ICS Computing Support Announcements: Spring Quarter 2017

ICS support provides undergraduate and graduate scratch space for enrolled student to use in coursework. The space is provided free of charge and without user quota limits.

Please see the following links for more information:

• Undergraduate Scratch Space
• Graduate Scratch Space

This is a reminder that beginning this morning instructional openlab hosts will require OpenSSH keys for clients connecting from off campus. Off campus OpenSSH clients will not longer be allowed to login using a password.

For instructions on setting up OpenSSH keys, please visit the following URL:

• https://swiki.ics.uci.edu/doku.php/accounts:ssh_keys

As background, this self-service application allows you to view your recent UCInetID account activity for a subset of OIT services, verify all the activity is legitimately you, and report to OIT Security any suspicious activity that might be someone else accessing your account.

OIT has published a new information page published at https://security.uci.edu/my-account-activity.html

The ICS Business Office posted the following via email on March 30th, 2017:

Effective May 1, 2017, UCOP has required all software purchases meet security and/or accessibility policies and regulations PRIOR to purchase. Links to these policies and regulations are listed in the below email. This applies to any software or service (e.g. Amazon Web Services, Drop Box, Github, Heruko, Campaign Monitor, Slack, etc.) where storing or sharing of data is involved.

You will need to provide a completed and signed Accessibility/Security Review Checklist to your purchaser/faculty assistant at the time of your request. Once they receive approval from Purchasing and OIT, they will place your order. If required and depending on the issue, the decision process may take up to two weeks.

Purchasing is working on coming up with a list of acceptable software. As we learn more about this process and what is allowed, I will forward the information to you.

Just a reminder that purchasing of software on your own and getting reimbursed is not allowed per policy. That policy was in place previously and is not related to this new process.

Computing Support would like to bring your attention to a couple of current storage deals.

ICS Computing Support has over 100TB of disk available on our AMS-2500. That space is being offerered to researchers under the following terms:

• Cost is $73 per Terabyte per year for reserved space.
• Proceeds cover the cost of hardware maintenance.
• Snapshots available
• Tape archival and long term backup not available.
• Cost to be pro-rated for 2017.

Network Appliance is running some great year end deals with costs that work out to be as low as $83 per usable Terabyte per year when you purchase an entire shelf of disks up front for $35,985.14.

* Cost is all up front * Purchase covers hardware with a maintenance co termed with existing Netapp equipment. * Snapshots available. * Tape archival and long term backups available. * Subject to hardware maintentance after the initial warranty expires.

This chart shows how much you could spend on google object storage (TB/year) alongside the pair of ICS data center offereings.

Cloud computing provides a cost effective way for researchers to extend computing capabilities without significantly increasing their capital expenditures.

Computing Support can project ICS services into the Google Cloud Platform.

Computing that is not used, turned off, is not typically charged but can be scaled up quickly when additional resources are needed.

• Google Cloud Platform @ ICS
• Amazon Web Services @ UCI

Virtual box and Vagrant are available on most ICS instructional and research compute hosts. Any user with login privilege may create a virtual machine using these utilities.

• Virtual box
• Vagrant based on Virtual Box

This information, as well any updates and changes, is summarized at the following link:

https://swiki.ics.uci.edu/doku.php/virtual_environments:virtual_environments

Please contact ICS Compuitng Support Helpdesk with any questions regarding these services.

ICS Computing Support has updated our ICS Account Password wiki page. You will find new information about tools to change and reset passwords, campus multi factor authentication and some best practices for managing your password. Please see the following URL:

https://swiki.ics.uci.edu/doku.php/accounts:password_change_reset