Windows HPC Server 2008

Windows HPC Server 2008, released by Microsoft on 22 September 2008, is the successor product to Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003. Like WCCS, Windows HPC Server 2008 is designed for high-end applications that require high performance computing clusters (HPC stands for High Performance Computing).[1] This version of the server software is claimed to efficiently scale to thousands of cores. It includes features unique to HPC workloads: a new high-speed NetworkDirect RDMA, highly efficient and scalable cluster management tools, a service-oriented architecture (SOA) job scheduler, an MPI library based on open-source MPICH2,[2] and cluster interoperability through standards such as the High Performance Computing Basic Profile (HPCBP) specification produced by the Open Grid Forum (OGF).[3]

In June 2008, a system built collaboratively with the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) and Microsoft ranked #23 on the Top500 list, a ranking of the world's fastest supercomputers, with a LINPACK score of 68.5 teraflops. The NCSA supercomputer uses both Windows Server HPC and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4.[4] As of November 2011, that ranking has since dropped to #253.[5]

In the November 2008 rankings published by Top500, a Windows HPC system built by the Shanghai Supercomputer Center achieved a peak performance of 180.6 teraflops and was ranked #11 on the list.[6] As of November 2011, Windows HPC has about 0.2% (1 out of 500) of the market of the 500 most powerful supercomputers, with about 0.2% of total gigaflops, with Linux dominating the rankings with 91.4% and Unix second place with 6%.[7] The other two systems in the top 100 that can run Windows HPC do so only part of the time.[8][9]

Windows HPC Server 2008 R2

Windows HPC Server 2008 R2, based on Windows Server 2008 R2, was released on 20 September 2010.[10]

Windows HPC Pack

After Windows HPC Server 2008 R2, Microsoft released HPC Pack 2008 R2 in four flavors: Express, Enterprise, Workstation and Cycle Harvesting. Later it simplified the offer by releasing HPC Pack 2012 that combined capabilities of all four versions of HPC Pack 2008 R2. HPC Pack 2012 can be installed on top of any Windows Server 2012 Standard or Datacenter.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Windows HPC Server 2008 RTM's". Windows Server Division WebLog. Microsoft Corporation. 22 September 2008. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  2. ↑ "Microsoft MPI". Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  3. ↑ "HPC Server Basic Profile Web Service Operations Guide". Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  4. ↑ "June 2008 TOP500 Supercomputer Rankings". Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  5. ↑ "TOP500 Supercomputer Rankings for the NCSA supercomputer". Retrieved 2012-01-19.
  6. ↑ "TOP500 Supercomputer Rankings". Retrieved 2014-10-26.
  7. ↑ "TOP500 Supercomputer Statistics". Retrieved 2012-01-19.
  8. ↑ "NCSA Intel 64 Cluster Abe Technical Summary". Retrieved 2009-09-26.
  9. ↑ "Information about the systems at HPC2N". Archived from the original on 2009-02-28. Retrieved 2011-04-26.
  10. ↑ "Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 Ships!". Retrieved 2011-10-22.
  11. ↑ https://www.microsoft.com/hpc/en/us/product/high-performance-computing-faqs.aspx

External links