# volunteer computing

> system where users donate computer resources to contribute to research

**Wikidata**: [Q2367171](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2367171)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volunteer_computing)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/volunteer-computing

## Summary
Volunteer computing is a system where users donate their computer resources to contribute to research. It is a form of distributed computing, where components are located on different networked computers, allowing for collective processing power. This approach enables various research applications to leverage a broad base of computational resources.

## Key Facts
*   Volunteer computing is a subclass of distributed computing and citizen science.
*   It is also known by aliases such as "distributed computing," "calcul volontaire," and "志愿计算."
*   Many volunteer computing projects utilize the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC), an open-source middleware system for volunteer and grid computing, which was incepted on April 10, 2002.
*   Examples of BOINC-based volunteer computing projects include Einstein@Home (detecting gravitational waves), climateprediction.net (researching climate models, incepted December 9, 2003), and PrimeGrid (researching prime numbers, incepted June 12, 2005).
*   The concept involves users donating their computer resources to support research efforts.
*   The entity has a sitelink count of 17.

## FAQs
### Q: What is volunteer computing?
A: Volunteer computing is a system where individual users donate their computer resources, such as processing power, to contribute to various research projects. It operates as a form of distributed computing, utilizing networked computers to perform tasks.

### Q: What role does BOINC play in volunteer computing?
A: The Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) is a widely used open-source middleware system specifically designed for volunteer and grid computing. Many volunteer computing projects, such as Einstein@Home and climateprediction.net, are based on the BOINC platform.

### Q: What types of research benefit from volunteer computing?
A: Volunteer computing supports a diverse range of research areas, including detecting gravitational waves (Einstein@Home), climate modeling (climateprediction.net), researching prime numbers (PrimeGrid), astronomy (MilkyWay@home, theSkyNet), molecular biology simulations (GPUGrid.net), and quantum computing (AQUA@home).

## Why It Matters
Volunteer computing is significant because it democratizes access to immense computational power, enabling scientific research that would otherwise require supercomputers or massive institutional investment. By allowing individuals to donate their unused computer resources, it facilitates large-scale data analysis, complex simulations, and extensive calculations across various scientific disciplines, from astrophysics to climate science and molecular biology. This collective effort accelerates discovery and addresses challenging research questions by harnessing the distributed processing capabilities of a global network of volunteers. It transforms personal computers into a shared scientific instrument, making cutting-edge research more accessible and collaborative, ultimately contributing to advancements in human knowledge and problem-solving.

## Notable For
*   **Resource Donation Model**: Uniquely relies on individual users voluntarily donating their computer's idle processing power and resources for scientific research.
*   **Distributed Computing Paradigm**: A prominent application of distributed computing, leveraging a network of disparate computers to solve complex computational problems.
*   **BOINC Platform Adoption**: Widely associated with and often implemented through the Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) middleware system, which hosts numerous research projects.
*   **Citizen Science Contribution**: Functions as a form of citizen science, allowing the general public to directly contribute to scientific discovery without needing specialized equipment or training.
*   **Diverse Research Applications**: Supports a broad spectrum of scientific fields, including astronomy, climate science, mathematics, molecular biology, and quantum computing, by providing substantial computational resources.

## Body

### Definition and Core Concept
Volunteer computing is a system designed for users to donate their computer resources to contribute to research. This model allows for the aggregation of computational power from numerous individual computers.

### Classification and Relationships
Volunteer computing is classified as a subclass of distributed computing, which refers to a system whose components are located on different networked computers. It is also considered a form of citizen science.

### Key Platforms
The Berkeley Open Infrastructure for Network Computing (BOINC) is a central open-source middleware system for volunteer and grid computing. BOINC was incepted on April 10, 2002. Many volunteer computing projects are based on the BOINC platform.

### Related Projects and Research Areas
Numerous projects utilize the volunteer computing model, often leveraging the BOINC platform, to conduct research across various scientific disciplines:

*   **Astronomy and Astrophysics**:
    *   **Einstein@Home**: A BOINC project analyzing data from LIGO to detect gravitational waves.
    *   **Cosmology@Home**: A volunteer computing project for galaxy simulation, with software alpha testing starting June 30, 2007.
    *   **MilkyWay@home**: A BOINC project researching astronomy.
    *   **theSkyNet**: A volunteer computing research project that used BOINC for astronomy research.
    *   **orbit@home**: A BOINC project researching asteroid orbits, incepted April 3, 2008.
    *   **Astropulse**: A BOINC-based SETI@home subproject, incepted July 2008.
*   **Climate and Environmental Science**:
    *   **climateprediction.net**: A BOINC project researching climate models, incepted December 9, 2003.
    *   **BBC Climate Change Experiment**: A citizen science project.
*   **Mathematics and Number Theory**:
    *   **PrimeGrid**: A BOINC project researching prime numbers, incepted June 12, 2005.
    *   **Riesel Sieve**: A BOINC project.
*   **Molecular Biology and Medicine**:
    *   **GPUGrid.net**: A BOINC project researching molecular biology simulations, incepted December 5, 2007.
    *   **SIMAP**: A BOINC project, incepted April 26, 2006.
    *   **Malaria Control Project**: A BOINC project, incepted December 19, 2006.
    *   **Docking@Home**: A BOINC project researching protein structure.
    *   **Proteins@home**: A BOINC project.
*   **Quantum Computing**:
    *   **AQUA@home**: A BOINC project researching quantum computing.
*   **Other Scientific Research**:
    *   **iThena**: A distributed project concerning experimental mapping of network structures included in the Internet, incepted 2019.
    *   **SZTAKI Desktop Grid**: A BOINC project, incepted May 26, 2005.
    *   **Leiden Classical**: A BOINC project.
    *   **Spinhenge@home**: A BOINC project, incepted May 19, 2006.
    *   **ABC@Home**: A non-profit BOINC project.
    *   **yoyo@home**: A BOINC project.
    *   **SLinCA@Home**: A BOINC project.
    *   **Clean Energy Project**: A BOINC based World Community Grid volunteer computing subproject.
    *   **DESCHALL Project**.
    *   **DistrRTgen**: A BOINC project, incepted January 12, 2008.
    *   **DENIS@Home**: A BOINC project.
    *   **Ibercivis**: A BOINC project.

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## References

1. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
2. Quora
3. [volunteer-computing · GitHub Topics · GitHub](https://github.com/topics/volunteer-computing)