high performance computing on graphics processing units: hgpu.org

Specialized cryptographic processors target professional applications and offer both low latency and high throughput at the expense of cost. At the consumer level, a modern SoC embodies several accelerators and vector extensions (e.g. SSE, AES-NI), having a high degree of programmability through multiple APIs (OpenMP, OpenCL, etc). This work explains how a modern x86 system that encompasses several compute architectures (MIMD/SIMD) might perform well compared to a specialized cryptographic unit at the fraction of the cost. The analyzed algorithm is AES (AES-128, AES-256) and the mode of operation is ECB. The initial test system is built around SoC AMD A6 5400K (CPU + integrated GPU), coupled with a discrete GPU – AMD R7 250. Benchmark results compare CPU OpenSSL execution (no AES-NI), CPU AES-NI acceleration, integrated GPU, discrete GPU and heterogeneous combinations of the above processing units. Multiple test results are presented and inconsistencies are explained. Finally based on initial results a system composed only of low-end and low power consumer components is designed, built and tested.