Varadarajan built the system from off-the-shelf hardware components. He was initially attracted to IBM's 64-bit PowerPC 970 processor with its 2-GHz speed and floating-point capabilities, but was frustrated when he learned the processor wasn't available from IBM. He then focused on Apple's G5, which utilizes dual 970s. The installation uses Apple's OS.10 operating system and Mellanox Technologies' InfiniBand cluster technology to tie everything together.
Nystrom said the upgraded installation will be more conducive to clustering than was the original version. The new installation will look more like a traditional supercomputer installation, she added.
As for potential customers, Nystrom said federal agencies, including the Argonne National Lab, the National Security Agency, and NASA, are among those expressing interest in the supercomputer technology. She added that negotiations were underway with potential customers who could use the university's installation itself, or obtain rights to build their own supercomputer based on the university's technology.
In recent rankings of the world's supercomputers by the University of Tennessee, the Virginia Tech installation held third place, behind Japan's $250 million Earth Simulator Center and Hewlett-Packard's $215 million installation at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. The most eye-popping feature of Virginia Tech's "Big Mac" installation is its $7 million price tag.
Discover the benefits of scalable backbone and network services for application and cloud providers.
Network automation is gaining momentum. Here's how you can drive this powerful technology to its full potential.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
