Proceedings of the International Conference on Parallel Processing · 1989 · 18 citations · 0 references
ComputingComputer ScienceHigh-performance ComputingComputer ArchitectureHeterogeneous ComputingParallel ComputingHeterogeneous System ArchitectureParallel ArchitecturesParallel ComputationParallel Computer ArchitectureParallel Computing SystemsShared-memory ParallelismHeterogeneous Computing SystemsHigh-performance Computing NetworksHigh-performance Computing SystemsMemory LatencyMemory SharingParallel Computing ArchitecturesSupercomputer ArchitectureVirtual Circuits
Hardware and software for Merlin, a new kind of massively parallel computing system, are described. Eight computers are linked as a 300-MIPS prototype to develop system software for a larger Merlin network with 16 to 64 nodes, totaling 600 to 3000 MIPS. These working prototypes help refine a mapped reflective memory technique that offers a new, very general way of linking many types of computer to form supercomputers. Processors share data selectively and rapidly on a word-by-word basis. Fast firmware virtual circuits are reconfigured to match topological needs of individual application programs. Merlin's low-latency memory-sharing interfaces solve many problems in the design of high-performance computing systems. The Merlin prototypes are intended to run parallel programs for scientific applications and to determine hardware and software needs for a future Teraflops Merlin network.