PRACE evaluates Technologies for Future Multi-Petaflop/s Systems

PRACE, the Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe, has selected a range of promising system and component prototypes for multi-Petaflop/s class systems to be deployed beyond 2010. Prototypes will be installed at eight partner sites starting in 2009.

LRZ and GENCI-CINES (Centre Informatique National de l’Enseignement Supérieur, France) will install a joint prototype in Garching and Montpellier based on SGI thin nodes (ICE system) and fat nodes (UltraViolet) coupled with Clearspeed (e710 boards) and Intel Larrabee GPUs. The two partners are planning to evaluate novel hardware (Intel Nehalem-EP/EX processors, NUMAlink5 and 4X QDR Infiniband networks, Clearspeed accelerators and Intel Larrabee manycore GPUs) as well as software components (Lustre filesystem) on synthetic benchmarks and real applications.

For details see: http://www.prace-project.eu/documents/press-releases-pdfs/WP8_prototypes_pr_final.pdf

STRATOS

Forteen partners, including LRZ, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create a permanent research platform called STRATOS. The MoU was signed by 12 PRACE partners, the Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe, and two associated partners.

STRATOS stands for “PRACE advisory group for Strategic Technologies”. STRATOS has the goal to become a unique collaboration of PRACE partners and industry either directly or through consortia which include PRACE members. The objective of STRATOS is to foster the development of HPC (High Performance Computing) technologies in Europe.

For details see: http://www.prace-project.eu/documents/press-releases-pdfs/stratos_pr_final.pdf