Evolving the Web-based distributed SI/PDO architecture for high-performance visualization

We have extended the SI/PDO architecture to allow Web access to visualization tools running on MP systems. We make these tools more easily accessible by providing Web-based interfaces and by shielding the user from the details of these computing environments. We use a multi-tier architecture, where the Java-based GUI tier runs on a Web browser and provides image display and control functions. The visualization tier runs on MP machines. The middle tiers provide custom communication with MP machines, remote file selection, remote launching of services, and load balancing. The system allows for adding and removing of tiers depending upon the situation. This architecture is based on the requirements of our environment: huge data volumes (that cannot be easily moved), use of multiple middleware protocols, MP platform portability, rapid development of the visualization tools, distributed resource management (of MP resources), and the use of existing visualization tools