The paper considers the scientific and technical essence of forming and developing computer engineering from the very beginning of engineering analysis and design to the latest achievements in this field. In the course of their work, the authors, following the traditions of St. Petersburg Polytechnic University, rely on the development of the fundamental foundations of the natural science knowledge, which has always served as a measure of engineering development. We consider a fairly long historical period from the time of I. Newton, L. Euler and J.-L. Lagrange, who laid the foundation of engineering sciences, through the XIX and XX centuries to our time. The authors focus on the most important tools of research, for both natural phenomena and engineering calculations, - tools of mathematical analysis. Nearly in the second half of the XX century, with the advent of computers, this tool acquired the features of mathematical modeling technologies. Today this mathematical modeling is the basis for development of advanced methods of computer engineering. But this very tool is evolving at an extremely rapid pace, integrating the most advanced approaches of mathematics, physical mechanics, computer (supercomputer) technologies and information and communication resources. This development, together with a number of other computer technologies, radically changed the concept of the traditional, centuries-old production process and gave rise to the idea of the Digital industry.