Linux Cluster, PRC RAS

The parallel processing system (cluster) was designed in PRC RAS in 2000 on the basis of the IMPB RAS to meet the acute need of PRC researchers for highly efficient computational resources so that they might solve numerous computational problems requiring mass computer memory and high speed of operation. Designing of the cluster was quite feasible due to the fact that the capacity of Intel-based PC has increased considerably in the recent years so that they have become highly competitive with RISK-based work stations, especially as to the ratio price/capacity. At the same time OS Linux (royalty-free version of UNIX) assumed considerable popularity. All these factors have suggested a decision to build a parallel processing system (cluster) of widely available Intel Based PC and inexpensive Ethernet-networks by installing there Linux and one of royalty-free communication libraries (PVM and, subsequently, MPI).

Linux Cluster of PRC RAS was designed with the support from the FSPP "Integration" (project number B0018) and the RFBR grants (project numbers 00-01-05000 and 01-07-90317).

In April, 2004 has started the big European project EGEE (Enabling Grids for E-science in Europe). Eight Russian Institutes made up the consortium RDIG (Russian Data Intensive GRID) as a national federation in the EGEE project:

• Institute for High Energy Physics (IHEP, Protvino),
• Institute of Mathematical Problems of Biology of Russian Academy of Sciences (IMPB RAS, Pushchino),
• Institute of Theoretical and Experimental Physics (ITEP, Moscow),
• Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR, Dubna),
• Keldysh Institute of Applied Mathematics of Russian Academy of Sciences (KIAM RAS, Moscow),
• Petersburg Nuclear Physics Institute of Russian Academy of Sciences (PNPI RAS, Gatchina),
• Russian Research Centre "Kurchatov Institute" (RRC KI, Moscow),
• Skobeltsyn Institute of Nuclear Physics of Moscow State University (SINP MSU, Moscow).

Due to the organization of GRID-infrastructure developing within the framework of funded by EU project EGEE, enormous computational capacities and huge information volumes will be reachable for all scientific community.

Linux Cluster of PRC RAS was designed and has been functioning with the support from the FSPP "Integration" (project number B0018) and the RFBR grants (project numbers 00-01-05000 and 01-07-90317).

Cluster management is realized by Inter-Institute Department of Computing and Information Resources (MOVIR)

e-mail: movir@psn.ru

Chief administrator of the cluster is Alexander Yu. Zajtsev

IMPB RAS (Room 452), 4, Institutskaya str., 142290, Pushchino, Moscow Region, Russia.
Phone: 73-06-83*452
e-mail: sasha-z@psn.ru

Cluster specifications

Cluster nodes

At the present time Cluster consists of

• 10 – 800MHz P3 nodes with 256 MB memory each having 10,2 GB hard disk
• 8 - 1,2 GHz dual Athlon MP and
• 2 – 2,0 GHz dual Athlon MP 2000+ nodes with 768 MB memory and 20 GB of disk memory.
• A 24-port Fast Ethernet switch provides direct access to each node.