Subject: CCL: Linux cluster questions

From: David J Giesen <david.giesen{at}kodak.com>
Date: Mon, 16 Feb 2004 14:54:46 -0500

Hello-

We may be in the market for a new Linux cluster these days. 
Unfortunately, I haven't kept up on all the latest issues.  I'd
appreciate any answers you all have for any of these questions.  I'll be
happy to summarize whatever I get.

We want to run mainly QM codes such as G98/G03, Jaguar and PQS on these
machines with linux.  We'd likely be running in parallel, typically
across 3-4 dual-processor nodes.

1) Xeon vs P4:  At the same GHz and front-side bus speed is there a
difference in performance between these chips?

2) AMD Opteron vs Athlon: 
[a] Does any QM code actually take advantage of Opteron's 64-bit
technology?  
[b] Is there a difference in QM performance beyond GHz for these
machines?  For instance, a 1.6 GHz Opteron (Opteron 142) and a 2.08 GHz
Athlon (Athlon MP2800) are roughly the same price at
www.pricewatch.com.  Which one would be expected to run QM codes faster?

3) AMD vs Intel: How to compare speeds between these two different types
of processors for QM codes?  Does an Athlon 2800 (2.08 GHz) run more
like a 2.0 GHz P4 or a 2.8 GHz P4?

3) How important is front-side bus speed these days?

4) How important is 100 MHz ethernet versus 1 Gb ethernet connections
between the nodes?

5) Does anyone have favorite vendors?  (Particularly for this question,
please respond directly to me.  I do not want to open the list up to
advertisements from every linux vendor)

Thanks in advance!

Dave

Any questions which highlight out my extreme stupidity are a result of
exactly that (my own stupidity) rather than a reflection on the
positions of the Eastman Kodak Company.

-- 
Dr. David J. Giesen
Eastman Kodak Company                           david.giesen{at}kodak.com
2/83/RL MC 02216                                (ph) 1-585-58(8-0480)
Rochester, NY 14650                             (fax)1-585-588-1839