vTorque introduces virtualization capabilities to the batch system resource manager Torque to enable cloud like functionality. vTorque enables Torque to deploy and execute job scripts in virtual machines, transparently to the user. vTorque is open source and  independent of a specific version of Torque, thanks to its non-invasive nature.

vTorque consists of a set of bash scripts, several templates and a new command line tool for the job submission in virtual environment, called vsub.

The vsub command line interface accepts all standard PBS/Torque arguments, but also introduces several new arguments related to virtual resources, e.g. the amount of vCPUs.

vTorque consists of several wrapper scripts used as hooks for the various sequences in Torque’s job life-cycles, i.e. root and user prologue, to manage virtual guests.

Figure 1: MIKELANGELO software stack for HPC

vTorque integrates various components of the MIKELANGELO stack, outlined in the figure above, and the following blog post: https://www.mikelangelo-project.eu/2017/07/awesome-architecture/

With the various components integrated, vTorque is a complete solution available for the use in HPC batch system infrastructures. The red components in the figure are related to Cloud, only, thus they are not considered for HPC integration.

Achievements and Results

A first proof of concept prototype has been successfully tested at the end of the first year and is presented in the blog post Making Torque ready for Virtual Machines

As of July 2017 vTorque has meanwhile reached a stable and feature rich state, feasible for reliable execution of virtualized and bare-metal bach jobs. vTorque supports various configuration options for virtual resources available at submission time to users. Further, it enables administrators to define optimized defaults for their specific environment and also enables them to disable or enable specific components or behaviour of vTorque.

Up to date the following MIKELANGELO components are integrated: Snap-Telemetry, IOcm, vRDMA. Support guest operating systems are OSv, Redhat & derivatives, and Debian & derivatives.

Besides the Aerodynamics Use Case, also the Cancellous Bones Use Case has been successfully executed in virtual guests running in an HPC test environment managed by vTorque.

MIKELANGELO Resources

Reports

Blog posts

Software releases

Other Resources