[MAPREDUCE-1800] using map output fetch failures to blacklist nodes is problematic

• Type: Bug
• Status: Open
• Priority: Major
• Resolution: Unresolved
• Assignee: Unassigned
• Reporter: Joydeep Sen Sarma
• Created: 19/May/10 18:08
• Updated: 22/May/10 14:57

Description

If a mapper and a reducer cannot communicate, then either party could be at fault. The current hadoop protocol allows reducers to declare nodes running the mapper as being at fault. When sufficient number of reducers do so - then the map node can be blacklisted.

In cases where networking problems cause substantial degradation in communication across sets of nodes - then large number of nodes can become blacklisted as a result of this protocol. The blacklisting is often wrong (reducers on the smaller side of the network partition can collectively cause nodes on the larger network partitioned to be blacklisted) and counterproductive (rerunning maps puts further load on the (already) maxed out network links).

We should revisit how we can better identify nodes with genuine network problems (and what role, if any, map-output fetch failures have in this).

Issue Links

• is related to: MAPREDUCE-562 A single slow (but not dead) map TaskTracker impedes MapReduce progress