Grid Computing for High Performance Computing (HPC) Data Centers

This research project investigated techniques to develop a High Performance Computing HPC grid infrastructure to operate as an interactive research and development tool. Current HPC grid architectures are designed for batch applications, where users submit their job requests, and then wait for notification of job completion. In the batch environment, the user lacks direct control over the execution of their application. To meet this need for accessing and processing data interactively in near real-time, the Air Force Research Laboratory Information Directorate developed an environment that stresses near real-time user interaction with the application. This involved evaluating the various developing protocols for interactive grid computing, using the Globus Toolkit, and then selecting the one with the most growth potential. The grid architecture was evaluated by assembling and demonstrating an in-house interactive demonstration grid using in-house cluster assets and existing code, to verify proper operation on a small scale.