ClusterMonkey: This article will focus on interconnects that aren't tied to vendor specific node hardware, but can work in a variety of cluster nodes. While determining which interconnect to use is beyond the scope of this article, I can present what is available and make some basic comparisons. I'll present information that I have obtained from the vendors websites, from information people have posted to the beowulf mailing list, the vendors, and various other places. I won't make any judgments or conclusions about the various options because, simply, I can't. The choice of an interconnect depends on your situation and there is no universal solution. I also intend to stay "vendor neutral" but will make observations where appropriate. Finally, I have created a table that presents various performance aspects of the interconnects. There is also a table with list prices for 8 nodes, 24 nodes, and 128 nodes to give you an idea of costs.

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