ARCHER News
Tuesday 12th September 2017
- Change to default Stripe Count
- Information on job memory and energy use via SAFE
- Current short queue times on ARCHER: opportunity to get jobs through
- Software Sustainability Institute Fellowship Programme 2018 - Launch Webinar
- ARCHER Image and Video Competition 2017
- RAP Calls Open for UK HPC Access
- ARCHER embedded CSE call
- Supercomputing MOOC
- OpenMP 4 Virtual Tutorial
- Training : Upcoming ARCHER Training Opportunities
Reminder: Change to default Stripe Count
Based on our analysis of file system performance, we plan to change the default stripe count on the ARCHER Lustre file systems (/work file systems) from the current default of 4 to a new default of 1. We believe that this will be generally beneficial for users. We will also update the stripe count on any existing directories that are currently set to the default stripe count so that any newly created files in these directories will inherit the new default stripe count. No changes will be made to any files or directories which have stripe counts that differ from the current default of 4. Note also that no change will be made to the stripe count of existing files, only directories.
As always, you will still be able set the stripe count you wish to use on files and directories as described in the I/O section of the ARCHER Best Practice Guide at: https://www.archer.ac.uk/documentation/best-practice-guide/io.php#lustre-parallel-file-systems
This change will take place next Wednesday (13th September 2017) during the at-risk maintenance session. Please do not hesitate to contact the helpdesk if you have any questions.
Information on job memory and energy use via SAFE
We have now integrated additional data feeds from ARCHER into the SAFE that allow users to query the memory and energy use of their jobs on ARCHER. To access this information:
- Log into SAFE (https://www.archer.ac.uk/safe)
- Go to the Menu "Service information" and select "Report Generator"
- Select the "Job Memory and Energy Use" report
- Enter the date range you are interested in and select the appropriate project from the dropdown list
- Click "Preview" to run the report (the other icons allow you to generate the report in different formats)
We will continue to make additional reports available that make use of the new data feeds as time goes on and will let users know when they are available. If you have any questions on this data then please just contact the helpdesk.
Current short queue times on ARCHER: opportunity to get jobs through
The queue times on ARCHER are particularly short at the moment. If you have jobs you want to run with quick turnaround then now is a good time to submit as you will not have to wait long for them to run. We do not expect this situation to last long so please take advantage while you can!
Software Sustainability Institute Fellowship Programme 2018 - Launch Webinar
The Launch Webinar will take place next Friday 15th September (2:00pm to 3:30pm BST) online.
Register to find out more about the Fellowship Programme, run by the Software Sustainability Institute, ask questions and hear some of our fellows’ experiences in the Programme run by the Software Sustainability Institute.
Raniere Silva, the Institute's Community Officer, will be leading the online event. This year, Nikoleta Glynatsi, Gary Leeming, David Perez-Suarez, Iza A. Romanowska and Melody Sandells will join Raniere on the webinar to talk about their experience as Institute fellows.
Further information
Launch Webinar details
Fellowship Programme 2018
ARCHER Image and Video Competition 2017
The ARCHER Image Competition is open, and we are also accepting videos and animations, as well as still images.
Show us how you demonstrate "ARCHER Enabling Research"
The prize fund has been increased this year, with prizes of £150 on offer for each of
- Best Image
- Best Video
- Best entry from an Early-career researcher
Plus a bonus prize of £100 for the best overall entry from the above three winners.
Full details and entry form at http://www.archer.ac.uk/about-archer/news-events/events/image-comp/
Closing date : 1st October 2017
RAP Calls Open for UK HPC Access
Three RAP (Resource Allocation Panel) calls are currently open for access to HPC resources for research projects within EPSRC remit:
All calls have the following deadlines:
- Technical Assessment: submitted to appropriate helpdesk by 21 Sep 2017
- Call Closing Date: Applications submitted by 12 Oct 2017
- Panels Meet: Nov 2017
- Earliest project start: Nov 2017
- Latest project start: Dec 2017
RAP: Access to ARCHER
EPSRC offers access to ARCHER through calls for proposals to the Resource Allocation Panel (RAP). Users can request significant amounts (>1,000kAUs or >66,667 ARCHER core hours) of computing resource over a maximum one-year period. The aim of this call is to provide access to our national state-of-the-art high performance computing facility for proposals of high scientific quality that would benefit from ARCHER.
A non-exclusive list of eligible projects include:
- Short computational projects that do not warrant a full grant application
- UK led collaborative projects with international and/or industry partners
- Joint applications from students (as Co-I) with proven HPC experience (e.g. a successfully completed instant access project) and their PIs
- Projects that link consecutive standard grant applications or that aid the preparation of a grant or fellowship application
- Extended feasibility studies and trialling application developments at scale
Further information can be found on the call page:
https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/funding/calls/rapaccessarchersummer2017/
RAP: Top-up of ARCHER resource on EPSRC grants
Access to the national high performance computing resource can be allocated as part of EPSRC grants at the time of award. Initially time-limited resource are granted and grant holders are invited to apply for a top-up to meet the objectives of their EPSRC grant. Applicants to this call can request ARCHER compute resource only to facilitate the remainder of their existing EPSRC grant.
Further information can be found on the call page:
https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/funding/calls/raptopuparchersummer2017/
RAP: Open Access to Tier-2
EPSRC is offering open access to five Tier-2 High Performance Computing facilities through this call for proposals. The five facilities users can access through this call are:
- Cirrus@EPCC: http://www.cirrus.ac.uk
- GW4: http://gw4.ac.uk/
- CSD3: http://www.csd3.cam.ac.uk/
- HPC Midlands+: http://www.hpc-midlands-plus.ac.uk
- JADE: http://www.arc.ox.ac.uk/content/jade
Further details on each of these centres can be found through their websites and in the call document. The aim of this call is to: Provide access to our national Tier-2 HPC facilities for adventurous high-risk, high-reward projects that will benefit from the diversity of computing architectures available at Tier-2.
A non-exclusive list of eligible projects includes:
- Short computational projects that do not warrant a full grant application;
- UK led collaborative projects with international and/or industry partners;
- Joint applications from students (as Co-Is) with proven HPC experience and their PIs;
- Projects that link consecutive standard grant applications or that aid the preparation of a grant or fellowship application;
- Extended feasibility studies and trialling application developments at scale;
- High-risk, high-reward projects that would benefit from using novel architectures.
Further information can be found on the call page:
https://www.epsrc.ac.uk/funding/calls/tier2openaccess/
ARCHER embedded CSE call
This is a reminder that the 12th ARCHER embedded CSE (eCSE) closes next week at 4pm (UK time) on Tuesday 19th September, 2017. The programme provides funding for the ARCHER user community to develop software in a sustainable manner for running on ARCHER and future UK Tier-1 services.
More details of how to apply are available by following the link to the eCSE calls page from here http://www.archer.ac.uk/community/eCSE/ together with details of the application and review process, assessment criteria eligibility, etc.
The 12th eCSE call opened on: 15th August 2017 Deadline for proposals: 1600 BST on Tuesday 19th September, 2017. Proposals received after the deadline cannot be accepted. More information is available from the ARCHER helpdesk (support@archer.ac.uk).
Supercomputing MOOC
Began 28th August 2017 but you can join at any time during the run.
Discover how supercomputers work and the real-life scientific breakthroughs made possible by today's computer simulations.
https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/supercomputing/
OpenMP 4 Virtual TutorialWednesday 27th September 2017 15:00 BST
Mark Bull EPCC
The latest versions of the compilers on ARCHER now all support OpenMP 4.0.
This webinar will give a tour of the new features in this version of the OpenMP standard and some examples of how they can be used.
Further details including joining instructions can be found at: Virtual Tutorials and Webinars
Upcoming Training Opportunities
- Hands-on Introduction to HPC for Life Scientists 29 Nov - 1 Dec 2017 EPCC, Edinburgh
- Advanced OpenMP in conjunction with INTERTWinE 12-14 December 2017 Imperial College London
