GNU Parallel

GNU Parallel

GNU Parallel is a shell tool for Linux and UNIX-like operating systems that allows commands to be run in parallel. It can speed up tasks that can be parallelized by distributing work across multiple CPUs or computers.
Development Parallel Computing
parallel distributed-computing high-performance-computing task-parallelization shell-tool
GNU Parallel screenshot
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GNU Parallel: Shell Tool for Parallel Computing

A shell tool for Linux and UNIX-like operating systems, GNU Parallel allows commands to be run in parallel, speeding up tasks with distributed work across multiple CPUs or computers.

What is GNU Parallel?

GNU Parallel is an open source command line tool that allows the user to run shell commands in parallel on one or more computers. It was created to parallelize common administrative jobs that are executed on the command line, speeding up tasks like backups, cron jobs, data processing pipelines, and more.

Some key features and capabilities of GNU Parallel include:

  • Allows parallel execution of jobs across multiple CPU cores or computers
  • Easy to install (available through most package managers)
  • Built for Linux/UNIX systems but also works on macOS and Windows via WSL
  • Supports SMP parallelization as well as distributed computing via SSH
  • Has job control features like limiting number of running jobs
  • Flexible with supporting pipes, files, arguments, etc. as input
  • Scriptable and integratable into complex workflows

Overall, GNU Parallel helps accelerate repetitive sysadmin tasks, data processing, and scripting jobs by splitting up work and running operations in parallel. This maximizes utilization of modern multi-core systems. The tool is free, open source software maintained by Ole Tange.

GNU Parallel Features

Features

  1. Parallel execution of commands
  2. Distribute work across multiple CPUs or computers
  3. Supports various input formats (files, stdin, etc.)
  4. Ability to run commands in a queue or in a random order
  5. Supports job dependencies and job control
  6. Allows for remote execution on other hosts
  7. Provides progress reporting and error handling
  8. Integrates with various tools and scripts

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Significantly improves performance for parallelizable tasks

Simplifies the process of running commands in parallel

Flexible and customizable to suit different use cases

Actively maintained and well-documented

Integrates well with various shell scripts and tools

Cons

Complexity may be a barrier for novice users

Requires some understanding of shell scripting and parallelization concepts

May have limited support for Windows operating systems

Official Links

Official Website
https://www.gnu.org/software/parallel/

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