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Supercomputer, the computer with the most advanced processor capability and especially high computational speed at the time of its production. The term “supercomputer” was first used in the New York World newspaper in 1929. It is known that the first specially designed tabulator supercomputer was built by IBM for Columbia University in 1931.
In the early 1950s, computers were unable to run multiple programs simultaneously. Each user had the right to use the computer only once and had to use the computer with a specific program and punched cards or a tape strip within a designated time period.
The program was loaded onto the machine and set to run until it was either terminated or crashed. Error checking for programs was done using the electrical switches and panel lights in front of the machine.
Use Cases and Differences with Mainframe
Supercomputers are used for calculations required in large scientific studies, nuclear energy research, dynamic animations, computation of fluid characteristics, meteorology, and other fields. The main difference between supercomputers and mainframes is that supercomputers are focused on processor power for a single specific task, while mainframes are designed for multi-user environments.
Software and hardware architectures
Indeed, certain technologies have been developed specifically for use in supercomputers. Some of these technologies include vector processing, liquid cooling, non-uniform memory access (NUMA), and parallel file systems. These technologies are tailored to enhance the performance, efficiency, and scalability of supercomputers, enabling them to tackle complex and computationally intensive tasks effectively. Vector processing allows for the simultaneous execution of operations on arrays of data, liquid cooling helps manage the high heat generated by powerful processors, NUMA optimizes memory access in multi-processor systems, and parallel file systems enable efficient storage and retrieval of data in parallel computing environments.
Operating Systems
Yes, it is true that Linux is widely used as the operating system for supercomputers. Linux offers several advantages that make it well-suited for high-performance computing environments. It is an open-source operating system, allowing for customization and optimization to meet specific requirements. Linux also has excellent support for parallel processing and is highly scalable, allowing for efficient utilization of supercomputer resources. Additionally, Linux benefits from a large and active user community, which contributes to its continuous development and improvement in the context of supercomputing.
Source: wikipedia
