Cray XT5
Encyclopedia
The Cray
XT5 is an updated version of the Cray XT4
supercomputer
, launched on November 6, 2007. It includes a faster version of the XT4's SeaStar2 interconnect router called SeaStar2+, and can be configured either with XT4 compute blades, which have four dual-core AMD Opteron processor sockets, or XT5 blades, with eight sockets supporting dual or quad-core Opterons. The XT5 uses a 3-dimensional torus network topology.
The XT5 family run the Cray Linux Environment, formerly known as UNICOS
/lc. This incorporates SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
and Cray's Compute Node Linux
.
The XT5h (hybrid) variant also includes support for Cray X2
vector processor
blades, and Cray XR1 blades which combine Opterons with FPGA-based Reconfigurable Processor Units (RPUs) provided by DRC Computer Corporation.
The XT5m variant is a mid-ranged supercomputer with most of the features of the XT5, but having a 2-dimensional torus network topology and scalable to 6 cabinets.
In the fall of 2008, Cray delivered a 1.3 petaflops XT5 system to National Center for Computational Sciences
at Oak Ridge National Laboratories. This system, with over 150,000 processing cores, was dubbed "Jaguar
" and was the second fastest system in the world for the LINPACK
benchmark, the fastest system available for open science and the first system to exceed a petaflops
sustained performance on a 64-bit scientific application.
Jaguar underwent an upgrade to 224,256 cores in 2009, after which its performance jumped to 1.75 petaflops, taking it to the number one position in the 34th edition of the TOP500
list in fall 2009. It remained number one in the June 2010 edition, but in October 2010 was surpassed by the Chinese Tianhe-1A, which achieved a performance of 2.57 petaflops.
Another XT5 system, Kraken, with 99,072 cores and 0.83 petaflops, is currently at position number eight in the TOP500
list as of November 2010.
Cray
Cray Inc. is an American supercomputer manufacturer based in Seattle, Washington. The company's predecessor, Cray Research, Inc. , was founded in 1972 by computer designer Seymour Cray. Seymour Cray went on to form the spin-off Cray Computer Corporation , in 1989, which went bankrupt in 1995,...
XT5 is an updated version of the Cray XT4
Cray XT4
The Cray XT4 is an updated version of the Cray XT3 supercomputer. It was released on November 18, 2006. It includes an updated version of the SeaStar interconnect router called SeaStar2, processor sockets for Socket AM2 Opteron processors, and 240-pin unbuffered DDR2 memory...
supercomputer
Supercomputer
A supercomputer is a computer at the frontline of current processing capacity, particularly speed of calculation.Supercomputers are used for highly calculation-intensive tasks such as problems including quantum physics, weather forecasting, climate research, molecular modeling A supercomputer is a...
, launched on November 6, 2007. It includes a faster version of the XT4's SeaStar2 interconnect router called SeaStar2+, and can be configured either with XT4 compute blades, which have four dual-core AMD Opteron processor sockets, or XT5 blades, with eight sockets supporting dual or quad-core Opterons. The XT5 uses a 3-dimensional torus network topology.
The XT5 family run the Cray Linux Environment, formerly known as UNICOS
Unicos
UNICOS is the name of a range of Unix-like operating system variants developed by Cray for its supercomputers. UNICOS is the successor of the Cray Operating System . It provides network clustering and source code compatibility layers for some other Unixes. UNICOS was originally introduced in 1985...
/lc. This incorporates SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server
SUSE Linux Enterprise Server is a Linux distribution supplied by SUSE and targeted at the business market. It is targeted for servers, mainframes, and workstations but can be installed on desktop computers for testing as well. New major versions are released at an interval of 3-4 years, while...
and Cray's Compute Node Linux
Compute Node Linux
Compute Node Linux is a runtime environment based on the Linux kernel for the Cray XT3, Cray XT4, Cray XT5, Cray XT6, and Cray XE6 supercomputer systems based on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server. CNL forms part of the UNICOS/lc operating system from release 2.0 onwards...
.
The XT5h (hybrid) variant also includes support for Cray X2
Cray X2
The Cray X2 is a vector processing node for the Cray XT5h supercomputer, developed and sold by Cray Inc. and launched in 2007.The X2, developed under the code name Black Widow, was originally expected to be a standalone supercomputer system, superseding the Cray X1 parallel vector supercomputer...
vector processor
Vector processor
A vector processor, or array processor, is a central processing unit that implements an instruction set containing instructions that operate on one-dimensional arrays of data called vectors. This is in contrast to a scalar processor, whose instructions operate on single data items...
blades, and Cray XR1 blades which combine Opterons with FPGA-based Reconfigurable Processor Units (RPUs) provided by DRC Computer Corporation.
The XT5m variant is a mid-ranged supercomputer with most of the features of the XT5, but having a 2-dimensional torus network topology and scalable to 6 cabinets.
In the fall of 2008, Cray delivered a 1.3 petaflops XT5 system to National Center for Computational Sciences
National Center for Computational Sciences
The National Center for Computational Sciences is a United States Department of Energy Leadership Computing Facility. The NCCS provides resources for calculation and simulation in fields including astrophysics, materials, and climate research...
at Oak Ridge National Laboratories. This system, with over 150,000 processing cores, was dubbed "Jaguar
Jaguar (computer)
Jaguar is a petascale supercomputer built by Cray at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. The massively parallel Jaguar has a peak performance of just over 1,750 teraflops . It has 224,256 x86-based AMD Opteron processor cores, and operates with a version of Linux called the...
" and was the second fastest system in the world for the LINPACK
LINPACK
LINPACK is a software library for performing numerical linear algebra on digital computers. It was written in Fortran by Jack Dongarra, Jim Bunch, Cleve Moler, and Gilbert Stewart, and was intended for use on supercomputers in the 1970s and early 1980s...
benchmark, the fastest system available for open science and the first system to exceed a petaflops
FLOPS
In computing, FLOPS is a measure of a computer's performance, especially in fields of scientific calculations that make heavy use of floating-point calculations, similar to the older, simpler, instructions per second...
sustained performance on a 64-bit scientific application.
Jaguar underwent an upgrade to 224,256 cores in 2009, after which its performance jumped to 1.75 petaflops, taking it to the number one position in the 34th edition of the TOP500
TOP500
The TOP500 project ranks and details the 500 most powerful known computer systems in the world. The project was started in 1993 and publishes an updated list of the supercomputers twice a year...
list in fall 2009. It remained number one in the June 2010 edition, but in October 2010 was surpassed by the Chinese Tianhe-1A, which achieved a performance of 2.57 petaflops.
Another XT5 system, Kraken, with 99,072 cores and 0.83 petaflops, is currently at position number eight in the TOP500
TOP500
The TOP500 project ranks and details the 500 most powerful known computer systems in the world. The project was started in 1993 and publishes an updated list of the supercomputers twice a year...
list as of November 2010.