hdf5/doxygen/dox/H5AC_cache_config_t.dox

/**
 * \page H5AC-cache-config-t Metadata Cache Configuration
 * \tableofcontents
 *
 * \section gcf General configuration fields
 *
 * \par version
 *      Integer field containing the version number of this version
 *      of the H5AC_cache_config_t structure.  Any instance of
 *      H5AC_cache_config_t passed to the cache must have a known
 *      version number, or an error will be flagged.
 *
 * \par rpt_fcn_enabled
 * \parblock
 *    Boolean field used to enable and disable the default
 *    reporting function.  This function is invoked every time the
 *    automatic cache resize code is run, and reports on its activities.
 *
 *    This is a debugging function, and should normally be turned off.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par open_trace_file
 * \parblock
 *     Boolean field indicating whether the trace_file_name
 *     field should be used to open a trace file for the cache.
 *
 *     \Emph{*** DEPRECATED ***} Use \Code{H5Fstart/stop} logging functions instead
 *
 *     The trace file is a debugging feature that allow the capture of
 *     top level metadata cache requests for purposes of debugging and/or
 *     optimization.  This field should normally be set to \c FALSE, as
 *     trace file collection imposes considerable overhead.
 *
 *     This field should only be set to \c TRUE when the trace_file_name
 *     contains the full path of the desired trace file, and either
 *     there is no open trace file on the cache, or the \c close_trace_file
 *     field is also \c TRUE.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par close_trace_file
 * \parblock
 *     Boolean field indicating whether the current trace
 *     file (if any) should be closed.
 *
 *     \Emph{*** DEPRECATED ***} Use \Code{H5Fstart/stop} logging functions instead
 *
 *     See the above comments on the open_trace_file field.  This field
 *     should be set to \c FALSE unless there is an open trace file on the
 *     cache that you wish to close.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par trace_file_name
 * \parblock
 *     Full path of the trace file to be opened if the
 *     open_trace_file field is \c TRUE.
 *
 *     \Emph{*** DEPRECATED ***} Use \Code{H5Fstart/stop} logging functions instead
 *
 *     In the parallel case, an ascii representation of the mpi rank of
 *     the process will be appended to the file name to yield a unique
 *     trace file name for each process.
 *
 *     The length of the path must not exceed #H5AC__MAX_TRACE_FILE_NAME_LEN
 *     characters.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par evictions_enabled
 * \parblock
 *     Boolean field used to either report the current
 *     evictions enabled status of the cache, or to set the cache's
 *     evictions enabled status.
 *
 *     In general, the metadata cache should always be allowed to
 *     evict entries.  However, in some cases it is advantageous to
 *     disable evictions briefly, and thereby postpone metadata
 *     writes.  However, this must be done with care, as the cache
 *     can grow quickly.  If you do this, re-enable evictions as
 *     soon as possible and monitor cache size.
 *
 *     At present, evictions can only be disabled if automatic
 *     cache resizing is also disabled (that is, \Code{(incr_mode ==
 *     H5C_incr__off ) && ( decr_mode == H5C_decr__off )}).  There
 *     is no logical reason why this should be so, but it simplifies
 *     implementation and testing, and I can't think of any reason
 *     why it would be desirable.  If you can think of one, I'll
 *     revisit the issue. (JM)
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par set_initial_size
 *      Boolean flag indicating whether the size of the
 *      initial size of the cache is to be set to the value given in
 *      the initial_size field.  If set_initial_size is \c FALSE, the
 *      initial_size field is ignored.
 *
 * \par initial_size
 *      If enabled, this field contain the size the cache is
 *      to be set to upon receipt of this structure.  Needless to say,
 *      initial_size must lie in the closed interval \Code{[min_size, max_size]}.
 *
 * \par min_clean_fraction
 *      \c double in the range 0 to 1 indicating the fraction
 *      of the cache that is to be kept clean.  This field is only used
 *      in parallel mode. Typical values are 0.1 to 0.5.
 *
 * \par max_size
 *      Maximum size to which the cache can be adjusted.  The
 *      supplied value must fall in the closed interval
 *      \Code{[MIN_MAX_CACHE_SIZE, MAX_MAX_CACHE_SIZE]}.  Also, \c max_size must
 *      be greater than or equal to \c min_size.
 *
 * \par min_size
 *      Minimum size to which the cache can be adjusted.  The
 *      supplied value must fall in the closed interval
 *      \Code{[H5C__MIN_MAX_CACHE_SIZE, H5C__MAX_MAX_CACHE_SIZE]}.  Also, \c min_size
 *      must be less than or equal to \c max_size.
 *
 * \par epoch_length
 * \parblock
 *      Number of accesses on the cache over which to collect
 *      hit rate stats before running the automatic cache resize code,
 *      if it is enabled.
 *
 *      At the end of an epoch, we discard prior hit rate data and start
 *      collecting afresh.  The epoch_length must lie in the closed
 *      interval \Code{[H5C__MIN_AR_EPOCH_LENGTH, H5C__MAX_AR_EPOCH_LENGTH]}.
 * \endparblock
 *
 *
 * \section csicf Cache size increase control fields
 *
 * \par incr_mode
 *      Instance of the \c H5C_cache_incr_mode enumerated type whose
 *      value indicates how we determine whether the cache size should be
 *      increased.  At present there are two possible values:
 *      \li \c H5C_incr__off:  Don't attempt to increase the size of the cache
 *              automatically.\n
 *              When this increment mode is selected, the remaining fields
 *              in the cache size increase section ar ignored.
 *      \li \c H5C_incr__threshold: Attempt to increase the size of the cache
 *              whenever the average hit rate over the last epoch drops
 *              below the value supplied in the \c lower_hr_threshold
 *              field.\n
 *              Note that this attempt will fail if the cache is already
 *              at its maximum size, or if the cache is not already using
 *              all available space.
 *
 *      Note that you must set \c decr_mode to \c H5C_incr__off if you
 *      disable metadata cache entry evictions.
 *
 * \par lower_hr_threshold
 * \parblock
 *      Lower hit rate threshold.  If the increment mode
 *      (\c incr_mode) is \c H5C_incr__threshold and the hit rate drops below the
 *      value supplied in this field in an epoch, increment the cache size by
 *      \c size_increment.  Note that cache size may not be incremented above
 *      \c max_size, and that the increment may be further restricted by the
 *      \c max_increment field if it is enabled.
 *
 *      When enabled, this field must contain a value in the range [0.0, 1.0].
 *      Depending on the \c incr_mode selected, it may also have to be less than
 *      \c upper_hr_threshold.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par increment
 * \parblock
 *      Double containing the multiplier used to derive the new
 *      cache size from the old if a cache size increment is triggered.
 *      The increment must be greater than 1.0, and should not exceed 2.0.
 *
 *      The new cache size is obtained my multiplying the current max cache
 *      size by the increment, and then clamping to \c max_size and to stay
 *      within the \c max_increment as necessary.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par apply_max_increment
 *      Boolean flag indicating whether the \c max_increment
 *      field should be used to limit the maximum cache size increment.
 *
 * \par max_increment
 *      If enabled by the \c apply_max_increment field described
 *      above, this field contains the maximum number of bytes by which the
 *      cache size can be increased in a single re-size.
 *
 * \par flash_incr_mode
 * \parblock
 *      Instance of the \c H5C_cache_flash_incr_mode enumerated
 *      type whose value indicates whether and by which algorithm we should
 *      make flash increases in the size of the cache to accommodate insertion
 *      of large entries and large increases in the size of a single entry.
 *
 *      The addition of the flash increment mode was occasioned by performance
 *      problems that appear when a local heap is increased to a size in excess
 *      of the current cache size.  While the existing re-size code dealt with
 *      this eventually, performance was very bad for the remainder of the
 *      epoch.
 *
 *      At present, there are two possible values for the \c flash_incr_mode:
 *
 *      \li \c H5C_flash_incr__off:  Don't perform flash increases in the size of the cache.
 *
 *      \li \c H5C_flash_incr__add_space:  Let \c x be either the size of a newly
 *          newly inserted entry, or the number of bytes by which the
 *          size of an existing entry has been increased.\n
 *          If \Code{x > flash_threshold * current max cache size},
 *          increase the current maximum cache size by \Code{x * flash_multiple}
 *          less any free space in the cache, and star a new epoch.  For
 *          now at least, pay no attention to the maximum increment.
 *
 *      In both of the above cases, the flash increment pays no attention to
 *      the maximum increment (at least in this first incarnation), but DOES
 *      stay within max_size.
 *
 *      With a little thought, it should be obvious that the above flash
 *      cache size increase algorithm is not sufficient for all circumstances
 *      -- for example, suppose the user round robins through
 *      \Code{(1/flash_threshold) +1} groups, adding one data set to each on each
 *      pass.  Then all will increase in size at about the same time, requiring
 *      the max cache size to at least double to maintain acceptable
 *      performance, however the above flash increment algorithm will not be
 *      triggered.
 *
 *      Hopefully, the add space algorithms detailed above will be sufficient
 *      for the performance problems encountered to date.  However, we should
 *      expect to revisit the issue.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par flash_multiple
 *      Double containing the multiple described above in the
 *      \c H5C_flash_incr__add_space section of the discussion of the
 *      \c flash_incr_mode section.  This field is ignored unless \c flash_incr_mode
 *      is \c H5C_flash_incr__add_space.
 *
 * \par flash_threshold
 *      Double containing the factor by which current max cache
 *      size is multiplied to obtain the size threshold for the add_space flash
 *      increment algorithm.  The field is ignored unless \c flash_incr_mode is
 *      \c H5C_flash_incr__add_space.
 *
 *
 * \section csdcf Cache size decrease control fields
 *
 * \par decr_mode
 * \parblock
 *      Instance of the \c H5C_cache_decr_mode enumerated type whose
 *      value indicates how we determine whether the cache size should be
 *      decreased.  At present there are four possibilities.
 *
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__off:  Don't attempt to decrease the size of the cache
 *              automatically.\n
 *              When this increment mode is selected, the remaining fields
 *              in the cache size decrease section are ignored.
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__threshold: Attempt to decrease the size of the cache
 *              whenever the average hit rate over the last epoch rises
 *              above the value supplied in the \c upper_hr_threshold
 *              field.
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__age_out:  At the end of each epoch, search the cache for
 *              entries that have not been accessed for at least the number
 *              of epochs specified in the epochs_before_eviction field, and
 *              evict these entries.  Conceptually, the maximum cache size
 *              is then decreased to match the new actual cache size.  However,
 *              this reduction may be modified by the \c min_size, the
 *              \c max_decrement, and/or the \c empty_reserve.
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__age_out_with_threshold:  Same as age_out, but we only
 *              attempt to reduce the cache size when the hit rate observed
 *              over the last epoch exceeds the value provided in the
 *              \c upper_hr_threshold field.
 *
 *      Note that you must set \c decr_mode to \c H5C_decr__off if you
 *      disable metadata cache entry evictions.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par upper_hr_threshold
 * \parblock
 *      Upper hit rate threshold.  The use of this field
 *      varies according to the current \c decr_mode :
 *
 *      \c H5C_decr__off or \c H5C_decr__age_out:  The value of this field is
 *              ignored.
 *
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__threshold:  If the hit rate exceeds this threshold in any
 *              epoch, attempt to decrement the cache size by size_decrement.\n
 *              Note that cache size may not be decremented below \c min_size.\n
 *              Note also that if the \c upper_threshold is 1.0, the cache size\n
 *              will never be reduced.
 *
 *      \li \c H5C_decr__age_out_with_threshold:  If the hit rate exceeds this
 *              threshold in any epoch, attempt to reduce the cache size
 *              by evicting entries that have not been accessed for more
 *              than the specified number of epochs.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par decrement
 * \parblock
 *      This field is only used when the decr_mode is
 *      \c H5C_decr__threshold.
 *
 *      The field is a double containing the multiplier used to derive the
 *      new cache size from the old if a cache size decrement is triggered.
 *      The decrement must be in the range 0.0 (in which case the cache will
 *      try to contract to its minimum size) to 1.0 (in which case the
 *      cache will never shrink).
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par apply_max_decrement
 *      Boolean flag used to determine whether decrements
 *      in cache size are to be limited by the \c max_decrement field.
 *
 * \par max_decrement
 *      Maximum number of bytes by which the cache size can be
 *      decreased in a single re-size.  Note that decrements may also be
 *      restricted by the \c min_size of the cache, and (in age out modes) by
 *      the \c empty_reserve field.
 *
 * \par epochs_before_eviction
 * \parblock
 *      Integer field used in \c H5C_decr__age_out and
 *      \c H5C_decr__age_out_with_threshold decrement modes.
 *
 *      This field contains the number of epochs an entry must remain
 *      unaccessed before it is evicted in an attempt to reduce the
 *      cache size.  If applicable, this field must lie in the range
 *      \Code{[1, H5C__MAX_EPOCH_MARKERS]}.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par apply_empty_reserve
 *      Boolean field controlling whether the empty_reserve
 *      field is to be used in computing the new cache size when the
 *      decr_mode is H5C_decr__age_out or H5C_decr__age_out_with_threshold.
 *
 * \par empty_reserve
 * \parblock
 *      To avoid a constant racheting down of cache size by small
 *      amounts in the \c H5C_decr__age_out and \c H5C_decr__age_out_with_threshold
 *      modes, this field allows one to require that any cache size
 *      reductions leave the specified fraction of unused space in the cache.
 *
 *      The value of this field must be in the range [0.0, 1.0].  I would
 *      expect typical values to be in the range of 0.01 to 0.1.
 * \endparblock
 *
 *
 * \section pcf Parallel Configuration Fields
 *
 * In PHDF5, all operations that modify metadata must be executed collectively.
 *
 * We used to think that this was enough to ensure consistency across the
 * metadata caches, but since we allow processes to read metadata individually,
 * the order of dirty entries in the LRU list can vary across processes,
 * which can result in inconsistencies between the caches.
 *
 * PHDF5 uses several strategies to prevent such inconsistencies in metadata,
 * all of which use the fact that the same stream of dirty metadata is seen
 * by all processes for purposes of synchronization.  This is done by
 * having each process count the number of bytes of dirty metadata generated,
 * and then running a "sync point" whenever this count exceeds a user
 * specified threshold (see \c dirty_bytes_threshold below).
 *
 * The current metadata write strategy is indicated by the
 * \c metadata_write_strategy field.  The possible values of this field, along
 * with the associated metadata write strategies are discussed below.
 *
 * \par dirty_bytes_threshold
 * \parblock
 *    Threshold of dirty byte creation used to
 *    synchronize updates between caches. (See above for outline and
 *    motivation.)
 *
 *    This value MUST be consistent across all processes accessing the
 *    file.  This field is ignored unless HDF5 has been compiled for
 *    parallel.
 * \endparblock
 *
 * \par metadata_write_strategy
 *    Integer field containing a code indicating the
 *    desired metadata write strategy.  The valid values of this field
 *    are enumerated and discussed below:
 *
 *    \li #H5AC_METADATA_WRITE_STRATEGY__PROCESS_0_ONLY\n
 *    When metadata_write_strategy is set to this value, only process
 *    zero is allowed to write dirty metadata to disk.  All other
 *    processes must retain dirty metadata until they are informed at
 *    a sync point that the dirty metadata in question has been written
 *    to disk.\n
 *    When the sync point is reached (or when there is a user generated
 *    flush), process zero flushes sufficient entries to bring it into
 *    compliance with its min clean size (or flushes all dirty entries in
 *    the case of a user generated flush), broad casts the list of
 *    entries just cleaned to all the other processes, and then exits
 *    the sync point.\n
 *    Upon receipt of the broadcast, the other processes mark the indicated
 *    entries as clean, and leave the sync point as well.
 *
 *    \li #H5AC_METADATA_WRITE_STRATEGY__DISTRIBUTED\n
 *    In the distributed metadata write strategy, process zero still makes
 *    the decisions as to what entries should be flushed, but the actual
 *    flushes are distributed across the processes in the computation to
 *    the extent possible.\n
 *    In this strategy, when a sync point is triggered (either by dirty
 *    metadata creation or manual flush), all processes enter a barrier.\n
 *    On the other side of the barrier, process 0 constructs an ordered
 *    list of the entries to be flushed, and then broadcasts this list
 *    to the caches in all the processes.\n
 *    All processes then scan the list of entries to be flushed, flushing
 *    some, and marking the rest as clean.  The algorithm for this purpose
 *    ensures that each entry in the list is flushed exactly once, and
 *    all are marked clean in each cache.\n
 *    Note that in the case of a flush of the cache, no message passing
 *    is necessary, as all processes have the same list of dirty entries,
 *    and all of these entries must be flushed.  Thus in this case it is
 *    sufficient for each process to sort its list of dirty entries after
 *    leaving the initial barrier, and use this list as if it had been
 *    received from process zero.\n
 *    To avoid possible messages from the past/future, all caches must
 *    wait until all caches are done before leaving the sync point.
 */