HPC Cloud

With the HPC Cloud facility, BiGGrid and SARA offer self service, dynamically scalable and fully configurable HPC systems to the dutch academic community. Users have, for example, a free choice of Operating System and Software.

The HPC Cloud offers full control over a HPC cluster, with fast CPUs and high memory nodes and it is possible to attach Terabytes of local storage to a compute node. Because of this flexibility, users can fully tailor the system for a particular application. Long running and small compute jobs are equally welcome. Additionally, the system facilitates collaboration. Users can share control over their virtual private HPC cluster with other users and share processing time, data and results. A portal with wiki, fora, repositories, issue system, etc is offered for collaboration projects as well.

HPC Cloud Computing

Dynamically Scalable HPC Cloud Computing

HPC Cloud Computing brings fast compute clusters within the reach of scientists for whom other HPC facilities are not an option. Within ‘the HPC Cloud’ scientists can use a computer environment that is virtually identical to the environment that they have developed for their own internal use – but one which is many times faster.

SARA's HPC Cloud Service

SARA developed the HPC Cloud service for BiG Grid. With the BiG Grid HPC Cloud, users get access to self service and dynamically scalable high performance computing facilities.

Virtual Private HPC Cluster

With the newly developed High Performance Computing (HPC) Cloud environment researchers get access to their own Virtual Private HPC Cluster. It is a virtualized HPC Cluster that users can configure to exactly match their needs, without interfering with the needs of other users. It is flexible, offers self service and is dynamically scalable.

How to use the HPC Cloud?

Users can start from existing templates (images), or built their own cluster from scratch. It is even possible to make a copy from their current IT software environment (for example their laptop or desktop PC) and turn that into a HPC cluster in our Cloud. In that way, there will hardly be any difference between their development environment and their production environment. There is no need for an (expensive) rewrite of their software, and scientific challenges can be scaled up very easily from desktop scale to High Performance Compute cluster scale.

Flexibility

The provided flexibility enables new modes of high performance computing. Usage patterns that were hard to realize previously, because of legacy software, security concerns, or source code unavailability, can now be accommodated with a customized cloud solution, tailored to the specific purpose of the scientific end-user. In short, a virtual private HPC cluster gives academic research communities the flexibility they need.

Access the HPC Cloud

More information can be found on the "Obtain an account" page.