The Microsoft Compute Cluster (MCC) Server 2003 is an operating system and interface solution that allows x64 Intel and AMD based servers to be integrated into High Performance Computing (HPC) clusters. Existing Windows Server 2003 systems can be fully integrated into this HPC environment, allowing enterprises to use existing resources as well as MCC-configured machines. For any enterprise that needs dozens or thousands of servers for processor-intensive operations, MCC offers a low-cost solution.

And Exactly What Is MCC Server 2003?

MCC, in its current release, is not a high-availability solution. The "head node" does not support failover to another server. Therefore, MCC is not designed for applications or environments that require fault tolerance.

Released in August 2006, Microsoft Compute Cluster Server 2003 consists of several components. There is a complete server operating system, based on Windows Server 2003 Standard x64 Edition, which can be installed on compute nodes. In addition, there are separate interface modules, the Microsoft Compute Cluster Pack (CCP), that provide interconnectivity between the cluster nodes, utilities, and management components.

The CCP is included in MCC, but is also available separately. Enterprises that want to create a cluster using existing Windows-based servers can use the interface modules alone. All servers in a cluster, regardless...