I'm writing a spec for future opteron cluster purchases. The issue of airflow came up.
I've seen a surprising variety of configurations, some with a giant rotating cylinder (think paddle wheel), most with a variety of 40x28 or 40x56mm fans, or horizontal blowers. Anyone have a fan vendor they prefer? Ideally well known for making fans that last 3+ years when in use 24/7. A target node CFM for a dual socket dual core opteron? A target maximum CPU temp? I assume it's wise to stay well below the 70C or so thermal max on most of the dual core Opterons. Seems like there is a huge variation in the number of fans and total CFM from various chassis/node manufacturers. A single core single socket 1u opteron I got from sun has two 40mm x 56mm, and 4 * 40mm x 28mm fans. Not bad for a node starting at $750. Additionally some chassis designs form a fairly decent wall across the node for the fans to insure a good front to back airflow. Others seem to place fans willy nilly, I've even seen some that suck air sideways across the rear opteron. In any case, the nature of the campus purchasing process is that we can put in any specification, but can't buy from a single vendor, or award bids for better engineering. So basically lowest bid wins that meets the spec. Thus the need for a better spec. Any feedback appreciated. -- Bill Broadley Computational Science and Engineering UC Davis _______________________________________________ Beowulf mailing list, Beowulf@beowulf.org To change your subscription (digest mode or unsubscribe) visit http://www.beowulf.org/mailman/listinfo/beowulf
