Path to Petascale: Adapting GEO/CHEM/ASTRO Applications for Accelerators and Accelerator Clusters

Accessing GPU and Cell resources

Workshop participants will have access to GPU and Cell clusters at NCSA, ARSC, and LCSE during and after the workshop. A hands-on session about using these systems is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. on April 1 in room 1030 of the NCSA Building.

In order to take full advantage of this hands-on opportunity, workshop attendees are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these systems in advance. The procedures for obtaining advance access to the three accelerator systems differ and require one to three weeks to complete. If you are interested in obtaining advance access to the systems, you should make your requests for access as soon as possible.

NCSA GPU accelerator cluster

To access the NCSA GPU cluster, you must complete and submit an account request form: http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/UserInfo/Allocations/AddUserForm.html.

The form requests "PI Information"; complete this block with the following:

First name: Mike
Last name: Showerman
Email: mshow@ncsa.uiuc.edu
PSN: cts
NCSA System: AC

Once you obtain the login, SSH into ac.ncsa.uiuc.edu to start using the system.

More information about the AC GPU cluster is available online at http://www.ncsa.uiuc.edu/Projects/GPUcluster/.

ARSC Cell cluster (Quasar)

To access the ARSC Cell cluster, go to http://www.arsc.edu/support/accounts/acquire.html to request ARSC credentials. You likely will need to follow the instructions for an academic registration. You can join the "ARSCINFO" project rather than applying for a new project. After you submit your application, the ARSC help desk will send you instructions for completing the registration procedure. Please note that you will be required to fax documents to ARSC, and the procedure could take up to three weeks.

Once you have the ARSC credentials, activation on Quasar is a simple request to consult@arsc.edu. Once you obtain the login, you can access quasar.arsc.edu via the HPCMP Kerberos kit, usually a customized SSH client. For MS Windows, you can use 'putty'.

For more information about the Quasar Cell cluster, please contact Greg Newby (newby@arsc.edu).

LCSE Cell cluster

Send an email to Michael Knox (mikeknox@lcse.umn.edu) requesting an account on the Roadrunner tri-blade nodes. Include the following:

Full name
Institution
Contact phone number
Contact email
Desired user name

More information about the system is available online at http://www.lcse.umn.edu/index.php?c=cell.