Major Features Parallel Computing Manager Version 1.7 PCM provides a modern user interface for distributing and initiating a numerically-intensive parallel application on a networked cluster of Macintoshes.  It coordinates the distribution of data, acts out commands from other nodes, and provides a user interface to start and monitor parallel computing jobs. This patent-pending technology allows the user to combine supercomputing-level features with an easy-to-use, modern user interface, a combination unmatched by any other cluster solution. Its unique technology design allows it to be flexible enough to operate in a wide variety of network environments and cluster configurations and while supporting the largest number of programming environments. It has supported the industry-standard Message-Passing Interface since day one, making it easy to write portable supercomputing code on a Mac cluster. At the same time it supports grid- and distributed-computing models.

Cluster Deployments Download Purchase Scripting Visualization Command-Line Interface Web Interface MPI (Message-Passing Interface) Grid & Distributed Parallel Computing Tutorials Cluster SDK for HPC Documentation

• Installs on a node in seconds!

• Employs easy-to-use Macintosh graphical user interface, including drag-and-drop!

• Utilizes the "brushed metal" look available in OS X 10.3 and later.

• Requires a minimum of system configuration - similar to a web browser

• Clusters virtually any combination of Intel or PowerPC Macintoshes running OS 9 or OS X

  - demonstrated robustness (other clustering solutions have been known to break due to inconsistencies in the kernel version)

• Supports automated, "Computational Grid"-like cluster access for mainstream applications

  - For examples, see the Power Fractal app and the Fresnel Diffraction Explorer.

• The Job Window provides access to two drawers for commonly used functions:

  - the Recent Items drawer displays and recalls recently used app, files, nodes, and nodes of the remote node scan cache

  - the Options drawer accesses all the options of the job

• Easily coexists with other applications, such as Adobe Photoshop or Microsoft Office

• Does not depend on File Sharing, Network File System (NFS), rsh, static host files, mpirun, etc.

• Does not require modifications to the hardware or the operating system

• Dynamically discovers resources on any TCP/IP network (10BaseT, 100BaseT, Gigabit, Airport, or combinations)

• Actively queries nodes for current status and other time-dependent attributes

• Determines the capability and capacities of compute nodes on demand

• Recognizes and utilizes multiprocessor Macs and OS X multitasking for cluster computing by automatically launching multiple tasks on multiprocessor machines (running OS X 10.2.1 or later):

  - Parallel applications can use one API to mix parallel computing both inside a box and across boxes

• The Network Scan Window views the cluster in three alternative views:

  - a Node View for adding news to a job and to display diagnostics about nodes of the cluster

  - a Job View to scan the entire network for queued, launching, running, terminated, and aborted jobs and display statistics about these jobs

  - a Network View to scan multiple networks simultaneously

• Utilizes after-hours computing and unutilized machines

• Supports five different user interfaces:

  • Easy-to-use Macintosh graphical user interface (including drag-and-drop)
  • AppleScript
  • Unix command-line (through command-line suite and customizable plaunch)
  • Direct interapplication communication (through AppleEvents)
  • a Web interface

• Supports customized job queuing using AppleScript, Automator, or via Unix command line

• Schedules node registration and deregistration

• Supports five different implementations of the Message-Passing Interface API:
  • MacMPI_X - UCLA AppleSeed
  • mpich - Argonne National Laboratory
  • MPI-Pro - MPI Software Technology, Inc.
  • mpich-gm - for Myrinet hardware from Myricom, Inc.
  • LAM/MPI - Pervasive Computing Labs, Indiana University

• Launches seven application types (see the SDK):
   
    On OS 9:
  • Classic applications
  • Carbon applications
  
    On OS X:
  • Carbon applications
  • Universal applications
  • Cocoa bundle-based applications
  • Mach-O executables (in the background or in the Terminal)
  • Unix shell scripts (in the background or in the Terminal)
  • AppleScript applications

• Includes patent-pending technologies!

• An advanced queuing and scheduling system for retaining jobs until specific conditions are met integrated with:

• A job tracking system designed to monitor the progress and execution of jobs and retain statistics and other historical data about terminated jobs

• Secure resource management, via a modern graphical user interface, by users and groups, regulating CPU time quotas, job duration limits, and even rollover minutes!

• Rates nodes to support "Computational Grid"-like features such as the ability to choose the "best" nodes automatically

• In its "Automatically Acquire Nodes" feature, jobs utilize heuristic algorithms to automatically acquire a specified number of nodes or processors in a cluster

• Searches for and combines resources over the Internet

• Discovers using Bonjour (a. k. a. ZeroConf) and Service Location Protocol (SLP) simultaneously

• Securely sends internode commands using 512-bit rotating encryption

• Recognizes and preserves Unix-style file privileges

• Copies entire folder structures

• Monitors currently running processes and jobs

• Kills remote processes and jobs

• Runs on nodes while they are logged out! (OS X only)

• Has achived over 217 Gigaflops* on a 33-node dual-processor G4/1GHz XServe cluster at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory!

• Has achieved over 233 GigaFlops* on a 76-node dual-processor Power Mac undergraduate student lab at the University of Southern California!

• Has achieved 1.21 TeraFlops* on 128 dual-processor Xserve G5 cluster at UCLA!

System Requirements:

Power Macintoshes connected using a TCP/IP network (100BaseT, 10BaseT, Gigabit, Airport, etc.) running OS X 10.3.9 and later.

For documention, see the Manual Page.

You can get a trial version via the Download Page.