Description
In this assignment, you are required to run a set of experiments and analyze the results in order to
understand the cache behavior of programs, how different cache designs affect program execution.
You will use the cache simulator (dcache) provided in Pin tool [1] to collect cache miss rates. You
need to compile and run the matrix multiplication code provided as part of this assignment, then
you will run the program by using the simulator as discussed in the lab session (or you can learn
from the Pin user guide: https://software.intel.com/sites/landingpage/pintool/docs/98314/Pin/html/ )
You will run the matrix multiplication program for a set of configurations with the following L1
cache parameters in the cache simulator:
L1 Size [KB] Block size [B] L1 Associativity
8 32 1
8 32 2
8 32 4
16 16 1
16 32 1
16 64 1
16 16 2
16 32 2
16 64 2
16 16 4
16 32 4
16 64 4
32 32 1
32 32 2
32 32 4
After executing the experiments with the default matrix size (N=1000), you will repeat the same set
of experiments by setting the matrix size (N)=10. You will have 30 different executions (15 cache
configurations, 2 input size).
After executing each experiment, collect the L1 data cache load miss rates (and/or any other
relevant values), and draw graphs to demonstrate the effect of the cache parameters on miss rates.
You need to show the L1 load miss rates in the graphs, you can use the other values to explain your
results. Examine the results and explain them by providing your comments.
Notes:
• You can modify the simulator code such that it will get the cache parameters from the
command line instead of compiling the code for each test case. It is not mandatory, but will
decrease the time for the assignment completion substantially. It is also recommended to
prepare a test script including all the experiments (which is also not mandatory).
• You are required to submit a report that includes your results with graphs and comments
about the results.
• You need to work individually, no group work is allowed.
• No late homework will be accepted.
Submission: You are required to submit your report to LMS in pdf format named as
yourstudentnumber_P4.pdf (e.g. If your student number is 201812345678, the file name must be
201812345678_P4.pdf).
References:
[1] Pin – A Dynamic Binary Instrumentation Tool, https://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/pin-adynamic-binary-instrumentation-tool
