IDL Enters the High Performance Computing Environment with FastDL

Scientists, researchers and commercial developers increasingly require more vigorous resources to complete experiments, simulations and other data-dependent pursuits. Computational intensive tasks, comprised of enormous data sets and complex algorithms, have pushed traditional computing environments to their limit. Increasingly, those who need to get answers from their data quickly and efficiently use High Performance Computing solutions, which leverage the power of individual computers and processors – as an integrated system - to achieve results.

Defining High Performance Computing
High Performance Computing solutions have been around for many years, and technology is improving its usability every day. In general, HPC, or Distributed Computing, refers to any system that uses a network of computers – all working together to solve a problem. Utilizing the processing power of a network of computers allows individuals with computational-intensive tasks to obtain results more quickly than in a traditional computing environment, even considering current computer technology.

Grid Computing: Grid resources are handled differently than in a cluster environment. In this case, resources are allocate by a centralized resource manager, while all nodes work together cooperatively as a single unit. In grid computing, all nodes work together as a cooperative unit, and they do not do individual processing tasks.

IDL in the High Performance Computing Enterprise
ITT has long been committed to meeting the needs of the science and technology communities. For nearly 30 years, our data processing solutions have recognized the challenges of data analysts and have provided solutions to compute-intensive problems. Now, ITT offers solutions to users who need to analyze complex data sets more quickly than they could in traditional computing environments. IDL, long known as the leader in data visualization and analysis, now partners with Tech-X corporation to leverage IDL in a high performance computing environment.

The FastDL Solution

Many professionals rely on IDL to perform complex data analysis and visualization – some becoming too intricate for processing on single workstations. To address this issue and reduce the time required to get results, Tech-X has developed FastDL, a solution that allows scientists and developers to run IDL applications on networked Linux clusters.

FastDL is comprised of two independent components that address the varying needs of parallel data analysis and visualization applications. TaskDL and mpiDL.

TaskDL
TaskDL is designed for use in applications where parallel processing computations can occur independently of one another, such as movie frame rendering and Monte Carlo simulations. Using TaskDL, applications can be re-configured in minutes to run in parallel on a cluster. This method, sometimes referred to as the task farm paradigm, manages the hosts and their individual IDL-related tasks.

This diagram demonstrates the TaskDL parallel processing model.

mpiDL
mpiDL is a powerful option for computations that require different segments processing in parallel to communicate with each other, such as distributed data set analysis and finite element analysis. mpiDL is the ideal solution for scientists and developers who are familiar with parallel computing, using mpi. It is a unique, off-the-shelf product that offers true inter-process communication.

This diagram illustrates the mpiDL parallel processing model.

Cluster Licenses Provide Cost Savings
IDL cluster license options provide a cost-effective method for deploying the power of IDL in an HPC environment. IDL run-time cluster licenses are bundled in convenient packages, providing significant per-node discounting based on the size of the client’s cluster. IDL run-time cluster license packages are required for all TaskDL configurations, and they are ideal for customers who have their own cluster environment.

For more information about cluster licensing, or how ITT can help you with your high performance computing needs, contact Tech-X Corporation at sales@txcorp.com.

About Tech-X CorporationTech-X Corporation of Boulder, Colorado develops software solutions for research, engineering and education to aid with specific scientific challenges. Their products and technologies help their clients and collaborators increase their design and development productivity and accelerate project deployment.