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Abstract

Modern Multi-Agent System simulations may involve millions of agents that are simulated over an extended period of time in order to better catch real world emergent properties. In this context, the usage of distributed computing resources may raise single machine limits both in terms of available memory and execution time. Distributing a simulation however implies lots of complex and specific issues as the data synchronization issues that we tackle here. Based on an interface that allows to develop models independently of the distribution, we propose the definition of synchronization modes, some inspired from existing platforms, other providing new features such as remote interactions. Since each mode comes with its pros and cons, guidelines are provided to help developers to find the best compromise for the distributed implementation of a model or a simulation platform. The performance of each mode is discussed and evaluated using a classical epidemiological SIR model.

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Acknowledgments

Computations have been performed on the supercomputer facilities of the Mésocentre de calcul de Franche-Comté. FPMAS [3] and model sources [4] are accessible online thanks to permanent identifiers provided by Software Heritage.

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Correspondence to Paul Breugnot .

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Breugnot, P., Herrmann, B., Lang, C., Philippe, L. (2022). Data Synchronization in Distributed Simulation of Multi-Agent Systems. In: Dignum, F., Mathieu, P., Corchado, J.M., De La Prieta, F. (eds) Advances in Practical Applications of Agents, Multi-Agent Systems, and Complex Systems Simulation. The PAAMS Collection. PAAMS 2022. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 13616. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-18192-4_5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-18192-4_5

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