[jvkoch]

Hello everyone,

I am a PhD student in the US developing some specialized CFD code for a specific DoD application using the OpenFOAM framework. I am by no means fluent in HPC or parallelization, so to prime myself for the research, I decided to build the cheapest possible Beowulf cluster specifically for OpenFOAM and parallel prototyping (think: Matlab's parallel processing toolbox) that could actually do something.

Starting out, my goal was to have a machine that could bridge the gap between a standard desktop and our Lab's (and University's) supercomputers. So no Raspberry Pis or Core Duo machines - something "real" and real cheap! As a side project, this was self-funded. My budget was $500.

The Hardware

• (3 nodes) HP 8300 USDT, i7-3770s, 8GB DDR3, all used from eBay
• TP-link gigabit ethernet switch
• Ethernet Cables

Total Cost: $426.50

The master node has a decent SSD and the two other nodes PXE boot. I haven't had time to really stress test the system yet, but it does work and does perform better than expected, especially for the low monetary investment. It took me a while to source the three nodes off eBay for so cheap (each was around $120). The next task is to remove the cases and add forced cooling to each of the CPUs. They get too hot.

Anyone have a good OpenFOAM case I can throw at this cluster to benchmark against?

And here's a link to an image of the cluster:
https://imgur.com/a/ZFfFW

[Simbelmynë]

Hey,

Nice that you have managed a cheap build! There are a few benchmarks in OpenFOAM. You could check this thread for some recent comparisons in this forum.

[Spanner]

Can you please post benchmark results. I am having two nodes, planning to purchase more, after getting confirmation from your system. How is scaling of fluent on your rig

[RobertB]

You might want to try just replacing the thermal paste on the CPU as that sometimes ages and becomes less effective.

[PayarRadfar]

Originally Posted by jvkoch

Hello everyone,

I am a PhD student in the US developing some specialized CFD code for a specific DoD application using the OpenFOAM framework. I am by no means fluent in HPC or parallelization, so to prime myself for the research, I decided to build the cheapest possible Beowulf cluster specifically for OpenFOAM and parallel prototyping (think: Matlab's parallel processing toolbox) that could actually do something.

Starting out, my goal was to have a machine that could bridge the gap between a standard desktop and our Lab's (and University's) supercomputers. So no Raspberry Pis or Core Duo machines - something "real" and real cheap! As a side project, this was self-funded. My budget was $500.

The Hardware

• (3 nodes) HP 8300 USDT, i7-3770s, 8GB DDR3, all used from eBay
• TP-link gigabit ethernet switch
• Ethernet Cables

Total Cost: $426.50

The master node has a decent SSD and the two other nodes PXE boot. I haven't had time to really stress test the system yet, but it does work and does perform better than expected, especially for the low monetary investment. It took me a while to source the three nodes off eBay for so cheap (each was around $120). The next task is to remove the cases and add forced cooling to each of the CPUs. They get too hot.

Anyone have a good OpenFOAM case I can throw at this cluster to benchmark against?

And here's a link to an image of the cluster:
https://imgur.com/a/ZFfFW

Hello jvkoch,

So if I understand correctly, did you juts buy 3 pcs and connected them using ethernet cable and run them in parallel? i cannot make Ansys fluent to work in parallel not at home/uni. I tried few set ups here but not successful really. Anyone has any ideas how to do it?