Mainframe computers
mainframe computers are large, powerful and highly reliable computers designed to handle massive amounts of data processing and perform tasks at high speeds
Supercomputers
high-performance computing machines that are designed to perform complex calculations and handle large-scale data processing tasks
much faster and more powerful than traditional computers
consist of thousands of interconnected processors
characteristics of mainframe and supercomputers (9)
1: longetivity
2: RAS
3: security
4: peformance metrics
5: volume of input, output and throughput
6: fault tolerance
7: operating system
8: type of processor
9: heat maintenance
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : longetivity
mainframes
- mainframes have a great longetivity because they run continuously
- they are designed for reliability
- built with redundant components (fault tolerance)
- higher lifespan due to high cost and replacement investment
supercomputers
- supercomputers are built with the latest components, so they are replaced quickly
- some are built in a way that allows for individual components to be replaced, increasing lifespan
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : RAS
RAS - reliability, availability, serviceability
reliability
mainframes are built to be realiable because they can self-check for errors
software is thoroughly tested and updates are made quickly to reduce error
availability
a mainframe is available at all times for extended periods.
mainframes can recover quickly by automatically replacing failed components with spares
serviceability
hardware and software components can be replaced with least amount of downtime and without having too much of an effect on operations
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : security
mainframes
access control : only authorised personnel have access to operations. passwords, two factor authentication
audit trails: detecting suspicious activity by monitoring user activity, system logs, app. logs
physical security: secure location, monitoring environmental conditions
security updates: software updates, patches
supercomputers
end to end encryption: only the sender is able to encrypt/decrypt and understand data
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : performance metrics
**mainframe **:
- MIPS : million instructions per second, measures the raw processing power of a mainframe
- IOPS : input ouput operations per second, measures the rate of input/ouput to and from storage drives
- TPS : transactions per second, measures rate at which transactions are processed
- availability : percentage of uptime, how often a mainframe is accessible
supercomputers :
- FLOPS : floating point operations per second, measures raw processing power of a supercomputer
- memory bandwidth : rate at which data can be transferred between a supercomputer processor and its memory
- network bandwidth : rate at which data can be transferred between a supercomputer and other devices
- scalability : how well a supercomputer can handle increasingly large and complex workloads by adding more components
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : volume of input, output and throughput
- high input from sensors, databases, etc
- generate high output ; logs, reports, graphs, etc
- throughput: the amount of data that can be processed in a given amount of time
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : fault tolerance
mainframes
- redunadant components
- duplicate processors, memory, etc
- system automatically switches to redundant component without interrupting processes
supercomputers
- checkpointing : system periodically saves its state to the disk
charasteristic of mainframe and supercomputers : heat maintenance
supercomputers and mainframes generate a lot of heat, which can cause component failure and permanent damage to the hardware
- air cooling: using fans to dissipate heat
- water cooling: more effective than air, involves circulating water through the system
- immersion cooling: immersing the system in dielectric fluid that absorbs heat
many mainframes and supercomputers are built in cooler parts of the world now
temperature sensors can monitor component temp.
uses of mainframe computers (4)
census
industry statistics
consumer statistics
transaction processing
uses of mainframes in census
used to store massive amounts of data collected during census (eg population data, demographic data, etc)
census data needs to be cleaned and formatted for use in reports and statistical analyses
mainframes ensure the privacy and security of census data from unauthorized access
used to generate reports and statistics from census
uses of mainframes in industry statistics
