Cheap Diskless Seti Crunchers

[muttley]

read the site

lets say that you had 255 computers you can look and operate every computer from one terminal. All your computers do not need monitors. If you have the right motherboards you don't need video.

If all your machines booted off a server you can still access them.

The system is not limited to 256 you just need a different name for the group.

Download the video and you don't even have to read just listen and watch.

muttley

please read the web site before responding in under one minute that you don't understand the implications of what is being offered you in the way of assistance.

 

[hallen]

Slghtly off topic, but is there any way to do this with windows. I played with Linux and it beat me down hard.

3Com has Virtual Lan Driver

It's expensive but they have a 30 day trial you can download.

http://www.3com.com/products/en_US/result.jsp?selected=5&sort=effdt&sku=3CVLD300-00&order=desc

You also need a NIC with a boot rom for the clients.

Harvey

 

[muttley]

I use your basics of setup but I run distributed folding DF and I use a -rt switch which loads most of the program info in the memory and crunches away. The amount of memory max is 150megs with the -rt switch run. Most of my stuff is not slowed down except that I use some of my computers in the rest of the house for the girls/wife and such then they have internal drive support. This allows a mix and match of most common platforms in various configurations. What I do have problems with is setting of the LAN network and optimal speed settings cause remote at times can pull a lot from another computer if the screen changes a lot.
Instead of a 100mbps I wish I had a 667mbps or a 1gig but the switch costs to much Money is a issue most bang for the buck.
VNC I like cause of remote administration, similar to Win XP remote assistance, BUT I have one place they can call and I can look at their screen and do instructions over the phone and show on the computer at the same time. Win XP remote is to time consuming to use.

 

[TC]

VNC is great for remotely controlling complete systems (I use it all the time) but for diskless clusters it wouldn't help much, at least not that I can see. You might be able to see the terminal screen on one of the diskless nodes, but if you tried to start the Seti client it would be operating on the server, not on the node. That's the way the nodes normally operate - anything you run on the node is actually being processed on the server. A script is needed to force the node to run the Seti client on the local hardware. Don't take the other posts the wrong way - we appreciate friendly advice, I just think the guys didn't quite see how this applies to running Seti on diskless systems.

 

[rogerdugans]

BTW,

Welcome to the Forums!!!!!

Don't take us wrong- this is a project we've been looking at/working on a little while and we may get just a tad excited at times.

USUALLY we are all much more friendly

Stick around a bit and we'll grow on you

 

[muttley]

I run DF
http://distributedfolding.com

For clarification the -rt switch is only available for DF (load of the processing data and space to store without having to go to the hard drive) and that is why there is no performance hit like you have indicated for diskless seti. On the contary there is a performance doubling. This means that more memory is needed for a possible maximun of 150megs. This basicly means that to get a computer to run you would put in 256 megs.

Given that cost increase verses twice as fast and less drive activity the extra memory allows more/fatter OS and VNC.

Therefore I see client screen, and a server screen, and my other various VNC connections.

I don't have access to your OS and so mine cluged together is probably a ton larger and I have still GUI where you may have CLI and a lot smaller BOOT time so perhaps VNC won't be of benefit if you can't monitor video output of a client.

Could you post a picture of what it looks like to tell you that a client is operating?

muttley

 

[TC]

A basic node only requires about 32MB of ram with this configuration. There is a way to force the client to run entirely in ram, but of course that requires more ram and only improves completion times by about 15-20 minutes per unit. The nodes only boot to run level 3. The server has screen logs that show that each node is operating, and the usual seti files can be monitored for proper operation - all of which can be done at the server or remotely via VNC or SSH.

 

[ric]

windows xp/w2k os booting from cdrom

Hi there,

listening to your writings, also looking left and right,

More information about PE Builder:

http://www.nu2.nu/pebuilder

remember when you have installed an xp home or server or a windows 2000?

while the installation phase there is a nugly blue mini os running?

It looks like that, but indead with a grafical interface and network support

The bart PE is a running os, from a image (image size less 170 mb)
the images is located on the cd (dvd)

I testet it myself for boinc, on a 3.0 GHz and an on a old 1GH .

both just on e cdrom. getting ip adress from DHCP worked, getting a share
over the net to an other XP pc worked. internet trough proxy (ie) worked

could install and download the boinc.seti client, download wus, but the got failure. spend time, no success for boinc for far.

I was deeply impressed, seing this kind of OS system running from cd.

For building the package needes (1) M$ lilisence

there is a "limitation", client reboots after 24 h, but if you google is your best friend...

The image and doku can be downloaded, a *.iso image is there, nero brurned
it

If you are, like me, not able to leave the m$ world, just take a look, u dont will waste time.

friendly ric