Virginia goes X5
Seen on Reuters
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
University will upgrade its supercomputer that uses Apple Computer Inc.
(Nasdaq:AAPL
- news)'s
PowerMac G5 computers with Apple's recently introduced Xserve G5 servers that
have two chips in each box, the university said on
Tuesday.
The new system, which went online toward the end of last year and which Virginia Tech said was the most powerful supercomputer at any university in the world at the time, will be completed by May.
By moving to the thinner servers, the supercomputer will consume less power and generate less heat, said Srinidhi Varadarajan, assistant professor of computer science, college of engineering, at Virginia Tech.
"It cuts the system's size down by a factor of three," Varadarajan said. "The new system will take much less power and generate less heat and free up space."
The current supercomputer that uses 1,100 PowerMac G5 desktop computers occupies 3,000 square feet.
Apple's G5 chips crunch 64 bits of data at a time, compared with the now-industry-standard of 32 bits found in the vast majority of personal computers and servers.
If laid on its side, the PowerMac G5 is about 7 inches (18 cm) tall. By comparison, the Xserve is about 1.75 inches high, said Alex Grossman, head of marketing for servers and storage for Apple.
"They're able to rack these in a much tighter and higher density manner," Grossman said.
The price of the upgrade has not yet settled on, but Varadarajan said it would be minimal compared to the cost of building a new supercomputer from scratch.
Asked what would become of the 1,100 PowerMac G5 computers being retired, Varadarajan said: "We're working on getting them very good homes."
The new system, which went online toward the end of last year and which Virginia Tech said was the most powerful supercomputer at any university in the world at the time, will be completed by May.
By moving to the thinner servers, the supercomputer will consume less power and generate less heat, said Srinidhi Varadarajan, assistant professor of computer science, college of engineering, at Virginia Tech.
"It cuts the system's size down by a factor of three," Varadarajan said. "The new system will take much less power and generate less heat and free up space."
The current supercomputer that uses 1,100 PowerMac G5 desktop computers occupies 3,000 square feet.
Apple's G5 chips crunch 64 bits of data at a time, compared with the now-industry-standard of 32 bits found in the vast majority of personal computers and servers.
If laid on its side, the PowerMac G5 is about 7 inches (18 cm) tall. By comparison, the Xserve is about 1.75 inches high, said Alex Grossman, head of marketing for servers and storage for Apple.
"They're able to rack these in a much tighter and higher density manner," Grossman said.
The price of the upgrade has not yet settled on, but Varadarajan said it would be minimal compared to the cost of building a new supercomputer from scratch.
Asked what would become of the 1,100 PowerMac G5 computers being retired, Varadarajan said: "We're working on getting them very good homes."
Posted: Tue - January 27, 2004 at 12:36 AM |
Quick Links
XML/RSS Feed
Calendar
| Sun | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat |
Archives
Categories
Comments powered by
Statistics
Total entries in this blog:
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Apr 10, 2006 09:50 PM
Total entries in this category:
Published On: Apr 10, 2006 09:50 PM