[ASA] Free Astronomy Access to Cloud Computing Resources

[Jarrod Hurley]

Hi All,


Is your desktop not quite enough to run your latest code? Are servers at your university over-subscribed but you don't have the time to apply for time on a supercomputing facility? Or maybe you want more control and/or ready access to the outside world? Then an OpenStack cloud virtual machine may be for you. Your free alternative to AWS and Azure. With dedicated support.


In 2020 Astronomy Australia Limited (AAL) and Swinburne University of Technology announced a partnership to provide dedicated astronomy access on the Swinburne cell within the NeCTAR Cloud network.



The resources available for dedicated astronomy use consist of 2,000 virtual CPUs, with attachable volume storage and advanced networking (e.g. DNS zones, floating IP addresses, virtual routers), utilised via the OpenStack cloud computing platform. VMs can be provisioned in a variety of different 'flavours' to accommodate a broad spectrum of workflows. Single VMs will typically comprise up to 8 or 16 virtual CPUs and 16 or 32 GB RAM (although larger sizes are possible upon request as is GPU access).



Support for the usage of these resources is provided from within the Astronomy Data and Computing Services (ADACS) team at Swinburne.



We are keen to facilitate your usage of these resources and have a range of help options available.


Extensive user documentation is available at:



https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/Z9C2CROND2uvDy3gmc9YrMc?domain=supercomputing.swin.edu.au



with information on how to get started and customised astronomy interfaces that can be utilised.



Earlier this year we ran a training session that covered:

- a general introduction to cloud computing and OpenStack;

- a demonstration on setting up a simple virtual machine (VM);

- a brief overview of some other possible, more advanced, workflows.



The recording of this session is available at:



https://protect-au.mimecast.com/s/Cx_8CVARKgCxnzpPwtzIDd_?domain=adacs.org.au



and provides a great starting point.


We can also take questions via openstack at adacs.org.au<mailto:openstack at adacs.org.au> at any point to assist with any queries you may have, e.g. to discuss if a use case that you have in mind is applicable. Providing targeted sessions for your research group or department is also an option. Just get in touch.



Note that it is envisaged that these resources will be of interest to small-job use cases that do not require the full blown infrastructure of a high-performance computing (HPC) facility and/or will benefit from the flexibility of working outside of a HPC environment.

Why would you want to use an OpenStack VM?

  *   Because you want the flexibility of setting up your own environment.
  *   Because you are tired of hitting walltime limits on your regular HPC system and want to be able to run your jobs when you like and for as long as you like.
  *   Because you want to be able to readily share data with collaborators.


However, there is currently no restriction on use case and we are keen to see how this resource can be of benefit to a variety of astronomy workflows.


All the best,

David & Jarrod





ADACS is a collaboration between Swinburne University of Technology and Curtin University. It is funded under the Astronomy National Collaborative Research Infrastructure Strategy (NCRIS) Program via Astronomy Australia Ltd (AAL).
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