Researchers with Casper allocations are welcome to use the analysis and visualization cluster to begin preparing for the extensive GPU capabilities of the new Derecho system when it becomes available in 2023.

Casper already has 19 nodes with either NVIDIA GP100 GPUs or V100 GPUs in addition to three nodes with A100 GPUs. More A100s will become available in the next few months. Derecho will get 20% of its sustained computing capability from GPUs, with more than 320 A100s deployed on 82 nodes.

“While the number of GPUs available on Casper isn’t enough to support full-scale science activities, we want researchers to know they are welcome to use the cluster to work on porting and testing their codes in anticipation of Derecho’s arrival,” said Irfan Elahi, director of CISL's High-Performance Computing Division. “We’re providing a number of ways for our users to hone their GPU skills and we plan to make more of these learning opportunities available. We are also working on adding more Casper GPUs despite some ongoing supply challenges.”

Resources from an entire CISL series of GPU tutorials and workshops for scientists and software engineers, for example, are available here. Other resources for getting help or collaborating with colleagues about making the best use of GPU technology include the NCAR HPC User Group and CISL’s Consulting Services Group.