Warehouse-scale datacenters host a wide range of online services, including cloud computing, social networks, web search, video streaming, and software-as-a-service. In this course, we will study the hardware, systems software, and distributed systems technology in modern datacenters. We will also explore cross-cutting issues such as total cost of ownership, service level objectives, availability and reliability. The course is a combination of lectures and paper reading. Students will read up to two papers per topic and submit brief summaries. At the classroom, we will start with a student presentation of the papers followed by a discussion.
ECE 5990 is recommended for masters and PhD students from ECE and CS interested in a vertical study of advanced datacenter technology. Students are expected to attend class meetings and actively participate in the discussions. Paper summaries, presentations, and class participation are part of the grade.
There is no formal prerequisite for ECE 5990. Nevertheless, we expect students to have basic understanding of systems and architecture concepts (through a course like ECE4750, or equivalent) and be comfortable with C++ and/or Python programming.
Note: The classroom has changed to 310 Rhodes, effective for the entire semester. The first lecture of the semester is on Monday 01/28th. There is no lecture on Wed 01/23rd.
Note: If you tried to enroll to ECE5990 and got a "Enrollment Full" message, try it again, we have increased the registration cap. If you still have issues contact the instructor (delimitrou@cornell.edu)