Advanced computing provides state-of-the-art computing infrastructure enabling researchers to solve complex problems that require significant compute resources - processors, accelerators, memory, shared storage, scientific applications and environments. Advanced computing has become crucial tool for various scientific fields such as artificial intelligence, bioinformatics, computational chemistry, climate modeling, engineering and many others.
SRCE provides following advanced computing resources:
- Cluster Isabella
- HTC Cloud
- Virtual Computing Lab (VCL).
Cluster Isabella provides High Performance Computing (HPC) infrastructure which enables researchers to run parallel applications that require large amount of CPU cores, graphical processors, RAM and storage, interconnected with high-speed, low latency network. Today, Isabella consists of 135 worker nodes with 3100 processor cores and 12 GPUs. Apart from compute resources, over 100 scientific applications are optimized for execution on Isabella and documented. In additions, users can deploy new applications or request support in installation.
HTC Cloud provides a cloud computing platform enabling users to deploy virtual machines and applications that require significant compute and storage resources. HTC Cloud provides flexibility in using and running various operating systems and applications, scaling machines on-demand and creating custom network topologies. It is ideal for applications not suitable for HPC clusters – ones that require higher level of flexibility and user interaction. HTC Cloud currently provides 2.400 virtual CPU cores on 600 CPU cores and 150 TB of storage. JupyterLab Services is a service deployed on HTC Cloud that enables interactive coding and execution of applications, data analysis and virtualization in popular programming languages such as Python, R and Julia.
VCL is a cloud computing platform enabling users to reserve virtual machines or laboratories with predefined or custom sets of applications and remotely access it over the Internet. VCL is not intended for computationally demanding applications.
Support
Users are provided with advanced support services – consulting on choosing the resource that best fits their need, assistance with setting up environment, installation and optimization of new scientific applications as well as assistance in running applications.
Self-paced and hands-on workshops are provided which cover how to use resources and run applications – both generic one and specific scientific applications.
History
Advanced computing in SRCE started with the first cluster Dgrid with 8 single-CPU nodes and cluster distribution Rocks. It was established in 2002. for the needs of integrating Croatia into European project DataGrid led by CERN with the main goal of building a grid for large-scale storage and analysis of data collected by LHC (Large Hadron Collider) experiment.
Dgrid evolves into HPC cluster Isabella on May 8th 2002. – a shared resource of all scientists in Croatia. Since then, Isabella went through over 10 upgrades until it reached its current structure in 2018.
