Changes between Version 6 and Version 7 of BoincOverview


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Timestamp:
Sep 16, 2018, 9:12:33 PM (6 years ago)
Author:
davea
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  • BoincOverview

    v6 v7  
    1212BOINC can be used in two ways, depending on where the worker nodes come from:
    1313
    14  * In '''volunteer computing''',
     14 * In [VolunteerComputing volunteer computing],
    1515  the worker nodes are consumer devices (desktop and laptop computers,
    1616  tablets, smartphones) volunteered by their owners.
    17   BOINC addresses the various challenges inherent in this environment
     17  BOINC [BoincIntro addresses the various challenges] inherent in this environment
    1818  (heterogeneity, host churn and unreliability, scale, security, and so on).
    1919 There are a number of volunteer-computing '''BOINC projects'''
    … …  
    2222 it processes jobs for the projects to which it is attached.
    2323
    24  * BOINC can also be used for '''in-house computing''' within an organization (e.g. a company).
     24 * BOINC can also be used for [DesktopGrid in-house computing] within an organization (e.g. a company).
    2525  In this case case the worker nodes are
    2626  cluster nodes or other organizational computers,
    … …  
    3838It can be used for any purpose (academic, commercial, or private)
    3939and can be used with applications that are not open-source.
     40
     41== Cost comparison ==
     42
     43BOINC was created to provide scientists with big computing power at a small cost.
     44Suppose you need, say, 100 TeraFLOPS for 1 year.
     45Here are some ways you can get it:
     46
     47 '''Use Amazon's Elastic Computing Cloud: $175 Million'''  :: Based on $0.10 per node/hour.
     48 '''Build a cluster: $12.4 Million''' :: This includes power and air-conditioning infrastructure, network hardware, computing hardware, storage, electricity, and sysadmin personnel.
     49 '''Use BOINC: $125,000''' :: Based on the average throughput and budget of the 6 largest volunteer computing projects.
     50
     51It takes (very roughly) three man-months to create a BOINC project:
     52one month of an experienced sys admin, one month of a programmer, and one month of a web developer.
     53Once the project is running, budget a 50% FTE (mostly system admin) to maintain it.
     54In terms of hardware, you'll need a mid-range server computer and a fast connection to the commercial Internet.
    4055
    4156== Getting started ==
    … …  
    87102 Examples include SETI@home, Rosetta@home, and Einstein@home.
    88103
    89 * Research community.
     104* Application-centered research community.
    90105 The project is operated by a single research group,
    91106 but serves a broader community in that science area.
    92  An example is Climateprediction.net,
     107 Examples: Climateprediction.net,
    93108 which is based at Oxford but collaborates with
    94109 projects around the world.
     110 Mindmodeling.org serves researchers from about 20 universities who use the same application (the ACT-R cognitive modeling system).
    95111
    96112* Science Gateway.
    … …  
    100116 An example (in progress) is nanoHUB.
    101117
    102 * University-wide umbrella project.
    103  The project is operated by a university,
    104  and serves the researchers at that university.
    105  An example (no longer operating) is the University of Westminster in London.
     118* Institutional umbrella project.
     119 The project is operated by an organization (university or research lab),
     120 and serves the researchers in that organization.
     121 For example, LHC@home servers multiple groups at CERN.
     122 An academic example (no longer operating) is the University of Westminster in London.
    106123 This idea is elaborated on [VirtualCampusSupercomputerCenter here].
    107124