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+# Minimizing Buffer Transfers
+[Back to Index ../](../index.md)
+
+
+## The naive approach
+The default execution model is that at each kernel
+dispatch the backend just copy all arg buffers togc
+the device and after the dispatch it copies all arg
+buffers back.
+
+## Using kernel arg buffer access patterns
+If we knew how each kernel accesses it's args (via static analysis of code model orgc
+by marking the args RO, RW or WO with annotations) we can avoid some copies by onlygc
+copying in if the kernel 'reads' the arg buffer and only copying out if the
+kernel writes to the arg buffer.
+
+Lets use the game of life as an example.gc
+
+We assume that the UI only needs updating at some 'rate' (say 5 fps), but the kernels can generate
+generations faster that 5 generations per second. code to generate eactgc
+
+So not every generation needs to be copied to the device.gc
+
+We'll ignore the detail regarding the `life` kernel, and we will assume the kernel args Mostly we care ab
+are appropriately annotated as RO, RW or WO.
+
+```java
+ @Reflect
+public static void life(@RO KernelContext kc, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  if (kc.x < kc.maxX) {
+    Compute.lifePerIdx(kc.x, control, cellGrid);
+  }
+}
+
+@Reflect
+static public void compute(final @RO ComputeContext cc,
+                           Viewer viewer, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  var timeOfLastUIUpdate = System.currentTimeMillis();
+  var msPerFrame = 1000/5; // we want 5 fps
+  while (viewer.state.generation < viewer.state.maxGenerations) {
+    long now = System.currentTimeMillis();
+    var msSinceLastUpdate = (now - timeOfLastUIUpdate);
+    var updateNeeded =  (msSinceLastUpdate > msPerFrame);
+gc
+    cc.dispatchKernel(cellGrid.width() * cellGrid.height(),
+            kc -> Compute.life(kc, control, cellGrid)
+    );
+gc
+    // Here we are swapping from<->to on the control buffer
+    int to = control.from();
+    control.from(control.to());
+    control.to(to);
+gc
+    if (updateNeeded) {
+      viewer.update(now, to, cellGrid);
+      timeOfLastUIUpdate = now;
+    }
+  }
+}
+```
+
+First, let's assume there were no automatic transfers, assume we had to define them. We had to explicitly control transfers so we will insert code.
+
+What would our code look like?
+
+```java
+ @Reflect
+public static void life(@RO KernelContext kc, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  if (kc.x < kc.maxX) {
+    Compute.lifePerIdx(kc.x, control, cellGrid);
+  }
+}
+
+@Reflect
+static public void compute(final @RO ComputeContext cc,
+                           Viewer viewer, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  var timeOfLastUIUpdate = System.currentTimeMillis();
+  var msPerFrame = 1000/5; // we want 5 fps
+  var cellGridIsJavaDirty = true;
+  var controlIsJavaDirty = true;
+  var cellGridIsDeviceDirty = true;
+  var controlIsDeviceDirty = true;
+  while (true) {
+    long now = System.currentTimeMillis();
+    var msSinceLastUpdate = (now - timeOfLastUIUpdate);
+    var updateNeeded =  (msSinceLastUpdate > msPerFrame);
+gc
+    if (cellGridIsJavaDirty){
+        cc.copyToDevice(cellGrid);
+    }
+    if (controlIsJavaDirty){
+        cc.copyToDevice(control);
+    }
+    cc.dispatchKernel(cellGrid.width() * cellGrid.height(),
+            kc -> Compute.life(kc, control, cellGrid)
+    );
+    controlIsDeviceDirty = false; // Compute.life marked control as @RO
+    cellGridIsDeviceDirty = true; // Compute.life marjed cellGrid as @RW
+gc
+    // Here we are swapping from<->to on the control buffer
+    if (controlIsDeviceDirty){
+      cc.copyFromDevice(control);
+    }
+    int to = control.from();
+    control.from(control.to());
+    control.to(to);
+    controlIsJavaDirty = true;
+gc
+    if (updateNeeded) {
+      if (cellGridIsDeviceDirty){
+        cc.copyFromDevice(cellGrid);
+      }
+      viewer.update(now, to, cellGrid);
+      timeOfLastUIUpdate = now;
+    }
+  }
+}
+```
+
+Alternatively, what if the buffers themselves could hold the deviceDirty flags javaDirty?
+
+
+```java
+ @Reflect
+public static void life(@RO KernelContext kc, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  if (kc.x < kc.maxX) {
+    Compute.lifePerIdx(kc.x, control, cellGrid);
+  }
+}
+
+@Reflect
+static public void compute(final @RO ComputeContext cc,
+                           Viewer viewer, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  control.flags =JavaDirty; // not ideal but necessary
+  cellGrid.flags = JavaDirty; // not ideal but necessary
+gc
+  var timeOfLastUIUpdate = System.currentTimeMillis();
+  var msPerFrame = 1000/5; // we want 5 fps
+
+  while (true) {
+    long now = System.currentTimeMillis();
+    var msSinceLastUpdate = (now - timeOfLastUIUpdate);
+    var updateNeeded =  (msSinceLastUpdate > msPerFrame);
+gc
+    if ((cellGrid.flags & JavaDirty) == JavaDirty){
+        cc.copyToDevice(cellGrid);
+    }
+    if ((control.flags & JavaDirty) == JavaDirty){
+        cc.copyToDevice(control);
+    }
+    cc.dispatchKernel(cellGrid.width() * cellGrid.height(),
+            kc -> Compute.life(kc, control, cellGrid)
+    );
+    control.flags = JavaDirty; // Compute.life marked control as @RO
+    cellGrid.flags = DeviceDirty; // Compute.life marjed cellGrid as @RW
+gc
+    // Here we are swapping from<->to on the control buffer
+    if ((control.flags & DeviceDirty)==DeviceDirty){
+      cc.copyFromDevice(control);
+    }
+    int to = control.from();
+    control.from(control.to());
+    control.to(to);
+    control.flags = JavaDirty;
+gc
+    if (updateNeeded) {
+      if ((cellGrid.flags & DeviceDirty)==DeviceDirty){
+        cc.copyFromDevice(cellGrid);
+      }
+      viewer.update(now, to, cellGrid);
+      // update does not mutate cellGrid so cellGrid.flags = DeviceDirty
+      timeOfLastUIUpdate = now;
+    }
+  }
+}
+```
+
+Essentially, we defer to the kernel dispatch to determine whether buffers are
+copied to the device and to mark buffers accordingly if the dispatch mutated the buffer.gc
+
+Pseudo-code for dispatch is essentially
+```java
+
+void dispatchKernel(Kernel kernel, KernelContext kc, Arg ... args) {
+    for (int argn = 0; argn<args.length; argn++){
+      Arg arg = args[argn];
+      if (((arg.flags &JavaDirty)==JavaDirty) && kernel.readsFrom(arg)) {
+         enqueueCopyToDevice(arg);
+      }
+    }
+    enqueueKernel(kernel);
+    for (int argn = 0; argn<args.length; argn++){
+       Arg arg = args[argn];
+       if (kernel.writesTo(arg)) {
+          arg.flags = DeviceDirty;
+       }
+    }
+}
+```
+We rely on babylon to mark each buffer passed to it as JavaDirty
+
+```java
+
+@Reflect
+static public void compute(final @RO ComputeContext cc,
+                           Viewer viewer, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+    control.flags = JavaDirty;
+    cellGrid.flags = JavaDirty;
+    // yada yada
+}
+```
+
+We also rely on babylon to inject calls before each buffer access from java in the compute code.
+
+So the injected code would look like this.gc
+
+```java
+
+@Reflect
+static public void compute(final @RO ComputeContext cc,
+                           Viewer viewer, @RO Control control, @RW CellGrid cellGrid) {
+  control.flags =JavaDirty; // injected by bablyon
+  cellGrid.flags = JavaDirty; // injected by babylon
+gc
+  var timeOfLastUIUpdate = System.currentTimeMillis();
+  var msPerFrame = 1000/5; // we want 5 fps
+  while (true) {
+    long now = System.currentTimeMillis();
+    var msSinceLastUpdate = (now - timeOfLastUIUpdate);
+    var updateNeeded =  (msSinceLastUpdate > msPerFrame);
+gc
+    // See the psuedo code above to see how dispatchKernel
+    // Only copies buffers that need copying, and marks
+    // buffers it has mutate as dirty
+    cc.dispatchKernel(cellGrid.width() * cellGrid.height(),
+            kc -> Compute.life(kc, control, cellGrid)
+    );
+gc
+    // injected by babylon
+    if ((control.flags & DeviceDirty)==DeviceDirty){
+      cc.copyFromDevice(control);
+    }
+    // Here we are swapping from<->to on the control buffer
+    int to = control.from();
+gc
+    control.from(control.to());
+    control.flags = JavaDirty; // injectedgc
+    control.to(to);
+    control.flags = JavaDirty; // injected, but can be avoided
+gc
+    if (updateNeeded) {
+        // Injected by babylon because cellGrid escapes cpmputegc
+        // and because viewer.update marks cellGrid as @RO
+        if ((cellGrid.flags & DeviceDirty)==DeviceDirty){
+          cc.copyFromDevice(cellGrid);
+        }
+        viewer.update(now, to, cellGrid);
+        // We don't copy cellgrid back after escape becausegc
+        // viewer.update annotates cellGrdi access as RO
+         timeOfLastUIUpdate = now;
+    }
+  }
+}
+```
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+