Grid Computing Evolution in Scientific Applications

Maria A. Grigoryeva; Alexei A. Klimentov

doi:10.14529/jsfi240101

Authors

Maria A. Grigoryeva Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russian Federation https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8851-2187
Alexei A. Klimentov Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, US https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2748-4829

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.14529/jsfi240101

Keywords:

grid, distributed computing, history, science, metacomputing, grid middleware, scientific grid, cloud computing

Abstract

The advent of interconnected machines laid the foundation for utilizing distributed computing resources. Coinciding with rapid advancements in computing technologies and significant hardware innovations at the turn of the century, the field of science also experienced exponential growth. As supercomputers remained limited in availability and usage, distributed computing leveraged the potential of idle and dedicated resources, bridging the gap between scientists and computationally intensive projects. This paper provides a review of the evolutionary journey of grid computing in scientific applications, starting from the advancements in network connection technologies and concept of metacomputing and progressing to the current developments integrating cloud technologies with large-scale grids. The paper aims to outline the key milestones, advancements, and challenges encountered throughout this evolution, highlighting the potential of grid computing in enabling scientific breakthroughs and addressing future research directions. The most popular middleware systems are considered, as well as a description of scientific grid systems that existed in the past and are still in operation today is given. At the end of the article, we examined two of the most significant scientific discoveries that became possible largely thanks to grid technologies.

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