Yesterday, Microsoft confirmed rumours that it will produce a high performance computing (HPC) version of Windows for parallel computing. Information Week reports: "The software, due in the second half of 2005, represents a different approach to high-end computing than the company's currently available DataCenter edition of Windows. DataCenter is designed for use on symmetric multiprocessing servers, where a single version of Windows can run on up to 64 processors. Microsoft's in-development High-Performance Computing platform will split the workload across many smaller machines, each of which has its own imprint of Windows.
"Microsoft plans to aim Windows Server 2003, HPC edition, at companies in life sciences, engineering, finance, and other industries where highly scalable systems built with relatively low-cost hardware are being applied to demanding applications. 'Parallel-computing clusters are increasingly being seen in the enterprise,' Microsoft product manager Dennis Oldroyd says. 'It's been the domain of academia and research. Now, with low-cost standardized hardware, it's becoming less of a niche play.'
"Microsoft has been working with the Cornell Theory Center on early approaches to parallel computing, and some customers have already deployed Windows in parallel clusters using software and hardware from other vendors. Microsoft plans to create a 'single simplified environment' for developing, deploying, and managing high-performance clusters."
Comment: It would be nice if people could avoid misrepresenting what Microsoft is doing. It is not targeting the traditional supercomputer market, which is "a niche play". It is targeting the market for "high performance computing" in companies that probably wouldn't buy a supercomputer, and it hopes there are enough of those to make the development worthwhile. See my column in Online, June 3, Microsoft opts for 'high performance computing'.
