Made of three processing rings, with 3 control wires, direct opposite ring segment, and its two neighbours, this is your double data rate, or dead beef and the global clock. The local clock is the segment and its immediate neighbours. Stack three of them, and add a dimension in the topology, and as many datapaths as possible between the faster parts of the system, with digital sync between the local clock and speed of light in vacume. Which is an architecture where scatter-gather is extremely useful, as that works on the global clock. So a total 18 die's and a very difficult juggling act, where cable length's are legendary for the premium original Cray's. If you think you have a problem with your local segment, just feed beef.
Not many explanations of this architecture that's around, but culture references like cult of the dead cow as a pun and wishes on those that occupied the whole system. Anyone that's been around a real one to know? If you want to know what's inside a cray, it's basically evil inside if you thought that would reveal something. -- Balder Oddson
