Omni-Path

Omni-Path Architecture (OPA) was a high-performance communication architecture owned by Intel. It aims for low communication latency, low power consumption and a high throughput. Intel planned to develop technology based on this architecture for exascale computing.[1][2][3]

History
Computing node of TSUBAME 3.0 supercomputer with four Omni-Path connections

Production of Omni-Path products started in 2015 and delivery of these products started in the first quarter of 2016. In November 2015, adapters based on the 2-port "Wolf River" ASIC[4] were announced, using QSFP28 connectors with channel speeds up to 100 Gbit/s. Simultaneously, switches based on the 48-port "Prairie River" ASIC were announced.[5] First models of that series were available starting in 2015.[6]

In April 2016, implementation of the InfiniBand "verbs" interface for the Omni-Path fabric was discussed.[7]

In October 2016, IBM, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Dell, Lenovo, Samsung, Seagate Technology, Micron Technology, Western Digital and SK Hynix announced a joint consortium called Gen-Z to develop an open specification and architecture for non-volatile storage and memory products—including Intel's 3D Xpoint technology—which might in part compete against Omni-Path.[8] Intel offered their Omni-Path products and components via other (hardware) vendors. For example, Dell EMC offered Intel Omni-Path as Dell Networking H-series, following the naming-standard of Dell Networking in 2017.[9]

In July 2019, Intel announced it would not continue development of Omni-Path networks and canceled OPA 200 series (200-Gbps variant of Omni-Path).[10][11]

In September 2020, Intel announced that the Omni-Path network products and technology would be spun out into a new venture with Cornelis Networks. Intel would continue to maintain support for legacy Omni-Path products, while Cornelis Networks continues the product line, leveraging existing Intel intellectual property related to Omni-Path architecture.[12][13][14]

See also

References
  1. "Intel Architects High Performance Computing System Designs to Bring Power of Supercomputing Mainstream". Intel. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  2. "Intel Reveals Details for Future High-Performance Computing System Building Blocks as Momentum Builds for Intel Xeon Phi Product". Intel. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  3. Richard Chirgwin (17 November 2015). "Intel's Omni-Path InfiniBand-killer debuts at sizzling 100 Gb/sec". The Register. Retrieved 3 April 2016.
  4. Timothy Prickett Morgan (16 November 2015). "Intel Rounds Out Scalable Systems With Omni-Path". The Next Platform. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
  5. "Intel Announces New Details for Future HPC Products and Extended Industry Collaborations at ISC 2015" (PDF). Intel. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 28 March 2016.
  6. Intel OMNI-PATH EDGE SWITCH PRODUCTS: Intel Fabric Products
  7. Weiny, Ira (5 April 2016). "Extending RDMA for Alternative Fabrics" (PDF). 12th Annual OpenFabrics Workshop.
  8. Shah, Agam (11 October 2016). "Hardware makers unite to challenge Intel with Gen-Z spec". cio.com. CIO. Retrieved 11 October 2016.
  9. "Dell Networking H-Series Edge Switches based on the Intel Omni-Path Architecture". Archived from the original on April 18, 2017. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  10. Martin, Dylan (31 July 2019). "Intel Kills 2nd-Gen Omni-Path Interconnect For HPC, AI Workloads". CRN. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
  11. "Intel Confirms Retreat on Omni-Path". HPCwire. 1 August 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
  12. "Intel Omni-Path Business Spun Out as Cornelis Networks". HPCwire. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  13. "Omni-Path HPC Interconnect Reemerges as Intel Spin-out with $20M Investment Round from Intel Capital, Others". HPCwire. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  14. "Intel® Fabric Products". HPCwire. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
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