Altair's Compute Manager 12.0 Scales Beyond 500 Concurrent Users and 500,000 Jobs, Managing Big Data from HPC Faster

TROY, Mich., July 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Altair today released Compute Manager 12.0, an even faster version of its popular software for running, monitoring, and managing workloads and results on distributed resources in high-performance computing environments.

Compute Manager is a Web-based job portal that serves as a simple but powerful interface for submitting and monitoring jobs in PBS Professional complexes. Compute Manager automates job submission tasks, bridging the gaps between users and their distributed applications, so users only need to focus on the data and applications they wish to run without concern for any of the associated technical complexities. It further allows users to browse and modify remote files while minimizing the necessity to write, modify and test complex application scripts.

Compute Manager 12.0 runs one-and-a-half times faster than previous versions. A single instance of the software can handle over 100 concurrent users and up to 500,000 jobs. It is capable of scaling beyond 500 concurrent users through new load-balancing support that enables a highly redundant and highly scalable configuration. The latest version of Compute Manager also incorporates a new version of the popular Access Management Service, an easy-to-use graphical interface that allows specification of which individuals and/or groups can access various applications and which users may share application profiles.

"The latest version of Compute Manager is a perfect solution for users who want to consolidate their hardware and software resources," said Altair PBS Works CTO Bill Nitzberg. "Its intuitive drag and drop interface, its ability to monitor jobs with filter capabilities and its 3D and 2D plots for visualizing results on the server allow users to simplify the management of their HPC jobs. It also serves as a gateway into  HyperWorks On-Demand, Altair's HPC public cloud offering."

Compute Manager 12.0 simplifies the management of HPC jobs, letting users view data and results remotely. Users are able to access distributed resources securely and immediately from virtually any Web-enabled device. Compute Manager 12.0 is enterprise-hardened, protected from a range of potential security vulnerabilities; and, with the new Display Manager, it provides a tightly integrated results visualization service that enables exploration of huge datasets directly on the server side.

Display Manager 12.0—an equally powerful Web-based interface for visualizing large datasets—is built into the same framework as Compute Manager, allowing users to choose between them for viewing remote results. Requiring no client-side software installation, Display Manager operates with no movement of data—only pixels—thereby eliminating lengthy data transfer times.

"After implementing PBS Works' HPC solutions, our overall hardware utilization and production have dramatically improved. Compute Manager's easy-to-use interface and open architecture allow us to prioritize workloads; it is a one-stop solution for submitting, monitoring and visualizing all of our FE jobs," said Dirk Junglas of Kirchhoff Gruppe.

Altair has scheduled a hands-on workshop for Compute Manager for Oct. 1, immediately before the opening activities of the 2013 Americas Altair Technology Conference in Garden Grove, Calif., as part of its two-day PBS Works User Group event. The "Introduction to Integrating Applications Within Compute Manager" workshop is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is open to HPC users. To register for the PBS Works User Group and the workshop, visit www.altair.com/pbsworksug13.

About PBS Works

PBS Works™, Altair's suite of on-demand cloud computing technologies, allows enterprises to maximize ROI on existing infrastructure assets. PBS Works is the most widely implemented software environment for managing grid, cloud and cluster computing resources worldwide. Its flagship product, PBS Professional®, allows enterprises to easily share distributed computing resources across geographic boundaries. With additional tools for portal-based submission, analytics and data management, the PBS Works suite is a comprehensive solution for optimizing HPC environments. Incorporating a revolutionary "pay-for-use" unit-based business model, PBS Works delivers increased value and flexibility over conventional software-licensing models. Visit www.pbsworks.com to learn more about how PBS Works makes high-performance computing faster, smarter and more productive.

About Altair

Altair empowers client innovation and decision-making through technology that optimizes the analysis, management and visualization of business and engineering information. Privately held, with 2,000 employees, Altair has offices throughout North America, South America, Europe and Asia/Pacific. With a 28-year track record for high-end software for engineering and computing, enterprise analytics solutions, and innovative product design and development, Altair consistently delivers a competitive advantage to customers in a broad range of industries. To learn more, please visit www.altair.com or www.simulatetoinnovate.com.

SOURCE Altair