We develop inventive software to enable innovative solutions

Software is everywhere at LLNL. As a Department of Energy (DOE) lab, we strengthen national and global security with a range of programs in fields like counterterrorism, biosecurity, and energy. Our work also contributes to the National Nuclear Security Administration’s stockpile stewardship mission. Researchers inside and outside the Lab rely on our high performance computing (HPC) center to advance science and technology. Our software developers produce millions of lines of code every year to support these goals—much of this work is described in our Current Projects list.

We in Computing partner with other LLNL programs to develop and apply computer science expertise by providing timely, cost-effective computing solutions through innovative software technologies and collaborative application development. This work includes:

Scientific computing. Our Center for Applied Scientific Computing (CASC) develops world-class software for scientific computing, with a focus on scaling to the world’s largest machines. CASC software includes scientific computing and math libraries, language tools, partial differential equation software frameworks, and other tools and benchmarks. Visit casc.llnl.gov to learn more.

Graphics and visualization. Turning raw data into understandable information is a fundamental requirement for scientific computing. Our Livermore Computing (LC) division manages an array of visualization options, including in-house developed tools, commercial products, and support and promotion of open standards and software. Visit LC’s data visualization page to learn more.

Open-source software. Much of our software leverages the collective expertise of the HPC ecosystem, making the cost of entry to HPC affordable. LLNL has developed and deployed open-source tools across the entire software stack—operating systems, resource management, performance analysis, scalable debugging, data compression, and more. Major initiatives like the Exascale Computing Project and the Advanced Simulation and Computing program rely on open-source software. Visit software.llnl.gov to learn more.

Proxy applications. Proxy apps represent the HPC workload we care about while still being small enough to easily understand and try out new ideas. LLNL is one of several DOE labs building proxy apps to facilitate a two-way communication pipeline with vendors and researchers about how to evaluate trade-offs in future architectures and software development methods. Visit our proxy apps page to learn more.

HPC tools. LC supports several tools aimed at maximizing the efficiency of the HPC software deployment, platform management, and HPC center administration. Our resources include compilers, debuggers, memory checking, profiling and tracing, and Linux cluster management. Visit LC’s development environment and Lustre file system pages to learn more.