Evaluating the Efficacy of LLM-Based Reasoning for Multiobjective HPC Job Scheduling

Abstract: High-Performance Computing (HPC) job scheduling involves balancing conflicting objectives such as minimizing makespan, reducing wait times, optimizing resource use, and ensuring fairness. Traditional methods, including heuristic-based (e.g., First-Come-First-Served) or intensive optimization techniques, often lack adaptability to dynamic workloads and heterogeneous HPC systems. To address this, we propose a novel LLM-based scheduler using a ReAct-style framework (Reason + Act), enabling iterative, interpretable decision-making. The system incorporates a scratchpad memory to track scheduling history and refine decisions via natural language feedback, while a constraint enforcement module ensures feasibility and safety. We evaluate our approach using OpenAI's O4-Mini and Anthropic's Claude 3.7 across seven real-world HPC workload scenarios, including heterogeneous mixes, bursty patterns, and adversarial cases. Comparisons against FCFS, Shortest Job First, and Google OR-Tools (on 10 to 100 jobs) reveal that LLM-based scheduling effectively balances multiple objectives while offering transparent reasoning through natural language traces. The method excels in constraint satisfaction and adapts to diverse workloads without domain-specific training. However, a trade-off between reasoning quality and computational overhead challenges real-time deployment. This work presents the first comprehensive study of reasoning-capable LLMs for HPC scheduling, demonstrating their potential to handle multiobjective optimization while highlighting limitations in computational efficiency. The findings provide insights into leveraging advanced LLMs for complex scheduling problems in dynamic HPC environments.