Summer Quarter Announcements 2018

ICS Computing Support runs a cluster of machines capable of providing personal virtual machines for ICS stduents.

Students with acces to this cluster will be able:

• Start a VM using a single command from any host in the openlab
• Local root privilege on their VM
• Reconnect on either console or via ssh
• Many other benefits

If you would like to find out how this service can be good fit for your course, undergraduate or graduate, send a message to helpdesk@ics.uci.edu and we will reach out.

More information is avaiable on our Support Wiki:

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

We have begun installing CUDA 9.0 on ICS hosts with graphics cards. Please send mail to helpdesk@ics.uci.edu to request an upgrade.

Default version of has been updated to Python 3.6.1.

Note: The binary is called `python3`. The pip utility binary is called `pip3`.

Please use the `module` command to add python3 to your environment. e.g. `module load python`.

ICS Computing Support now offers managed computing with FULL Sudo privilege. See supported OS page for more information or send email to helpdesk@ics.uci.edu to get started.

Managed means that ICS Computing Suport will:

• Provision the operating system
• Provide constant configuration via pupet
• Provide Single Sign-on
• Ensure NFS Access to ICS Storage Servers, home and extra directories, and the Software Library (/pkg).
• ICS /home /extra directories are snap shotted daily and backed up to tape monthly.
• Package installs from trusted OS repositories.
• Compile new software to install in Software Library
• Limited Sudo for limited number of designated users.
• Any compute role (e.g. MySQL, Apache, MongoDB, Cycle Server)
• Service configuration
• Service and resource Monitoring

Managed with Sudo will include everything from Managed with the following changes:

• Full Sudo
• ICS Storage Servers, home and extra directories, are only available via FUSE.
• There are no snapshots or backups, user must backup data to ICS Storage Servers.
• Docker is available.

Recommended tools, free and open source. Let us know if you have more suggestions.