture (homepage of the book)
Background on processors and caches: Basic Computer Architecture, (link)


Date
 		Lecture
 		Slides
 		References
Week 1

 Pipelining Chapter 2: Out-of-order pipelines
 Basic Computer Architecture
Chapter 9 of Basic Computer Architecture: All four parts
Chapter 2 of Advanced Computer Architecture
1. Summary of in-order pipelining [YouTube]
Week 2
 Out-of-order pipelines
2. Motivation for out-of-order pipelining [YouTube]
3. Register renaming and precise exceptions [YouTube]
Week 3
 Fetch logic
 Chatper 3: The fetch and decode stages
 Chapter 3 of Advanced Computer Architecture
1. Fetch logic and predicting if an instruction is a branch or not. [YouTube]
2. Branch prediction [YouTube]
3. Decode stage [YouTube]
Class notes: [pdf]
Week 3
 Interaction between the
architecture and the OS
Notes: [pdf]
Week 4
 Issue, Execute, and Commit
Stages
 Chapter 4: Issue, execute, commit
 Chapter 4:
1. Instruction renaming [YouTube]
2. Wakeup, select, and broadcast [YouTube]
3. Load store queue [YouTube]
Week 5
 Alternative approaches to Issue and Commit
 Chapter 5: Alternative approaches to issue
and commit
 4. Instruction commit [YouTube]
Chapter 5:
1. Aggressive Speculation [YouTube]
2. Replay schemes [YouTube]
Week 6:
 Compiler based techniques
and caches
 Chapter 7: Caches Chapter 5:
3. Compiler based techniques [YouTube]
Chapter 7:
1. Overview of caches [YouTube]
2. Cache optimizations and virtual memory [YouTube]
3. SRAM and CAM arrays [YouTube]
Week 7
 Rest of caches
4. Cacti tool, Elmore delay [YouTube]
5. Advanced cache optimizations [YouTube]
6. Trace caches, instruction, and data prefetching [YouTube]
Week 8
 Multicore Systems
 Chapter 9: Multicore Systems Chapter 9:
1. Parallel programming and hardware threads [YouTube]
2. Theoretical foundations: overview of coherence and consistency [YouTube]
A. Introduction to OpenMP (pdf)  [self-study mode]
Week 9
 Consistency
3. Sequential consistency, PLSC, and coherence [YouTube]
4. Execution witnesses, access graphs, causal graphs [YouTube]
Week 10
Multicore Systems
5. Cache coherence: snoopy and directory protocols [YouTube]
6. Advanced directory protocols and atomic operations [YouTube]
7. Memory models and data races [YouTube]
Week 11
 Security
 Chapter 13: Security
 1. Cryptographic fundamentals and encryption [YouTube]
2. Hashing and secure processors [YouTube]