HPC grid software stack

[Greg Newby]

I'd like to mention a Grid computing software stack that's available &
already reasonably integrated.  I'll include a few other comments on
HPC software stack adoption for researchers.

It's "Genesis II"
http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~vcgr/wiki/index.php/Genesis_II_Installation_Guid...

This has a mixture of licenses since the applications have different
sources.  I don't know whether any of the included applications are
ineligible for FC inclusion based on their license.  This is a fairly
low-level set of packages for things like job scheduling.

I saw some mention of Condor as a basis for an FC HPC stack.  This is
not a bad idea at all, and builds on a functional code base.

A standards-based approach is taken by the Genesis II package [within
the OGF, which is not an official standards organization like IETF &
ISO, but is taking a community standards approach to grid computing &
related technologies].  Genesis II incorporates various working &
standards-compliant pieces into a partial HPC software stack.

On the theme of 'what will researchers use,' I had some discussion
with Jeff about this.  Getting researchers to move from their
proprietary packages can be challenging.  I think a different but
highly relevant challenge is the need for an integrated & reasonably
well-supported HPC software stack.  Researchers would like to get
hardware & an HPC stack from one location.  Or, at least, get an HPC
stack that is fully integrated & supported, not a bunch of independent
pieces that they need to stich togeter.  That's a nitch I think
Nightlife has great potential to address.
  -- Greg

Dr. Gregory Newby, Chief Scientist of the Arctic Region Supercomputing Center
Univ of Alaska Fairbanks-909 Koyukuk Dr-PO Box 756020-Fairbanks-AK 99775-6020
e: newby AT arsc.edu v: 907-450-8663 f: 907-450-8603 w: www.arsc.edu/~newby