The CNBC Cluster, named Sparrowhawk, is a 10-node, 112-core cluster, used for research, imaging, modeling, and simulations.  Built in July of 2010, the system has 24 terabytes of shared disk space and 208 gigabytes of RAM.  Each node is connected via QDR (Quad Data Rate) Infiniband and is accessible through the Carnegie Mellon University network.

The core operating system of the cluster is ROCKS+, a CentOS-based operating system with specialized packages for parallel and distributed computing.  This operating system allows for a flexible, stable working environment for many of the machine’s core applications.  Some of these include:

• Matlab
• AFNI
• Freesurfer
• MNE
• R=
• SPM8

 The cluster is kept up to date and maintained by Anna K. Hegedus, who is on hand to answer any questions or concerns that students and faculty may have about the operation of the system.

If you are interested in using the CNBC cluster for computational research, please contact Miss Hegedus at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  A small maintenance fee is associated with access to the cluster and helps the CNBC make software and hardware improvements as advances in technology occur.

Node Summary

• head node (Sparrowhawk): 8 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 16GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-0: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 24GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-1: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 24GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-2: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 24GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-3: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 24GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-4: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 24GB of DDR3 RAM
• *plaut-compute-0-0: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 20GB of DDR3 RAM
• *plaut-compute-0-1: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 20GB of DDR3 RAM
• *plaut-compute-0-2: 12 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.33GhZ, 16GB of DDR3 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-5: 4 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.0GhZ, 8GB of DDR2 RAM
• cnbc-compute-0-6: 4 Intel Xeon processors @ 3.0GhZ, 8GB of DDR2 RAM

*These nodes are reserved.

Monitor Our Computing Cluster In Real Time

To see the CNBC cluster in real-time and how it is currently operating, you can check out our cluster's resource monitor.  It contains details about each node, including historical analysis of its computing activities.