Platform Computing's cluster, grid, and cloud management software has been extended with the launch of a new version of Platform HPC, a high performance computing (HPC) management product that the company says is aligned to help technical application users to harness the scalability of HPC clusters.

Based on its Platform LSF workload scheduler, the new product employs a web user interface to help manage the tasks associated with cluster provisioning, workload management, reporting, and monitoring.

According Platform Computing's vice president of business development Tripp Purvis, "This is more than just a stack of software; Platform HPC is a fully integrated, certified, and supported product designed to ensure ease of use and simplified management. With the release of Platform HPC, Platform is also further investing in its channel strategy, with a focus on the technical application market and the independent software vendors (ISVs) that serve it."

With Platform HPC, the company claims that both experienced and novice HPC users will be able to deploy and manage their HPC clusters while meeting the most demanding requirements for application performance and predictable workload management

Platform HPC offers a mature, robust set of proven cluster management capabilities that are accessible through a unified portal interface and include a simplified application integration process.

“The market for HPC application software and middleware exceeded $2.3 billion in 2009, and we expect it to approach $3 billion in 2013,” said Earl Joseph, IDC programme vice president for HPC. “HPC management software will become even more crucial for efficiently exploiting increasingly large, heterogeneous systems and newer environments such as grid and cloud computing."