System X (computing)
Encyclopedia
System X is a supercomputer
assembled by Virginia Tech's Advanced Research Computing facility in the summer of 2003 that was originally composed of 1,100 Apple
Power Mac G5 computers. System X ran at 12.25 Teraflops, (20.24 peak), and was ranked #3 on November 16, 2003 and #280 in the July 2008 edition of the TOP500
list of the world's most powerful supercomputers. The system used error-correcting RAM, which is important for accuracy due to the rate of bits flipped by cosmic rays or other interference sources in its vast number of RAM chips.
operating system
for each node, and because it was the first university computer to achieve 10 teraflops
on the high performance LINPACK benchmark
. The supercomputer is also known as "Big Mac" or Terascale Cluster. It is also touted as "the world’s most powerful and cheapest homebuilt supercomputer." System X was constructed with a relatively low budget of just $5.2 million, in the span of only three months, thanks in large part to using off-the-shelf G5 computers. By comparison, the Earth Simulator
, the fastest supercomputer at the time, cost approximately $400 million to build.
G5 servers. The upgraded version ranked #7 in the 2004 TOP500
list and its server-grade error-correcting memory solved the problem of cosmic ray interference. In October 2004, Virginia Tech partially rebuilt System X at a cost of about $600,000. These improvements brought the computer's speed up to 12.25 Teraflops, which placed System X #14 on the 2005 TOP500
list.
in Maryland
. Xseed was ranked #166 in the 2005 TOP500
.
System G has 324 Mac Pros(2592 processor cores) with QDR InfiniBand
in Virginia Tech's Center for High-End Computing Systems.
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...
assembled by Virginia Tech's Advanced Research Computing facility in the summer of 2003 that was originally composed of 1,100 Apple
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
Power Mac G5 computers. System X ran at 12.25 Teraflops, (20.24 peak), and was ranked #3 on November 16, 2003 and #280 in the July 2008 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 of the world's most powerful supercomputers. The system used error-correcting RAM, which is important for accuracy due to the rate of bits flipped by cosmic rays or other interference sources in its vast number of RAM chips.
Background
The supercomputer's name originates from the use of the Mac OS XMac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
for each node, and because it was the first university computer to achieve 10 teraflops
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...
on the high performance LINPACK benchmark
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...
. The supercomputer is also known as "Big Mac" or Terascale Cluster. It is also touted as "the world’s most powerful and cheapest homebuilt supercomputer." System X was constructed with a relatively low budget of just $5.2 million, in the span of only three months, thanks in large part to using off-the-shelf G5 computers. By comparison, the Earth Simulator
Earth Simulator
The Earth Simulator , developed by the Japanese government's initiative "Earth Simulator Project", was a highly parallel vector supercomputer system for running global climate models to evaluate the effects of global warming and problems in solid earth geophysics...
, the fastest supercomputer at the time, cost approximately $400 million to build.
Upgrade to Server-Grade Parts
In 2004, Virginia Tech upgraded its computer to Apple's newly-released, XserveXserve
Xserve was a line of rack unit computers designed by Apple Inc. for use as servers. When the Xserve was introduced in 2002, it was Apple's first designated server hardware design since the Apple Network Server in 1996...
G5 servers. The upgraded version ranked #7 in the 2004 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 and its server-grade error-correcting memory solved the problem of cosmic ray interference. In October 2004, Virginia Tech partially rebuilt System X at a cost of about $600,000. These improvements brought the computer's speed up to 12.25 Teraflops, which placed System X #14 on the 2005 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.
Similar Projects
Virginia Tech's system was the model for Xseed, a smaller system also made from Xserve servers and built by Bowie State UniversityBowie State University
Bowie State University , is a public university located on 355½ acres in unincorporated Prince George's County, Maryland, United States, north of the suburban city of Bowie. Bowie State is part of the University System of Maryland...
in Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Xseed was ranked #166 in the 2005 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...
.
System G has 324 Mac Pros(2592 processor cores) with QDR InfiniBand
InfiniBand
InfiniBand is a switched fabric communications link used in high-performance computing and enterprise data centers. Its features include high throughput, low latency, quality of service and failover, and it is designed to be scalable...
in Virginia Tech's Center for High-End Computing Systems.