HPC cluster management is the process of ensuring high-performance computing systems run efficiently and cost-effectively. It involves installing end-user applications, optimizing workflows, safeguarding sensitive data, monitoring system health, and optimizing performance and throughput. HPC platform software plays a key role by simplifying complex HPC job submission, enabling job scheduling to optimize resource and license utilization, and providing real-time visibility into system performance.
Key Aspects & Challenges of HPC Cluster Management
Effective HPC cluster management involves addressing a range of factors that work together to keep systems running at peak performance, while maximizing cost savings.
Workload Management
Effective workload management maximizes HPC resource utilization while minimizing downtime and inefficiencies. It involves identifying high-priority workloads and allocating resources, such as compute time and licenses, based on business needs to ensure critical tasks are completed promptly without delaying other jobs. By aligning resource allocation with strategic goals, you can optimize costly CAE licenses to achieve greater overall value from your cluster.
Proactive Monitoring
Continuous monitoring of system health, workload performance, and resource utilization enables the system to identify issues before they cause downtime. Unhealthy nodes should be automatically removed from the system to prevent a “blackhole” effect, where jobs are scheduled on faulty nodes and fail. This proactive approach ensures system stability and reliability.
Hardware
When it comes to on-premises systems, choosing components that match your application workload ensures that simulations run smoothly without performance issues. It is equally important to size your computing power correctly so you do not overspend on excess capacity or fall short of the performance needed to meet your requirements.
Setup & Operational Debugging
Smooth deployment requires skilled expertise to configure the cluster and applications correctly from the start. Ongoing operation also demands technical know-how to maintain performance and handle issues effectively.
Cost Management
Careful budget planning and tracking ensure that your HPC environment delivers maximum value without overspending. It is also important to determine whether a full cloud, on-premises, or hybrid solution best fits your needs so you can maximize cost savings while maintaining the required performance and flexibility.
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What is HPC Cluster Management Software?
HPC cluster management software streamlines the challenging task of running a cluster efficiently. Leveraging modern tools can lower the workload for administrators, reduce staffing needs, and allow more engineering projects to be completed.
Benefits of HPC Cluster Management Software
Every piece of HPC management software has its own features and benefits, but here are some general benefits of using these tools:
- Resource Efficiency: Optimized scheduling and allocation ensure your cluster handles workloads faster and makes the most of available resources.
- Team Collaboration: Centralized access and resource management help multiple teams work together seamlessly on shared resources to increase ROI.
- Proactive Monitoring: Continuous system visibility allows administrators to identify and address issues before they impact performance.
- Integrated Infrastructure: Combining hardware, networking, and software into a single management platform simplifies cluster operation and maintenance.
- Performance Tracking: Track nearly every aspect of your system, including utilization, network load, CPU, and InfiniBand utilization, to maintain optimal performance.
Introducing TotalCAE Managed HPC Solutions
TotalCAE offers on-premises and cloud-based HPC solutions that are fully managed by experienced IT professionals. TotalCAE also provides a complete platform that integrates seamlessly with all major CAE applications, helping you harness the power of HPC without the complexity of managing it yourself. With over 18 years of experience in the HPC industry, we can have your environment running in days, not months, so you can focus on engineering while we handle the rest.
- On-premises and BYOC cloud-based HPC solutions fully managed by seasoned IT professionals
- Our TotalCAE Platform is included with every managed service plan, featuring pre-built integration for all major CAE applications
- Our software allows for seamless job submission, monitoring, capacity planning, analytics, CAE license server management, and more
- 1-hour response time for fast and reliable support
- Full HPC and CAE application upkeep handled by TotalCAE for clients that do not have in-house HPC CAE IT experience.
A TotalCAE Case Study: Divergent
Divergent Technologies has revolutionized automotive and industrial-scale manufacturing with their data-driven approach for designing and building vehicle structures and DAPS software and hardware solutions. Divergent Technologies initially used on-premises workstations, but needed faster simulation times and CAE management to allow engineering and IT to work on important project work. Divergent turned to TotalCAE to manage their on-prem HPC and CAE applications, and to provide new cloud burst capabilities.
TotalCAE implemented their Public Cloud on Azure, enabling Divergent to instantly scale their computing power. Fully managed by TotalCAE, the solution instantly removed the need for IT to get bogged down with management and upkeep of the CAE applications and HPC environment. Engineers could run simulations in just a few clicks through the easy-to-use TotalCAE web portal, making HPC accessible without a steep learning curve.
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Harness The Power of HPC With TotalCAE
With over 18 years of experience in high-performance computing, TotalCAE delivers expert-driven solutions that combine on-premises and cloud-based HPC cluster management.
Our TotalCAE Platform makes submitting jobs fast and simple, enabling your team to focus on results instead of complex and time-consuming HPC management tasks. Partnering with us means unmatched speed, reliable support, and the confidence of working with seasoned professionals.
Contact us today to discover how we can help your business get the most out of HPC.