INDUSTRY

TORONTO, CANADA -- Platform Computing Inc., a leader in distributed computing software solutions, together with IBM and the French Myopathy Association (AFM), announced the completion of the data processing phase of the France Telethon's 'Decrypthon' project. Announced in November 2001, 'Decrypthon' is a scientific distributed computing experiment designed to accelerate research into genetic diseases and muscular dystrophy by using the compute power from thousands of idle PCs distributed across the Internet. Using Platform's distributed computing software, Platform LSF and ActiveCluster, together with IBM hardware and software solutions and Genomining software, the 'Decrypthon' project harnessed the unused processing power of 75,000 PCs across Europe to create a virtual supercomputer, capable of handling massive volumes of calculations. "Platform is proud to have been a part of this exciting and innovative Grid computing project with the AFM, Genomining and IBM, which was a first for France, if not for Europe," said Alain Wiedmer, vice president, European sales, Platform Computing Inc. "The success of this project clearly demonstrates the potential for Grid computing as a way to help optimize under-utilized IT resources and accelerate discovery. By extending this model to commercial Grid computing, we can use the same technologies to help enterprises improve collaboration, increase ROI, and drive efficiencies to solve important business challenges." Of the 180,000 PCs registered at the project's launch during the French Telethon in December, 75,000 Web surfers and businesses participated by putting their unused power at the Decrypthon's disposal. With the technology and expertise of teams from IBM, Platform Computing and Genomining, exhaustive comparisons between 500,000 living proteins were successfully completed in the record-breaking time of less than two months. The resulting database will now be validated and formatted by Genomining, then submitted to researchers, such as the AFM, between May and September so that they can accelerate research to better understand the cause and development of genetic diseases and the development of new therapies. The 'Decrypthon' project is based on a Grid computing model, whereby a software application (based on the Smith-Waterman algorithm) is simultaneously shared between a server and multiple networked PCs. Each computer contributed up to 133 hours, for a total of 10 million hours, of data processing time. By comparison, if just one standard computer had been used, the data processing would have taken about 417,000 days, or almost 1,170 years. This was the first national mobilization of French Web surfers for this kind of scientific project using the latest computer technology. To handle the challenge, the teams at IBM Global Services and Platform Computing implemented an innovative distributed computing system over the Internet. IBM built an end-to-end IT infrastructure, comprising 21 IBM servers, storage, and services capabilities and Platform's distributed computing software. Platform provided workload management with Platform LSF across IBM's Linux and AIX server farms and enabled distributed desktop processing with Platform LSF ActiveCluster, which harnesses unused desktop cycles to process compute-intensive tasks efficiently, complete workloads faster, and increase user productivity. IBM managed and hosted the infrastructure, and provided the resulting protein database to project partners AFM and Genomining. Through the French Telecom website at www.telecom.fr, participants were able to download an application that included a Platform ActiveCluster agent and the Smith-Watermann algorithm onto their PCs. When a PC was idle or underutilized, it contacted the Platform ActiveCluster server, which sent packets of data to the participating computers. The computers worked in parallel and independently on these calculations for a fast and simultaneous answer. Once the desktop completed the task, it returned results to the IBM server and was assigned a new task. The Platform ActiveCluster client ran as a continuous background process, so PC users saw no decrease in performance. For the project, Platform created a customized installation package that included both Platform ActiveCluster software and the Genomining application, which was pre-configured to connect to the 'Decrypthon' servers. Platform also trained IBM in the operation and maintenance of the Platform ActiveCluster system, and provided on-site and remote assistance to IBM in support of the installation and configuration of all components delivered by Platform, plus technical documentation. In addition to the 'Decrypthon' project, Platform was recently invited by IBM to demonstrate its comprehensive Grid computing solutions at the launch of its Grid Innovation Center at its Advanced Technical Solution Centre in Montpellier, France. Platform also supports the Open Grid Services Architecture (OGSA) initiative launched at the Global Grid Forum in Toronto in February 2002. OGSA is a set of specifications and standards that combine the benefits of Grid Computing and Web Services. Platform Grid Expertise With more than 10 years experience in distributed and Grid computing, Platform offers a complete range of software and consulting solutions needed to build, run and maintain Grids. With Platform's enterprise Grid solutions, the Monsanto Company, the U.S. Department of Defense, Texas Instruments, and the Italian National Agency for New Technology, Energy and the Environment (ENEA) are building Grids to improve virtual collaboration and productivity across the enterprise. For more information please visit the Grid Resource Center at www.platform.com/grid.