Interactive access is provided to all systems for which access is granted as part of a PRACE allocation of Tier-0 resources and DECI calls.

The following paragraphs will refer multiple times to the concepts of Execution Site, Home Site and PRACE Door Node.

An Execution Site is a PRACE resource offering computational resources to the users while a Home Site is a PRACE site taking care of the setup of the allocated project. The difference is particularly meaningful for DECI calls, since the user management of a project is centralised, since this aspect is taken care of by the Home Site. The Execution Site(s) will then provide access to the users according to the project setup laid out by the Home Site. PRACE Tier-0 allocations, on the other hand, are organised in a different way. Each PRACE site committing resources is also responsible for the management of its users, so Execution Site and Home Site are the same in this specific case.

A PRACE Door Node is a PRACE service for DECI/Tier1 users, providing:

• interactive access to the PRACE resources via the public Internet network;
• connectivity to other PRACE resources by means of a dedicated high speed network (usually referred to as PRACE network)

Currently there are two PRACE sites acting as door nodes: CINECA and SURFSARA. They represent a convenient solution to reach an Execution Site which you cannot access from the public Internet (e.g. because the Execution site doesn’t allow GSI SSH based access from the public Internet). In other words, if you access your Execution Site directly from your workstation, then you will employ the public Internet; however, if you employ a PRACE Door Node to access your Execution Site, using its PRACE network address, then you will employ the PRACE network.

The PRACE interactive access service is based on two technologies: SSH (Secure Shell Access) and GSI SSH (Grid Security Infrastructure enabled SSH, shortly GSI SSH from now on). The former relies on the traditional username and password or public key encryption authentication mechanism. Only some sites offer it, mainly PRACE Tier-0. The users should verify with their sites if regular SSH access is possible, if not specified when they are contacted by the site itself. Please note that plain SSH is not provided by most DECI sites. Clients are available for all platforms: Windows, Linux and Macintosh, in some cases even natively. GSI enabled SSH depends on X.509 certificates to authenticate the users, representing the default interactive service for DECI sites. Its single sign on feature (i.e. users bring their identity with them when hopping between systems, without the need to perform a new authentication) makes it convenient in an inherently distributed infrastructure such as PRACE Tier 1. Please note that, at the moment, PRACE Door Nodes only support interactive login via GSI SSH.

This document lists each PRACE Platform, along with the preferred method of interactive access for both Execution and Home Site users, and a link to the platform’s User Guide. A detailed discussion on prerequisites and installation procedure of GSI SSH clients will follow.

PRACE Tier-0 Systems (available through PRACE Calls)

CEA: Bull (Curie)

If CURIE is your Execution Platform, then you gain access via ssh, with a password authentication, using the address curie.ccc.cea.fr or via gsissh, with a certificate authentication, using the address curie.ccc.cea.fr:2222. If you want to connect from another PRACE platform or door node then the address is curie-prace.ccc.cea.fr:2222.

All CURIE users must register first with TGCC Hotline.

Reference: Curie Best Practice Guide

HLRS: Cray XC40 (Hazelhen)

If Hazelhen is your Execution Platform, then the only method of interactive access is ssh, using either a password or your ssh public key. Further, you must also register your personal IP address.

The address is hazelhen.hww.de.

Reference: Overview and more de/tailed Hazelhen User Guide

FZJ: Blue Gene Q (JUQUEEN)

If JUQUEEN is your Execution Platform, then the preferred method of interactive access is ssh with your ssh public key. The address is juqueen1p.fz-juelich.de.

Reference: JUQUEEN User Guide

BSC: IBM iDataPlex (Intel Sandy Bridge-EP) (MareNostrum)

If MareNostrum is your Execution Platform, then you gain access via gsissh from another PRACE platform, where the address is gftp.prace.bsc.es:2222. Access via ssh is also available, with your ssh public key, using the address mn1.bsc.es.

If MareNostrum is your Home Site, then you gain access via ssh, with your ssh public key, using the address mn1.bsc.es.

Reference: MareNostrum User Guide

CINECA: IBM Blue Gene Q (FERMI)

If FERMI is your Execution Platform then you can gain access using ssh via the address login.fermi.cineca.it or using gsissh via the address gssh.fermi.cineca.it -p 2222. If you want to connect from another PRACE platform or door node then the address is gssh-prace.cineca.it -p 2222.

All FERMI users must register first with CINECA User Support.

Reference: FERMI User Guide

LRZ: IBM System x iDataPlex (SuperMUC)

SuperMUC is a PRACE Tier 0 machine based on Sandy Bridge technology, available via gsissh (port 2222) and ssh (port 22) on the public internet and the private PRACE network. An additional fat node island, equipped with Westmere-EX processors, is is also available. SuperMUC’s thin nodes are reachable through the public internet under the name supermuc.lrz.de, the fat node island is reachable as supermuc-fat.lrz.de. In the PRACE private network the addresses are supermuc-prace.lrz.de and supermuc-fat-prace.lrz.de, respectively.

However, firewall restrictions apply for the public internet, so, in order to access the resource, Tier 0 users are requested to register their IP addresses through the LRZ Helpdesk while Tier 1 users and PRACE staff members should refer to the certificate based PRACE Trouble Ticket System.

Please also note that all SuperMUC users are requested to abide by the European and U.S. export control regulations. Account owners can read and accept the terms in the LRZ ID portal, if username and password are the chosen authentication mechanism, or pointing their browser containing the personal certificate to this page, if grid credentials is the preferred access method.

Reference: SuperMUC User Guide

PRACE Tier-1 Systems (available through DECI Calls)

CINECA: GALILEO (GPU/MIC)

If the GALILEO Cluster is your Home site, then you gain access using ssh via the address login.galileo.cineca.it.

If the GALILEO Cluster is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is gsissh using the address login.galileo.cineca.it -p 2222.

If you want to connect from another PRACE platform or door node then the address is gsshprace.galileo.cineca.it -p 2222.

Reference: GALILEO User Guide

CSC: Cray XC40 (Sisu)

If Sisu is your Execution Platform, you can access it from your workstation either with ssh, using the address sisu.csc.fi, or with gsissh, using the address sisu.csc.fi:2222. From platforms connected to the PRACE network, you can access Sisu with gsissh, using the address sisu-prace.csc.fi:2222.

Reference: Sisu User Guide

EPCC: Cray XC30 (ARCHER)

If ARCHER, a Cray XC30, is your Execution Site, then you may gain access using ssh, where the address is login.archer.ac.uk.

If ARCHER is your Home Site, then the methods of access are the same as above.

For more information, please see:

• ARCHER User Guide – Interactive Access Chapter

ICHEC: Ivy Bridge (Fionn)

If Fionn is your Execution Platform or your Home Site then you gain interactive access using SSH via the address fionn.ichec.ie (using default port 22). We may need to add additional firewall rules to the ICHEC firewall to permit SSH access from your institution.

Reference: Fionn User Guide

KTH: Cray XC40 (Beskow)

If Beskow is your Execution Platform, then interactive access is available via ssh with Kerberos. You may access from your own workstation with a ticket by employing kinit --forwardable yourusername@NADA.KTH.SE (NB the capital letters are required) and then employ the address beskow.pdc.kth.se.

For an overview of login software with Kerberos, please visit this website, and for detailed information on access via ssh with Kerberos, please visit this website.

If KTH is your Home Site, then you cannot access Beskow to access your Execution Platform. Please consult the entry of your Execution Platform within this section for information on interactive access.

Reference: Beskow User Guide

NIIF: HP Magny Cours (NIIFI SC)

If NIIF is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is gsissh, but only from another PRACE platform; the address is prace-login.sc.niif.hu:2222.

Reference: NIIFI SC PRACE User Support

NIIF: HP Magny Cours (NIIFI SEGED)

If SEGED is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is gsissh, but only from another PRACE platform; the address is seged-login.sc.niif.hu:2222.

Reference: NIIFI SEGED PRACE User Support

NCSA: BlueGene/P (EA-ECNIS)

If the EA-ECNIS IBM BlueGene/ P is your Execution site, then you gain access via gsissh (or ssh?) via the address bg-fen.scc.acad.bg

If the BlueGene is your Home Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is gsissh (or ssh?), as described above.

Reference: ECNIS BG-P User Guide

PSNC: AMD-Opteron/GPU Cluster (CANE)

If CANE, AMD-Opteron/GPU Cluster, is your Execution site, then you gain access via gsissh from another PRACE platform, where the address is cane-prace.man.poznan.pl:2222

If CANE, AMD-Opteron/GPU Cluster, is your Home Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is ssh to the public address: cane.man.poznan.pl

Reference: CANE User Guide

RZG: IBM Intel/iDataPlex (Hydra)

If Hydra is your Execution Platform, then interactive access is available via gsissh only. You may log in directly from another PRACE platform, where the address is hydra01t.rzg.mpg.de:2223, or you may log in using your workstation, where you must gsissh into a Door Node first.

Reference: Hydra User Guide

SURFsara: Bull Bullx Intel XEON (Cartesius)

This platform is a PRACE Door Node

If Cartesius is either your Execution Site or your Home site, then interactive access is via gsissh. You may log in from another PRACE platform, where the address is int1-prace.cartesius.surfsara.nl:2222, or, as this is a PRACE Door Node, directly from your workstation using the address int1-bb.cartesius.surfsara.nl:2222

Under special circumstances, ssh is also available using your ssh public key.

Reference: Cartesius User Guide

UHeM: Intel Nehalem (Karadeniz)

If Karadeniz, a HP Blade cluster with Intel Nehalem CPUs, is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is gsissh, but only from another PRACE platform; the address is plogin.uybhm.itu.edu.tr:2222. Access with ssh is not permitted.

If UHeM is your Home Site, then the methods of access is ssh.

Reference: KARADENIZ USER GUIDE

VSB-TUO: Bull Bullx Intel XEON (Anselm)

If VSB-TUO is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is ssh from public Internet using the address anselm.it4i.cz. Also gsissh is fully supported. From another PRACE platform the address is anselm-prace.it4i.cz:2222. From the public Internet the address is anselm.it4i.cz:2222.

Reference: Anselm PRACE User Support

VSB-TUO: SGI ICE-X Intel Haswell and Xeon Phi (Salomon)

If VSB-TUO is your Execution Site, then the preferred method of interactive access is ssh from public Internet using the address salomon.it4i.cz. Also gsissh is fully supported. From another PRACE platform the address is salomon-prace.it4i.cz:2222. From the public Internet the address is salomon.it4i.cz:2222.

Reference: Salomon PRACE User Support

WCSS: Westmere (Supernova)

If Supernova is your Execution site, then you gain access via gsissh or ssh (with either a password or your ssh public key) via the address prace-int.wcss.pl

If Supernova is your Home Site, then the preferred method of access is ssh with either a password or your ssh public key. The address is prace.wcss.pl.

Reference: Supernova User Guide

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