Have you not used SCINet in a while, or just want to make sure you haven’t missed any changes? See below for a history of SCINet developments such as added software features, user experience improvements, login procedure updates, policy changes, and new working groups.
For general announcements (e.g., training opportunities and system status updates), please see the SCINet Forum Announcements page. For past and upcoming events, please see the SCINet Events Calendar.
2024
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Ceres storage upgrade
SCINet’s Ceres supercomputer has a new data storage system that offers substantial advantages over the old storage system. These advantages include nearly 75% more usable storage space (increased from ~5.5 PB to ~9.6 PB), an ~80% reduction in power and cooling requirements, and faster read/write performance. Ceres users will automatically benefit from these improvements because all file systems (/project, /90daydata, and /home) have been moved to the new storage system.
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Atlas OOD terminal
When in Open OnDemand on Atlas, the terminal created by clicking on Clusters > Atlas Shell Access no longer prompts users to re-authenticate.
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Ceres OS upgraded
The Linux distribution on Ceres has been changed from AlmaLinux to Red Hat Enterprise Linux 9.2. This should not cause complications with previously installed software or workflows.
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SCINet Login Updates
Legacy authentication using SCINet usernames, passwords, and authentication codes is no longer supported. Access to SCINet is now limited to authentication with a LincPass or a Login.gov account, with the exception of some sponsored accounts still using YubiKey devices. These accounts will be transitioned to Login.gov over the next few months. See detailed instructions on our Logging Into SCINet Guide.
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SCINet Login Updates
Getting collaborators set up with sponsored SCINet accounts is now much quicker because non-LincPass holders can use Login.gov credentials. We are no longer relying on the physical devices, YubiKeys, that had to be mailed to such users. See detailed instructions on our Logging Into SCINet Guide.
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Atlas Updates
There have been several changes to the Atlas compute cluster, including ssh host keys for all service nodes. Read more about these updates here.
2023
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Home directory quota increase
Users can now have up to 15 GB of files in their home directories.
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New Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) nodes on Atlas
Five new nodes on Atlas with a total of 40 NVIDIA A100 GPUs are now available. This drastically increases SCINet’s GPU computing capacity and offers SCINet users access to state-of-the-art GPU technology for running AI and deep learning workflows, large-scale data analyses, and other computationally intensive tasks.
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Scheduling recurring jobs on Ceres and Atlas
All SCINet users now have access to Slurm’s “scrontab” feature, which makes it possible to schedule jobs that automatically run on a recurring basis.
2022
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Atlas nodes have internet access
All nodes on Atlas can now access resources on the Internet, which drastically simplifies many scientific computing workflows. For example, it is now possible to update software packages or access external data resources from any node on the system.
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New SCINet website launched.
The redesigned site includes a consolidated event calendar, improved user guide navigation, and a more informative landing page.
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QGIS added to Open OnDemand
QGIS, an open-source, graphical software for geographic information systems, has been added to Open OnDemand on both Ceres and Atlas.
2021
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SCINet Policy Changes
The SCINet Policies document in your home directory on Ceres provides an updated SCINet policy.
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SCINet Discussion Forum
SCINet has launched a new discussion forum that replaces Basecamp.
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SCINet Office staff
The SCINet Office now has its first permanent staff member with more expected to onboard in the coming months.
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galaxy.scinet.science is set to retire in Feb 2021
Due to major refactoring, updates and policy changes we could not continue using the old database and are starting with a clean slate on galaxy.scinet.usda.gov .
2020
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Atlas Available
The Atlas Cluster at Mississippi State is now availible to all SCINet Users!
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Directory Available
We have a directory available for medium term usage which allows researchers to run multiple jobs against data in this directory over a 90 day period.