[Beowulf] HPC in Windows

[Robert G. Brown]

On Sat, 9 Oct 2004, Rajiv wrote:

> Dear All,
>     Are there any Beowulf packages for windows?

Not that I know of.  In fact, the whole concept seems a bit oxymoronic,
as the definition of a beowulf is a cluster supercomputer running an
open source operating system.

However, there are windows based clusters, and there are parallel
libraries that will compile and work on windows based LANs.  A lot of
things will be more difficult, as Windows is missing a few million
moving parts that are standard everyday fare under an *nix OS (like
xterms, shells, secure remote logins) UNLESS you pay for them or build
them yourself where open sources exist.  Back when I still used WinXX,
one could find a small suite of *nix-alike tools, but back then WinXX
was still based on DOS.

SO, you can certainly use windows machines in a cluster (or a grid) if
you can manage the hassle of paying for all the operating systems,
compilers, associated tools to facilitate remote login and shell
operations.

Or, you can just use linux on all those systems, at worst on a dual boot
basis.  Run Windows by day, a linux cluster by night.  These days, Open
Office (and a few other packages) renders most linux boxes so copacetic
that they can coexist in a Windows environment and a WinXX user can
learn to do pretty much everything they need to do under Linux (and in a
GUI) in a day or two.

   rgb

> 
> Regards,
> Rajiv

Robert G. Brown	                       http://www.phy.duke.edu/~rgb/
Duke University Dept. of Physics, Box 90305
Durham, N.C. 27708-0305
Phone: 1-919-660-2567  Fax: 919-660-2525     email:rgb at phy.duke.edu