Report Number: CSL-TR-89-398
Institution: Stanford University, Computer Systems Laboratory
Title: The relative effects of optimization on instruction architecture performance
Author: Cuderman, K. J.
Author: Flynn, M. J.
Date: October 1989
Abstract: The Stanford Architect's Workbench is a simulation platform used to evaluate the impact of optimization on the relative performance of instruction set architectures. The total impact optimization makes on an application is the combined interaction of the optimizer, the architecture, and the cache configuration. The relative performance of seven architectures are compared using a suite of six application programs. Optimization reduces the number of executed instructions, but its effectiveness varies with architecture. Register architectures capitalize on temporaries introduced by optimization without incurring penalties for moving data. Short instructions for register operations reduce the instruction bandwidth in addition to reducing the number of instructions. Reducing the number of executed instructions does not yield a reduction in memory traffic. Optimization only slightly alters the program working set size. An instruction cache quickly masks the effect of optimization. The result is that the instruction memory traffic remains almost constant for an application.
http://i.stanford.edu/pub/cstr/reports/csl/tr/89/398/CSL-TR-89-398.pdf