# ADR-0022: 2D Grid program_id Semantics - **Status**: Accepted - **Date**: 2026-04-09 - **Context**: Triton-style kernel addressing for multi-cube PE topology ## Problem Triton kernels use `tl.program_id(axis)` to identify their position in a launch grid. Our hardware has a 2-level hierarchy: **cubes** contain **PEs**. The previous implementation ignored the `axis` parameter and always returned a flat PE index, making it impossible for kernels to distinguish their cube-local position from their cube identity. ## Decision Map `tl.program_id` and `tl.num_programs` to the 2D hardware grid: | Call | Returns | Description | |------|---------|-------------| | `tl.program_id(axis=0)` | `local_pe_id` | PE index within cube | | `tl.program_id(axis=1)` | `cube_id` | Cube index | | `tl.num_programs(axis=0)` | `num_pes_per_cube` | PEs per cube | | `tl.num_programs(axis=1)` | `num_cubes` | Total cubes | Global PID is derived as: ```python global_pid = tl.program_id(axis=1) * tl.num_programs(axis=0) + tl.program_id(axis=0) ``` ### Axis mapping rationale - **axis=0 = PE (innermost)**: PEs within a cube share HBM and communicate via local NOC mesh. This is the fast, tightly-coupled dimension — analogous to threads within a block. - **axis=1 = Cube (outer)**: Cross-cube communication goes through UCIe with higher latency. This is the coarser scheduling dimension — analogous to blocks in a grid. ## Implementation ### TLContext (`triton_emu/tl_context.py`) Added `cube_id` and `num_cubes` constructor parameters. `program_id()` and `num_programs()` dispatch on `axis`: ```python def program_id(self, axis: int = 0) -> int: if axis == 1: return self._cube_id return self._pe_id def num_programs(self, axis: int = 0) -> int: if axis == 1: return self._num_cubes return self._num_programs ``` ### PE_CPU (`components/builtin/pe_cpu.py`) - Extracts `num_cubes` from `ctx.spec["system"]["sips"]["cubes_per_sip"]` - Passes `cube_id` (already available as `self._cube_idx`) and `num_cubes` to TLContext ### KernelRunner (`triton_emu/kernel_runner.py`) - Receives `num_cubes` from PE_CPU - Passes `cube_id` and `num_cubes` to TLContext in greenlet mode ## Backward Compatibility - Existing code using `tl.program_id(0)` or `tl.program_id()` is unchanged — returns the same PE index as before. - `cube_id` and `num_cubes` default to `0` and `1`, so callers that don't provide them (e.g. unit tests) continue to work. ## Usage Example ```python def sharded_gemm_kernel(a_ptr, b_ptr, out_ptr, M, K, N, tl): local_pid = tl.program_id(axis=0) # PE within cube cube_id = tl.program_id(axis=1) # which cube global_pid = cube_id * tl.num_programs(axis=0) + local_pid # Column-wise sharding across global PID n_per_pid = N // (tl.num_programs(axis=1) * tl.num_programs(axis=0)) col_start = global_pid * n_per_pid a = tl.load(a_ptr, shape=(M, K), dtype="f16") b = tl.ref(b_ptr + col_start * K * 2, shape=(K, n_per_pid), dtype="f16") h = tl.composite(op="gemm", a=a, b=b, out_ptr=out_ptr + col_start * M * 2) tl.wait(h) ``` ## Consequences - Benchmarks can now express cube-aware sharding and addressing without hardcoding topology dimensions. - Future axis=2 (SIP-level) can be added following the same pattern if needed.