Figure 3-1 Sample SVA Bounded Configuration
| Base Rack (UVB) | |
GigE | Display | |
Devices | ||
|
External Node
Network Configurations
This section describes the different networks used in the SVA.
System Interconnect (SI)
The SI for visualization nodes can be GigE, InfiniBand, or Myrinet. When the visualization nodes are integrated with compute nodes, the choice of SI is usually determined by the requirements of the compute nodes.
Administrative Network Connections
A GigE interconnect serves as the Administrative Network to control the operation of the cluster (for example, boot, shutdown, restart) and to control the running parts of a distributed application (for example, launching and stopping processes).
The SVA adds visualization capability to an HP XC cluster; therefore, the Administrative Network is implemented with the logical configuration defined by the HP XC and Cluster Platform architectures. However, the physical implementation differs.
The management switches are collected together in one rack. SVA nodes connect to branch switches in the Administrative Network. SVA nodes do not connect to the console branch.
Nodes connect to the switches according to the Cluster Platform Administrative Network connections for HP XC. Display and render node types are typically grouped together.
Display Devices
This section describes the supported devices you can add to an SVA. Display devices are not necessarily provided as part of the SVA. For example, your site can use projector display systems or immersive displays provided by third party suppliers.
Displays fall into a number of categories, including immersive CAVE displays, single monitors, multiheaded monitors, large wall displays, multiheaded desktops, flat panels, and projector displays used in theaters. SVA hardware and software deliver images to digital or analog standard interfaces. The SVA depends on the graphics cards to drive the image output. This means whatever display devices the graphics cards support are available for use.
Theoretically, SVA technology can scale to arbitrarily large displays. Realistically, the bandwidth of the network delivering subparts of the image to various nodes, and the resolution of display devices are limiting factors. You can create large displays by arranging a grid of smaller displays.
22 SVA Hardware and Software