Enabling Technologies for High-Performance Computing

Publication Date	October 2007
Publisher	BCC Research
Product Type	Report
Pages	141
ISBN Number	not applicable
Product Code	BCC00177

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Summary

High-performance computing (HPC) refers to the use of parallel supercomputers and computer clusters-that is, computing systems comprised of multiple (usually mass-produced) processors linked together in a single system whose performance is typically rated in the teraflop (TFLOP) and higher range. This report focuses on HPC enabling technologies, specifically microprocessors, system memory, interconnects, data storage, thermal management, and software.

There are several reasons for this report's focus on enabling technologies, including the fact that the market for HPC systems per se is already the subject of continuing coverage from other IT analyst firms. On a more substantive level, it is on the level of enabling technologies that developments are taking place with the potential to broaden the market for HPC.

In particular, enabling technologies play an important role in broadening the market for HPC. Because of the complexity of HPC hardware and software, HPC until recently has been more or less limited to university engineering and research departments and specialized vertical markets such as oil and gas exploration, bioscience, and financial research.

Today, a growing number of enterprises are taking advantage of the affordable computing power of clustered standards-based servers running commodity processors to assemble and manage smaller-scale HPC systems on their own. As these pioneers prove the business case for do-it-yourself, in-house HPC in enterprise settings, in-house HPC will become an increasingly important driver of the overall HPC market.

Scope of study

This report contains:

Descriptions of enabling technologies and products for HPC (microprocessors, system memory, interconnects, data storage, thermal management, and software) with the greatest commercial potential in the near to mid-term (2007-2012)
Analysis of the key drivers that will shape the market for HPC enabling technologies over the next 5 years
Estimates of the current and future demand for HPC technologies and products
A patent analysis and company profiles of developers and vendors.

Report Highlights

The global market for key enabling HPC hardware technologies was worth some $13.5 billion in 2006, a figure that is expected to increase to $14.9 billion in 2007 and $22.9 billion in 2012, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.9% over the next five years.
Hardware accounts for nearly 90% of the market for key HPC technologies. Within the hardware segment, memory accounts for the largest share of key HPC hardware, with 37.6% of the total market.
By 2012, memory's share of the HPC hardware market is expected to shrink slightly to 36.9%.
Storage has the second largest market share, with 30.5% of the total hardware market, followed by processors with 24.8% of the total and interconnects with 6.6%. Thermal management hardware accounts for less than 1% of the value of all types of key HPC hardware sold.

Content

Chapter 1 - Executive Summary
- Summary Table: Global Market Projections for Key HPC Technologies, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Summary Figure: Projected Trends in Key HPC Hardware Global Market Shares, 2006 and 2012 (% of Total Hardware Sales)
Chapter 2 - Overview
- Definitions
  - Scope of High-Performance Computing
    - Measuring HPC Performance
    - Linpack
    - Nas Parallel Benchmarks
    - HPC Challenge Benchmarks
  - Supercomputers: A Subset of HPC
  - HPC Vs High-Performance Technical Computing
  - HPC Vs High Throughput Computing
- History of HPC
- HPC Architectures
  - Vector Processing
  - Parallel Processing
    - Symmetric Multiprocessing
    - Massively Parallel Processing
    - Clustering
      - Beowulf Clusters
      - Constellations
    - Grid Computing
  - Specially Designed Systems
- High-Performance Computing Applications
- Market for High-Performance Computers
  - Market Size and Growth Trends
  - Market Segmentation
    - Architecture Segments
    - Operating System Segments
    - End-User Segments
    - Vendors
    - Geography
- Enabling Technologies for HPC
  - Key Enabling Technologies
    - High-performance Microprocessors
    - Memory
    - Storage
    - Interconnects
    - Thermal Management
    - Software
  - Market for Key HPC Enabling Technologies
    - HPC Hardware
Chapter 3 - HPC Processor Technologies
- Introduction
- HPC Processor Performance Equirements/Parameters
  - Floating Point Performance
  - Memory Performance
  - Scalability
  - Power Consumption
- Current/ Future Technologies
  - Vector Processors
    - Cray X1e Multi-Streaming Processor
    - Nec-Sx-8
  - Risc Processors
    - Pa-Risc
    - Dec Alpha
    - Mips
    - Sparc
    - Power Processors
  - Commercial off-The-Shelf Processors
    - Amd
    - Opteron
  - Intel
    - Itanium
    - Xeon
  - New Technologies
    - Cell
    - FGPAs
    - Processing in Memory
    - Heterogeneous Processing
    - Co-Processors
      - Gpu Co-Processors
        
        Cpu and Gpu on the Same Chip
        
        Gpu Co-Processor and Cpu Chip Directly Connected
        
        Gpu Co-Processor Bus-Connected with Cpu
      - Cell Processor as Co-Processor
      - Other Types of HPC Co-Processors
- Suppliers
- Patent Analysis
- Market
Chapter 4 - HPC Memory Technologies
- Introduction
- HPC Memory Performance Requirements/Parameters
  - Latency
  - Bandwidth
  - Power Consumption
  - Heat Output
- Current/ Future Technologies
  - HPC Memory Architectures
    - Shared Memory
    - Distributed Shared Memory
  - Types of Random Access Memory Used in HPC
    - Sdram
    - Rdram
    - DDR-Sdram
    - Future Developments in Ram Technology with Potential HPC Applications
      - Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory
      - Nanoscale Random Access Memory
- Suppliers
- Patent Analysis
- Market
Chapter 5 - HPC Interconnect Technologies
- Introduction
- HPC Interconnect Performance Parameters
  - Bandwidth and Latency
  - Scalability
  - Reliability
  - Price/Performance
- Current and Future Technologies
  - Shared Bus Architectures
    - Ethernet
  - Switched Fabric Architectures
    - Fibre Channel
    - Myrinet
    - QsNet
    - InfiniBand
    - Other Interconnect Technologies
  - Suppliers
- Patent Analysis
- Markets
Chapter 6 - Storage Technologies
- Introduction
- HPC Storage Requirements/Performance Parameters
  - Transparent Data Access
  - Collaborative Data Access
  - Seamless Integration
  - Resiliency and Availability
  - Centralized Management
  - Quality of Service
  - Integrated Data Services
- Technologies
  - Storage Architectures
    - Local Storage
    - Network Storage
  - Storage Infrastructure
    - Controllers, Switches, and Other Interface Devices
      - Nas Devices
      - Fibre Channel Devices
      - Iscsi Hardware
    - Storage Media
      - Raid Drives
        
        Raid Implementations
        
        Controllers and Interfaces
      - Developments in Storage Technologies
        
        Storage Disks
        
        Perpendicular Recording
        
        Holographic Storage
      - Read-Write Heads
        
        Read-Write Head Technology Trends
- Suppliers
- Patent Analysis
- Market
Chapter 7 - Thermal Management
- Introduction
- Thermal Management Performance Requirements/ Parameters
  - Thermal Tolerances
  - Thermal Performance
  - Hot Spots
  - Reliability
  - Noise Levels
- Current/ Future Technologies
  - Liquid Cooling
    - Closed vs. Open Loop Airflow Systems
    - Water-Chilled Doors
    - SprayCool
    - Non-Water Liquid Cooling Systems
    - Chip-Based Cooling Systems
    - Other Liquid Cooling Technologies
      - Heat Pipes
      - Cold Plates
  - Forced Air Cooling
  - Heat Sinks
  - Thermoelectric Coolers
- Suppliers
- Patent Analysis
- Markets
Chapter 8 - HPC Software
- Introduction
- HPC Software Performance Requirements/Parameters
  - Scalability
  - Portability
  - Reliability
  - Software Development Productivity
- Current/ Future Technologies
  - Parallel Applications
  - Parallel Programming
    - Open Mp
    - Message Passing Interface
    - Hybrid Openmp-Mpi
  - Debugging
    - HPC Software Debuggers
    - Memory Debuggers
- Developers/ Vendors
- Patents
- Markets
Chapter 9 - Company Profiles
- Absoft Corp.
- Acusim Software, Inc.
- Advanced Micro Devices
- Ageia
- Allinea Software
- Altair Engineering, Inc.
- Altera Corp.
- Brocade Communications Systems, Inc.
- Bull Rue Jean JaurÈS
- Celoxica, Ltd.
- Clearspeed Technology, Inc.
- Colossal Storage Corp.
- Computational Engineering Int'L
- Cray, Inc.
- Crosswalk, Inc.
- Data Direct Networks, Inc.
- Dot Hill Systems Corp.
- Drc Computer Corp.
- Elpida Memory, Inc.
- Evergrid, Inc.
- Exanet, Ltd.
- Emc Corp.
- Freescale Semiconductor, Inc.
- Fujitsu, Ltd.
- Hewlett Packard Co.
- Hitachi Data Systems Corp.
- Hitachi Global Storage Technologies
- International Business Machines Corp.
- Intel Corp.
- Isilon Systems, Inc.
- KnÜRr Ag
- Liebert Corp.
- Maplesoft
- The Mathworks
- Mellanox Technologies, Ltd.
- Mercury Computer Systems, Inc.
- Mips Technologies, Inc.
- Mitrionics Ab
- Myricom, Inc.
- Nantero, Inc.
- Nec Corp.
- Network Appliance, Inc.
- Nvidia Corp.
- Panasas, Inc.
- Peakstream, Inc.
- The Portland Group, Inc.
- Qlogic Corp.
- Quadrics, Ltd.
- Rambus, Inc.
- Rittal Gmbh & Co. Kg
- Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd.
- Scali, Inc.
- Seagate Technology, Llc
- Silicon Graphics, Inc.
- Spraycool, Inc.
- Sun Microsystems, Inc.
- Thermacore
- Toshiba Corp.
- Totalview Technologies
- Voltaire, Inc.
- Xilinx, Inc.
- Xiranet Gmbh
- Xtremedata, Inc.
- Xyratex Technology, Ltd.
List of Tables
- Table 1 HPC Vs. Htc
- Table 2 Major HPC Milestones
- Table 3 Global Market Projection for HPC Systems and Software, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 4 Global HPC Hardware Sales Projections by Type of Architecture, through 2012* ($ Millions)
- Table 5 Global Market Projections for Key HPC Enabling Technologies, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 6 Global Market Projections for Key HPC Enabling Hardware Technologies, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 7 HPC Processor and Coprocessor Suppliers
- Table 8 Global HPC Processor Market Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 9 DRAM Suppliers
- Table 10 Global HPC Ram Market Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 11 Interconnect Suppliers
- Table 12GLOBAL HPC Interconnect Sales Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 13 Suppliers of Data Storage Infrastructure and Media for HPC
- Table 14 Global HPC Storage Market Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 15 Global HPC Hard Disk Drive Market Projections by Type of Technology, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 16 Suppliers of Thermal Management Solutions for HPC
- Table 17 Global HPC Cooling Hardware Market Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
- Table 18 HPC Software Developers and Vendors
- Table 19GLOBAL Commercial HPC Software Sale Projections, through 2012 ($ Millions)
List of Figures
- Figure 1 Projected Trends in The Global HPC Systems and Software Market, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)
- Figure 2GLOBAL Market Projections for HPC Architecture by Segment, 2006-2012 (% of Total HPC Expenditures)
- Figure 3 Top 500 Supercomputers by Operating Systems (% of Top 500 Supercomputers)
- Figure 4 HPC End-User Segments, 2006 (% of Total Expenditures)
- Figure 5 HPC Vendor Market Segments, 2006 (% of Total Expenditures)
- Figure 6 HPC Geographical Market Segments, 2006 (% of Top 500 Supercomputer Sites)
- Figure 7GLOBAL Market Trend Projections for Key HPC Enabling Technologies, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)
- Figure 8 Global Market Share Projections for Key HPC Enabling Hardware Technologies, 2006-2012 (% of Total HPC Enabling Hardware Market)
- Figure 9 HPC Processor Global Market Shares, 2006 (%)
- Figure 10 U.S. HPC Processor Patents by Type of Technology (% of Patents Issued through July 15, 2007)
- Figure 11 U.S. HPC Processor Patents by Assignee (% of Patents Issued through July 15, 2007)
- Figure 12 HPC Processor Market Segmentation, 2006 (%)
- Figure 13GLOBAL HPC Processor Market Share Projections, 2006-2012 (% of Total HPC Processor Sales)
- Figure 14 U.S. Patents Relating to Selected Ram Technologies (% of Patents Issued since 1975)
- Figure 15 U.S. Ram Patent Holders (% of Total)
- Figure 16 U.S. Patents Relating to HPC Interconnect Technologies (% of Patents Issued since 1975)
- Figure 17 U.S. HPC Interconnect Patent Holders (% of All U.S. Ram Patents)
- Figure 18 HPC Interconnect Market Segments, 2006 (% of Total Interconnect Sales)
- Figure 19 Global HPC Interconnect Sales Trends Projections, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)
- Figure 20 Increase in Hard Disk Drive Areal Density over Time
- Figure 21 HPC Storage-Related Patents by Type of Architecture (% of All HPC Storage-Related Patents Issued through July 1, 2007)
- Figure 22 HPC Storage-Related Patents by Assignee(% of All HPC Storage-Related Patents Issued through July 1, 2007)
- Figure 23 HPC Storage Market Product Segments, 2006(% of Total Sales)
- Figure 24 Trends in HPC Storage Global Market, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)
- Figure 25 Global HPC Hard Disk Drive Technology Market Projections by Segment, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)
- Figure 26 Major Causes of Electronic Failure (% of Occurrences)
- Figure 27 U.S. Thermal Management Patents with HPC Applications by Type of Technology (% of HPC Thermal Management Patents Issued through 7/1/2007)
- Figure 28 U.S. Thermal Management Patents with HPC Applications by Assignee (% of HPC Thermal Management Patents Issued through 7/1/2007)
- Figure 29 HPC Cooling Hardware Market Shares by Type of Technology, 2006 (% of Total HPC Thermal Management Hardware Sales)
- Figure 30 Global HPC Cooling Hardware Market Share Projections, 2006-2012 (% of Total HPC Cooling Hardware Sales)
- Figure 31 Number of Processors Used by Typical HPC Applicatons for Single Jobs
- Figure 32 U.S. Parallel Software and Parallel Software Development Patents by Type of Technology (% of Total Patents Issued through 7/1/2007)
- Figure 33 U.S. Parallel Software and Parallel Software Development Patents by Assignee (% of All Patents Issued through 7/1/2007)
- Figure 34 HPC Software Sources (% of HPC Applications Developed)
- Figure 35 Projected Trends in Global Commercial HPC Software Sales, 2006-2012 ($ Millions)