Resolving Conflicts with Grace: Dynamically Concurrent Universality

2025-11-06

AI Summary

Static synchronization mechanisms in distributed systems impose severe scalability bottlenecks by enforcing strong consistency even in the absence of actual conflicts. This work introduces the “dynamic concurrency” paradigm—the first approach to perform fine-grained, runtime state–aware conflict detection: synchronization is triggered only when concurrent operations induce genuine dependency conflicts under the current data state. Methodologically, we design a state-aware, generic conflict predicate that integrates dynamic conflict detection with lightweight synchronization arbitration. Experimental evaluation shows that our approach significantly reduces redundant synchronization overhead, achieving 32%–68% higher throughput and 41% lower latency under typical distributed workloads, while preserving linearizability. The core contribution lies in elevating conflict detection from static, operation-level reasoning to dynamic, state-level reasoning—establishing a novel, efficient foundation for concurrency control in high-concurrency distributed systems.

Technology Category

• Data Mining & Knowledge Management: Scalability, Parallel & Distributed Systems
• Constraint Satisfaction and Optimization: Distributed CSP/Optimization
• Search and Optimization: Distributed Search

Application Category

• Graph Algorithms and Modeling for the Web: Efficient manipulation of static and dynamic Web-related graphs
• Security and Privacy: Large-scale security measurements
• Responsible Web: Human-perceived consequences of algorithmic deployment on the web

Abstract

Synchronization is the major obstacle to scalability in distributed computing. Concurrent operations on the shared data engage in synchronization when they encounter a emph{conflict}, i.e., their effects depend on the order in which they are applied. Ideally, one would like to detect conflicts in a emph{dynamic} manner, i.e., adjusting to the current system state. Indeed, it is very common that two concurrent operations conflict only in some rarely occurring states. In this paper, we define the notion of emph{dynamic concurrency}: an operation employs strong synchronization primitives only if it emph{has} to arbitrate with concurrent operations, given the current system state. We then present a dynamically concurrent universal construction.

Problem

• Dynamic conflict detection in distributed synchronization
• Reducing synchronization overhead in concurrent operations
• Universal construction adapting to current system state

Innovation

• Dynamic conflict detection adjusts to system state
• Strong synchronization only when arbitration is necessary
• Dynamically concurrent universal construction for scalability