High Performance Computing (HPC)

What is it?

High Performance Computing is the use of parallel processing for running advanced application programs efficiently, reliably and quickly. It applies especially to systems that function above a teraflop (a trillion floating point operations per second) and these high-performance systems often use custom-made components in addition to so-called commodity components. The term HPC is also occasionally used as a synonym for supercomputing.

Where is it used?

The most common users of HPC systems are scientific researchers, engineers and academic institutions. Some government agencies, particularly the military, also rely on HPC for complex applications.
As demand for processing power and speed grows, HPC will likely interest businesses of all sizes, particularly for transaction processing and data warehouses.
An occasional techno-fiend might use an HPC system to satisfy an exceptional desire for advanced technology.

Key business drivers

Advanced computing environments at national, academic, and corporate laboratories are enabling scientists and engineers to collaborate in the study of natural phenomenon at all levels from sub-atomic particles, dark matter, and molecular dynamics to climate change, weather forecasting, energy, biomedical, as well as to the development of technologies for long-life battery cells or space exploration.

The key business drivers for HPC moving into commercial IT applications are:

Scaling of Applications – As IT managers deal with larger web, database and financial applications, the need for improved CPU performance becomes an important factor. Businesses such as Ebay, Amazon, Merrill Lynch, Myspace.com, Exxon, Shell, BP and other large IT shops are using HPC to meet a never- ending need for more computing needs.

Asset Management – HPC allows for rapid deployment and redeployment of IT assets as needs change dynamically. Leveraging the virtual server technology from VMware, Scalent and others provides IT managers with dynamic tools to create greater flexibility and value from IT resources.

Improved Business Operations – In every business, there are benchmarks for competitiveness and performance. HPC has proven to be a key driver of these benchmarks for improving financial market predictions, crash test simulations, seismic models, and massive web farms. Any business activity that can be accomplished with higher performance and lower costs is desirable.

Simulations, Rendering and Modelling – A wide range of simulations, medical and life science and video rendering applications are producing more lifelike images and renderings due to improved data collection technology. Better scans, HDTV, multi-layer scans, and improved data collection capabilities all contribute to the need for more CPUs and faster storage solutions.

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