I'm in the process of configuring a sort-of Beowulf cluster, the major difference being that I want to be able to add nodes from any network. Because of this I can't run DHCP on the server to inventory all the nodes.
New nodes would run a package or script to configure SSH, MPI, NFS and the like. During installation they'll require the IP address of the server. My problem now is how I should announce the node's existence to the master. On the server the node has to be added to the list of active mpi clients. I should be able to add nodes by IP only. If not, I'll have to add their IP to the DNS server's zone file for that network, but I should be able to work that out.
Is there any service that will allow my nodes to send a packet to it to identify themselves by IP and possibly hostname? Or do I have to manually listen for activity on a port of my choosing?
