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Cache optimization is a powerful technique to make your C programs run faster. Here are a few practical tips:

1️⃣ 𝗔𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆

• Access memory in a linear fashion to make the best use of the CPU cache.

• Example: Iterating through arrays from start to end is much faster than random access!

for (int i = 0; i < size; ++i) {
    array[i] = i * 2; // Accessing elements sequentially for better cache utilization
}

2️⃣ 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗱𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁

• Arrange struct members to minimize padding and maximize cache line efficiency.

• 𝗧𝗶𝗽: Place smaller variables together and align the largest ones.

#include <stdio.h>

// A struct that demonstrates proper alignment for cache efficiency
struct Optimized {
    char a;   // 1 byte
    // 3 bytes padding here for alignment of the next int
    int b;    // 4 bytes (aligned after 'a' for efficiency)
    double c; // 8 bytes
};

// Function to demonstrate usage of the Optimized struct
void processStructs(struct Optimized* array, int size) {
    // Accessing structs sequentially to make the best use of cache
    for (int i = 0; i < size; ++i) {
        array[i].b = i;               // Modify integer value
        array[i].c = array[i].b * 2.0; // Modify double value based on 'b'
    }
}

// Function to print the struct contents
void printStructs(struct Optimized* array, int size) {
    for (int i = 0; i < size; ++i) {
        printf("Struct %d - a: %c, b: %d, c: %.2f\n", i, array[i].a, array[i].b, array[i].c);
    }
}

int main() {
    int size = 5;
    // Allocate an array of Optimized structs
    struct Optimized array[size];

    // Initialize the structs
    for (int i = 0; i < size; ++i) {
        array[i].a = 'A' + i; // Assign letters starting from 'A'
        array[i].b = 0;
        array[i].c = 0.0;
    }

    // Process the array of structs
    processStructs(array, size);

    // Print the contents of the structs
    printStructs(array, size);

    return 0;
}

🔍 Code Explanation:

1. Struct Alignment:

• struct Optimized has fields arranged to minimize padding and align data efficiently:

• char a; (1 byte) is followed by 3 bytes of padding to align the int b field.

• int b; (4 bytes) is placed after the padding for alignment.

• double c; (8 bytes) follows b as it naturally aligns to an 8-byte boundary.

2. Sequential Access:

• The processStructs function accesses and modifies the structs in a loop sequentially. This makes the most of cache efficiency because elements are stored contiguously in memory.

3. Initialization:

• The main function initializes an array of struct Optimized with size 5 and assigns values to each struct’s fields.

• The processStructs function then processes the array to set values for b and c based on calculations.

4. Printing the Structs:

• The printStructs function outputs the values of each struct in the array to verify the changes.

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