Sign in Subscribe

What is AWS ParallelCluster?

Last updated on 

AWS ParallelCluster is an open-source cluster management tool provided by Amazon Web Services (AWS) to deploy and manage high-performance computing (HPC) clusters in the cloud. It simplifies the process of setting up, configuring, and scaling clusters, making it easier for users to run parallel and distributed computing workloads.

Here's a technical breakdown of AWS ParallelCluster:

  1. Cluster Configuration:
    • ParallelCluster uses a configuration file (usually named parallelcluster.config) written in a simple syntax using INI-style formatting.
    • This configuration file defines various parameters such as the cluster name, the type and number of compute resources, networking details, and software settings.
  2. Networking:
    • AWS ParallelCluster provisions and configures the networking components required for the cluster. This includes VPC (Virtual Private Cloud), subnets, security groups, and Elastic Network Interfaces (ENIs).
    • Users can specify custom networking configurations to meet their specific requirements.
  3. Compute Resources:
    • ParallelCluster allows users to define the type and number of compute resources in the cluster using the configuration file.
    • Users can choose from a variety of EC2 (Elastic Compute Cloud) instance types based on their performance and memory requirements.
    • ParallelCluster supports both on-demand and spot instances, giving users flexibility in managing costs.
  4. Elasticity and Scaling:
    • ParallelCluster supports automatic scaling of the cluster based on workload demands. Users can define scaling policies in the configuration file to dynamically adjust the number of compute resources.
    • Scaling can be based on metrics such as CPU utilization, memory usage, or custom CloudWatch metrics.
  5. Custom AMIs (Amazon Machine Images):
    • Users can specify custom AMIs to be used for the compute instances. This allows for pre-configured software stacks and optimizations to be applied to the instances.
  6. Job Scheduler Integration:
    • AWS ParallelCluster integrates with popular job schedulers such as Slurm, Torque, and SGE (Sun Grid Engine). The choice of the job scheduler is configurable in the ParallelCluster configuration file.
    • The job scheduler manages the execution of parallel and distributed computing workloads on the cluster.
  7. Data Management:
    • ParallelCluster provides options for data management, including the ability to use Amazon S3 for storing input and output data.
    • Users can configure the cluster to mount Amazon EFS (Elastic File System) or use other shared storage solutions for data consistency across nodes.
  8. High Availability:
    • ParallelCluster can be configured for high availability by deploying the cluster across multiple Availability Zones.
    • This ensures that if one Availability Zone becomes unavailable, the cluster can still operate from the remaining zones.
  9. Integration with AWS Services:
    • AWS ParallelCluster integrates with various AWS services, including CloudWatch for monitoring, AWS Key Management Service (KMS) for encryption, and AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) for access control.