HP XC System Software Administration Guide Version 3.2.1

1 HP XC Administration Environment
This chapter introduces the HP XC Administration Environment. This chapter addresses the
following topics:
• “Understanding Nodes, Services, and Roles” (page 27)
• “File System” (page 30)
• “HP XC Command Environment” (page 34)
• “Configuration and Management Database” (page 39)
• “HP XC Configuration File Guidelines” (page 39)
• “Installation and Software Distribution” (page 42)
• “Improved Availability” (page 42)
• “Networking” (page 42)
• “Modulefiles” (page 44)
• “Security” (page 44)
• “Recommended Administrative Tasks” (page 45)
1.1 Understanding Nodes, Services, and Roles
The HP XC system consists of individual computers, called nodes, that supply various services.
For example, some nodes provide services that provide networking while others provide services
that allow users to run jobs.
This section describes nodes, services, and roles.
1.1.1 Nodes
Each node of an HP XC system is an individual computer. All nodes of an HP XC system must
be of the same architecture. Some nodes contain their own local storage.
1.1.1.1 Node Types
These are the types of nodes in the HP XC system:
compute nodes Provide the basic services that let users run jobs. Any node in the HP
XC system is capable of being a compute node.
An HP XC system is comprised mostly of compute nodes.
1.1 Understanding Nodes, Services, and Roles 27