Fault tolerance in multiprocessor systems without dedicated redundancy

摘要

An algorithm called RAFT (recursive algorithm for fault tolerance) for achieving fault tolerance in multiprocessor systems is described. Through the use of a combination of dynamic space- and time- redundancy techniques, RAFT achieves fault tolerance in the presence of permanent as well as intermittent faults. Performance and reliability of multiprocessor systems using RAFT are determined as a function of individual processor reliability and the total number of fault modes in a processor. RAFT-based systems are superior to triple modular redundancy (TMR) systems in hardware economy and provide comparable reliability. A multiprocessor architecture adopting RAFT is given.