The WMPI library evolution: Experience with MPI development for windows environments

Abstract

The usage of Windows based machines as a platform for parallel computing is rapidly increasing, mostly due to their excellent ratio cost/performance. The WMPI (Windows Message Passing Interface) was the first implementation of the MPI standard for Windows based machines. Originally based on the MPICH implementation, the library suffered several changes during the past years. This paper describes the evolution of the library since its first version. Recent changes have been introduced, which enable the dynamic creation of processes and the usage of simultaneous devices. This paper also describes the trends in the field that drove its evolution and the experience gathered through the development of the MPI standard for Windows clusters.