Agenda for the ITC-Research Computing Management Meeting
December 14, 2006 at 8:00AM
2015 Ivy Road, 2nd Floor Conference Room

Members: Alice, Hamp, Jim, Joe S., Mark, Mike, Robin, Terry, Tim S., Tom S., Tim T.
Chair: Tim T.
Recorder: Alice Howard

I. Corrections to minutes from last meeting on October 30, 2006? (There was no November meeting)

II. Old Business:

• Condo-Cluster 2, aka dogwood-
  • Steven de Wakker (EnvSci faculty) wants to buy nodes of dogwood - but interested in no queue wait. (Tim T.) Is this an opportunity to try the "set-aside" condo cluster approach?
  • HS faculty (Steve Rich) may purchase 8-16 of existing nodes when he gets here. (Tom in contact with Bill Woolfolk on this.)
  • Network switch problem, testing with NorTel switch, how to proceed?
  • Other issues/concerns?
• Cedar Cluster:
  • Avaki gateway setup-New software version released yet?
  • 64 bit test cluster status? Gotten two user requests for 64-bit software/cluster usage
  • Other issues/concerns?
• Aspen & Birch Clusters:
  • Request for Aspen nodes from EnvSci. Despite my best effort to discourage, still interested.
    • Part of issue is grad. students in EnviSci have trouble getting jobs through the queue in timely fashion.
    • Can we transfer 8-10 nodes to them?
  • Renewing maintenance support on Birch for another year?
    • Parallel use is on definite increase. Many VASP user on birch.
  • Other issues/concerns?
• Oak Cluster: "round-robin" logon enabled
• Teal Cluster: Any issues or concerns?
  • Need for running Gaussian until/unless licensing issues can be overcome.
• Andrew Grimshaw's request for Linux front-end to campus grid project – still waiting on next version of Avaki.
  • Are all clusters now running Marty Humphrey's GLOBUS gatekeeper client that does direct file transfers?
• Any update on conversion to authenticate to Eservices via Kerberos for Unix logins/connections to blue.unix, HSM & Longtmp? (AKA Phase 2 of Netbadge CDP).
  • This transition will involve a major user education issue – especially for blue.unix users.
  • No timeline for this project yet – it has to wait until after the password synchronization web site is up.
  • ftp to blue.unix is being phased out, ITC-Service Transitions CDP working on schedule.
• Infrastructure Supporting Research Task Force (https://www1.seas.virginia.edu/itrtf/). (Maillist is itrtf@virginia.edu)
  • CI-TEAM NSF proposal funded. Course has a time (MWF, 9-10) and course number (CS494 Computational Mathematics), fully enrolled (40+ undergrads, mostly 3rd & 4th year, mix of E-School disciplines, not all CS.
  • UVa's participation in ORNL's response to NSF RFP for next generation/iteration of Supercomputing Center . The full proposal is due on 2/2/07.
• Update on longtmp and HSM upgrades? (HSM scheduled for next spring07 semester)
  • Longtmp switched to NetApp - more disk space now. Snapshot frequency should be?
• SURA survey request- Phil Parrish's reply to pull together working group to respond.

III. New Business:

• Future of UnixLab in E225? Currently has eight Sun Ultra60 workstations that are at least 5 years old that get almost no use. Continue to provide? Continue to maintain "Lab"/machines in E225?
  • Plan/vision for Research Computing Lab in Brown is in spring or summer (depending on funding) to put a one or two each of Linux, Sun and Macintosh workstations in there. So little demand by anyone to work on Unix workstation directly.
• Security concern about password storage on clusters by LSP in Psychology Dept. Tim Nowaczyk (TAN7F) left me voicemail message.
• Any other Items?

IV. Adjourn by 9:30 and next meeting

• Do we need to meet on Monday, 12/18, 10:30 AM ?
• Next Scheduled Meeting of ITC ResComp Standing Committee: Monday, January 29th, 10:30 AM in ITC-2015 Ivy Road, Room #220.
  
  Please send suggestions, additions, corrections to: Tim Tolson or Alice Howard
  

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