BSP versus LogP

Abstract.

A quantitative comparison of the BSP and LogP models of parallel computation is developed. We concentrate on a variant of LogP that disallows the so-called stalling behavior, although issues surrounding the stalling phenomenon are also explored. Very efficient cross simulations between the two models are derived, showing their substantial equivalence for algorithmic design guided by asymptotic analysis. It is also shown that the two models can be implemented with similar performance on most point-to-point networks. In conclusion, within the limits of our analysis that is mainly of an asymptotic nature, BSP and (stall-free) LogP can be viewed as closely related variants within the bandwidth-latency framework for modeling parallel computation. BSP seems somewhat preferable due to its greater simplicity and portability, and slightly greater power. LogP lends itself more naturally to multiuser mode.