Instruction Scheduling in the Presence of Java's Runtime Exceptions

Matthew Arnold, Michael Hsiao, Ulrich Kremer, Barbara Ryder

One of the challenges present to a Java compiler is Java's frequent use of runtime exceptions. These exceptions affect performance directly by requiring explicit checks, as well as indirectly by restricting code movement in order to satisfy Java's precise exception model. Instruction scheduling is one transformation which is restricted by runtime exceptions since it relies heavily on reordering instructions to exploit maximum hardware performance. The goal of this study was to investigate the degree to which Java's runtime exceptions hinder instruction scheduling, and to find new techniques for allowing more efficient execution of Java programs containing runtime exceptions.

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