LES CLAYES, France and BARCELONA,
Spain, Jan. 16, 2017
/PRNewswire/ -- The Mont-Blanc European project has selected
Cavium's (NASDAQ:CAVM) ThunderX2 ARM server processor to power its
new High Performance Computing (HPC) prototype. The ambition of the
Mont-Blanc project is to define the architecture of an
Exascale-class compute node based on the ARM architecture, and
capable of being manufactured at industrial scale. The project
takes a holistic approach, encompassing not just hardware, but also
operating system and tools, and applications. The new platform will
therefore be a key asset to all Mont-Blanc partners, to assess
options for maximum compute efficiency, to further develop the
software ecosystem for ARM HPC platforms, and to implement
life-size tests.
The ThunderX2 product family is Cavium's 2nd
generation 64-bit ARMv8-A server processor SoCs for High
Performance Computing in the Data Center and cloud applications.
With fully out of order high performance custom cores supporting
single and dual socket configurations, ThunderX2 is optimized to
drive highest computational performance delivering outstanding
memory bandwidth and memory capacity. The ThunderX2 processor
family is fully compliant with ARMv8-A architecture specifications
as well as ARM's SBSA and SBBR standards and is widely supported by
industry leading OS, Hypervisor and SW tool and application
vendors.
The new Mont-Blanc prototype will be built by Atos, the
coordinator of phase 3 of Mont-Blanc, using its Bull expertise and
products. The platform will leverage the infrastructure of the Bull
sequana pre-exascale supercomputer range for network, management,
cooling, and power. Atos and Cavium signed an agreement to
collaborate to develop this new platform, thus making Mont-Blanc an
Alpha-site for ThunderX2.
"ThunderX2 is a server-class chip designed for high compute
performance. With the adoption of this new generation of
power- and performance-efficient processors, we are entering a new
and exciting dimension of the Mont-Blanc project. This already
gives us a glimpse of what a European exascale-class HPC platform
could be in the near future," says Etienne
Walter, coordinator of phase 3 of the Mont-Blanc
project.
"As the race to Exascale intensifies, we are pleased to be the
vendor of choice to partner with Atos to deliver Mont-Blanc
platform," said Rishi Chugh,
Director of Marketing, Data Center Processor Group at Cavium.
"ThunderX2 builds on established architecture and ecosystem of
ThunderX delivering performance competitive with next generation of
incumbent processors."
About the Mont-Blanc project
The current third phase of the Mont-Blanc project continues to
take a holistic approach, encompassing hardware, operating system
and tools, and applications, with the following targets:
- Defining the architecture of an Exascale-class compute node
based on the ARM architecture, and capable of being manufactured at
industrial scale;
- Assessing the available options for maximum compute
efficiency;
- Developing the matching software ecosystem to pave the way for
market acceptance of ARM solutions.
The project is run by a European consortium that includes:
- Industrial hardware/software technology providers: Atos, using
its expertise in supercomputing & Big data following the
acquisition of Bull (coordinator - France); ARM, the world leader in embedded
high-performance processors (United
Kingdom); and AVL, the world's largest independent company
for the development, simulation and testing technology of
powertrains (Austria);
- Academic/research HPC centres: Barcelona Supercomputing Centre
(Spain); Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in
Zurich (Switzerland); CNRS (CNRS/LIRMM - France); University of Stuttgart (HLRS -Germany); University of Cantabria
(Spain); University of
Graz (Austria); University of Versailles Saint
Quentin (France).
This project has received funding from the European Union's
Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant
agreement No 671697.
More information on www.montblanc-project.eu | @MontBlanc_EU
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SOURCE Cavium, Inc.; Mont-Blanc