Requesting Resources¶
The CRCD uses the Keystone platform for managing access to HPC resources. Keystone allows PIs to submit Resource Allocation renewals for their research teams and track the status of those requests. All CRCD users have access to the Keystone interface; however, only team owners and administrators have permission to modify team details and submit Resource Allocation renewals.
Before you begin
Keystone is only accessible by existing CRCD users who are connected to the Pitt VPN.
If you are new to CRCD and do not have a Resource Allocation, you can get started with a One-time Startup Allocation. PIs and their delegates can request additional CRCD accounts for team members using our ticketing system.
Step 1: Log In¶
Navigate to keystone.crcd.pitt.edu and sign in with your Pitt username and password.
Step 2: Select Your Team¶
After logging in, Keystone will present you wil a list of all teams where you are a member along with your role in each team. To submit a new resource request, select the team for which you want to submit a request.
Changing teams later
Most tasks in Keystone are handled at the team level. Users should take care to select the proper team when submitting new allocation requests. You can navigate back to this page at any time to select a different team by clicking on the Keystone logo in the banner.
Step 3: Open the Allocations Page¶
After selecting a team you will be navigated to the team dashboard. This page displays a high level team summary, including the current team members and the team's active service units.
From the dashboard, click Allocations in the navigation bar to see the team's current allocation requests.
This Allocations page lists every request the team has submitted, along with its status and activation date. Users can click any row to open the full details of that request.
The summary cards above the table show how many service units the team currently has active, how many are tied up in pending requests, and how many requests have been approved.
Service units
Resources are requested in service units, or SUs. See the Service Units page for an explanation of how SUs are calculated and consumed on each cluster.
Step 4: Start a New Request¶
Click Create New in the upper right of the Allocations page. This opens the New Allocation Request wizard. Complete each step in the wizard and click Next to advance, or Previous to go back and revise an earlier step. Nothing is submitted until you reach the final step.
4.1 Project Description¶
In the first step, give your request a short, descriptive title, then describe the project in the text editor below it. The description is what a CRCD administrator reads when deciding on your request, so be specific. A request that explains where its numbers came from is reviewed much more quickly than one that does not. A good description covers three things:
- The research problem you are addressing.
- How you will use CRCD resources — which software, which computational methods.
- How you arrived at the resource estimate — test runs, benchmarks, or scaling from prior work.
4.2 Requested Resources¶
Specify which clusters you need and how many service units you need on each. Click Add Resource to add a row, choose a cluster from the dropdown, and enter the number of service units. A short description of each cluster's intended workload appears beside your selection.
Add a separate row for every cluster your project needs. Use the delete icon at the end of a row to remove it.
Choosing a cluster
If you are unsure which cluster suits your workload, the Hardware Profiles section describes the architecture and intended use of each one.
4.3 Supporting Grants and Publications¶
The next two steps record the funding that supports your project and any publications that have resulted from prior usage of CRCD resources (see Citing CRCD). The CRCD uses these records to report on the research its infrastructure enables, which in turn justifies continued investment in that infrastructure.
Both steps work the same way. Start typing in the search field to see the records already on file for your team, then click a result to attach it to the request. Selected records are listed below the search field and you can attach more than one.
Projects with no grants or publications
Each step requires either at least one attached record or the checkbox indicating that none apply. New projects frequently have no publications that cited CRCD yet, in which case tick the checkbox and continue.
Acknowledging CRCD
Publications that made use of CRCD resources should acknowledge them. See Citing CRCD for the language to use.
If the record you need is not yet on file, you do not need to leave the form to add it. Click Create New to open a dialog for the new record, complete the fields, and click Submit.
Submitting the new record automatically attaches the record to your request and saves it to the team's existing CRCD records at the same time.
4.4 Confirm and Submit¶
The final step summarizes everything you have entered. Review the summary and use Previous to step back and correct any errors. When you are satisfied, click Submit.
After You Submit¶
Submitting the request automatically navigates you to the request detail page. The request is assigned a ID number and given a Pending status until it has been reviewed. A CRCD administrator will review your request and update this page to display the latest approval state and the number of awarded service units.
You can return to this page at any time from the Allocations tab. Use the comment box at the bottom of the page to ask a question or provide additional information while the request is under review.
