Challenges in Benchmarking Computer Systems

CHALLENGES IN BENCHMARKING OF COMPUTER SYSTEMS
Anirban Basu,

Dept of CSE R&D, East Point College of Engineering & Technology Bangalore, India [e-mail]

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Abstract Benchmarking plays a critical role in evaluating the performance of systems that are ready for operation. However, with so many benchmarks available, and with absence of standardization, choosing the right benchmark is always not an easy task. Further interpretation of benchmarking result requires statistical analyses. The paper discusses the benchmarks available for different types of workloads and touches upon the challenges facing the performance analysts interested in benchmarking. Key words Computer Systems Performance Evaluation, Benchmarking, Synthetic Benchmarks, Kernel Benchmarks, Application Benchmarks. 1. Introduction Scientific evaluation of the performance of computer systems is needed during [1]:    Vendor evaluation, and selecting the hardware and software configuration of any computer system prior to procurement Improvement of performance, reduction of cost etc. Of any computer system System Design when different implementation alternatives are being evaluated.

Modeling using Queuing Networks, Petri Nets [2][3][4] are used when designing a new system and for improving the performance of an existing system (when the system is not completely built). Measuring the performance by running some standard programs referred to as Benchmark Programs are required for comparison of systems that are ready for installation. With the evolution of different types of system architecture such as Cloud Computing, it has become more difficult to compare the performance of various computer systems simply by looking at their specifications. Tests are needed for comparison of different systems to ascertain the suitability of that system for executing the workload of a particular installation. In the area of Computer Systems Performance Evaluation, Benchmarking [2] is the act of running

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