Computational Grid

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What Does Computational Grid Mean?

A computational grid is a loose network of computers linked to perform grid computing. In a computational grid, a large computational task is divided up among individual machines, which run calculations in parallel and then return results to the original computer. These individual machines are nodes in a network, which may span multiple administrative domains and may be geographically distant. Each of the nodes may be thought of as a discrete system that can perform work and has access to a network. Computational grids are often more cost-effective than supercomputers of equal computing power.

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Techopedia Explains Computational Grid

Computational grids are sometimes mischaracterized as useful only for calculation/computational tasks, but in fact they are able to handle many research projects that require a lot CPU time, a lot of memory or the ability to communicate in real time. In some of these cases, supercomputers do not have the capacity to solve these needs. A computational grid offers a convenient way to use many devices in combination.

A computational grid shares some properties with the cloud in cloud computing.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology Specialist
Margaret Rouse
Technology Specialist

Margaret is an award-winning writer and educator known for her ability to explain complex technical topics to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles in the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret’s idea of ​​a fun day is to help IT and business professionals to learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.