Supercomputer reservation system created

U.S. scientists have created a "reservation" program for supercomputers that can speed up the slow process of obtaining computing time.

The program created by the University of California-San Diego's supercomputer center gives researchers more control over when their jobs will run.

"While we couldn't eliminate the queue … we realized that a service that lets users themselves schedule 'windows' of reserved time would let them complete jobs more reliably and get more done," said Anke Kamrath, director of user services.

The new system can make computing more efficient in various situations, Kamrath said. For example, a user with a large allocation may start a full machine job that will run for a day, only to find a minor problem causes it to quickly fail. Instead of being able to simply fix the problem and restart, the user must go to the end of the queue and again wait hours or days for the job to run.

With the SDSC's new reservation system, such a user can easily set a reservation for a full-machine job, ensuring the job can be completed in a timely fashion, even if minor problems occur.

Copyright 2007 by United Press International