We study the process of multi-agent reinforcement learning in the context of load balancing in a distributed system, without use of either central coordination or explicit communication. We rst de ne a precise framework in which to study adaptive load balancing, important features of which are its stochastic nature and the purely local information available to individual agents. Given this framework, we show illuminating results on the interplay between basic adaptive behavior parameters and their e ect on system e ciency. We then investigate the properties of adaptive load balancing in heterogeneous populations, and address the issue of exploration vs. exploitation in that context. Finally, we show that naive use of communication may not improve, and might even harm system e ciency.
al. REF explore the problem space of adaptive load balancing using reinforcement learning techniques.
Adaptive Load Balancing: A Study in Multi-Agent Learning
Journal of Artificial Intelligence Research, Vol 2, (1995), 475-500
Computer Science