Platform LSF ("LSF")is a layer of software services on top of UNIX, Linux, and Windows operating systems. LSF creates a single system image on a network of different computer systems so all the computing resources on a network can be managed and used. Throughout the LSF Programmer’s Guide, Platform LSF refers to the the following components:
LSF® base provides basic load-sharing services to a network of different computer systems. All LSF products use LSF base, which provides some of the following services:
Resource information
Host selection
Job placement decisions
Transparent remote execution of jobs
Remote file option
To provide services, LSF base includes:
Load Information Manager (LIM)
Process Information Manager (PIM)
Remote Execution Server (RES)
LSF base API
lstools
lstcsh
lsmake
The services provided by the LSF batch system are extensions of the LSF base services. LSF batch makes a computer network a network batch computer. It has all the features of a mainframe batch job processing system while doing load balancing and policy-driven resource allocation control.
LSF batch relies on services provided by LSF base. LSF batch uses the following:
Resource and load information from LIM to do load balancing
Cluster configuration information from LIM
The master LIM election service provided by LIM
RES for interactive batch job execution
Remote file operation service provided by RES for file transfer
LSF batch includes a master batch daemon (mbatchd) running on the master host and a slave batch daemon (sbatchd) running on each batch server host.
Platform LSF consists of a number of servers running as root on each participating host in an LSF cluster and a comprehensive set of utilities built on top of the LSF API. The LSF API consist of two libraries:
LSLIB, the LSF base library, provides LSF base services to applications across a heterogeneous network of computers.
LSBLIB, the LSF batch library, provides batch services to submit, control, manipulate, and queue jobs. LSBLIB also provides access to the services of other LSF products.