High Performance Computing

If a software package you would like to use for your research is not available on a cluster, you can request it to be installed. The software requests are evaluated by the HPC staff on a case-by-case basis. Before you send in a software request, please go through the information below.

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Types of request

Depending on how many users need to use the software, software requests are divided into three types, each of which corresponds to the location where the software is installed:

• The user's home directory
• Software packages installed here will be accessible only to the user.
• It is suitable for software packages that will be used by a single user.
• Python, Perl and R modules should be installed here.
• /project
• Software packages installed in /project can be accessed by a group of users.
• It is suitable for software packages that
  • Need to be shared by users from the same research group, or
  • are bigger than the quota on the home file syste.
• This type of request must be sent by the PI of the research group, who may be asked to apply for a storage allocation.
• /usr/local/packages
• Software packages installed under /usr/local/packages can be accessed by all users.
• It is suitable for software packages that will be used by users from multiple research groups.
• This type of request must be sent by the PI of a research group.

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How to request

Please send an email to sys-help@loni.org with the following information:

• Your user name
• The name of cluster where you want to use the requested software
• The name, version and download link of the software
• Specific installation instructions if any (e.g. compiler flags, variants and flavor, etc.)
• Why the software is needed
• Where the software should be installed (locally, /project, or /usr/local/packages) and justification explaining how many users are expected.

Please note that, once the software is installed, testing and validation are users' responsibility.