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Distributed and Cluster Computing

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Introduction to CloudLab

Overview

Teaching: 0 min
Exercises: 0 min
Questions
Objectives

1. What is CloudLab

  • Experimental testbed for future computing research
  • Allow researchers control to the bare metal
  • Diverse, distributed resources at large scale
  • Allow repeatable and scientific design of experiments

CloudLab

2. What is GENI

  • Global Environment for Networking Innovation
  • Combining heterogeneous resource types, each virtualized along one or more suitable dimensions, to produce a single platform for network science researchers”
  • Key components:
    • GENI racks: virtualized computation and storage resources
    • Software-defined networks (SDNs): virtualized, programmable network resources
    • WiMAX: virtualized cellular wireless communication

Berman, M., Chase, J.S., Landweber, L., Nakao, A., Ott, M., Raychaudhuri, D., Ricci, R. , and Seskar, I., 2014. GENI: A federated testbed for innovative network experiments. Computer Networks, 61, pp.5-23.

3. Key experimental concepts

  • Sliceability: the ability to support virtualization while maintaining some degree of isolation for simultaneous experiments
  • Deep programmability: the ability to influence the behavior of computing, storage, routing, and forwarding components deep inside the network, not just at or near the network edge.

4. Hardware

  • Utah/HP: Low-power ARM64 (785 nodes)
    • 315 m400: 1X 8-core ARMv8 at 2.4GHz, 64GB RAM, 120GB flash
    • 270 m510: 1X 8-core Intel Xeon D-1548 at 2.0 GHz, 64GB RAM, 256 GB flash
    • 200 xl170: 1X 10-core Intel E5-2640v4 at 2.4 Ghz, 64 GB RAM, 480 GB SSD
  • Wisconsin/Cisco: 530 nodes
    • 90 c220g1: 2X 8-core Intel Haswell at 2.4GHz, 128GB RAM, 1X 480GB SDD, 2X 1.2TB HDD
    • 10 c240g1: 2X 8-core Intel Haswell at 2.4GHz, 128GB RAM, 1X 480GB SDD, 1X 1TB HDD, 12X 3TB HDD
    • 163 c220g2: 2X 10-core Intel Haswell at 2.6GHz, 160GB RAM, 1X 480GB SDD, 2X 1.2TB HDD
    • 7 c240g2: 2X Intel Haswell 10-core at 2.6GHz, 160GB RAM, 2X 480GB SDD, 12X 3TB HDD
    • 224 c220g5: 2X 10-core Intel Skylake at 2.20GHz, 192GB RAM, 1TB HDD
    • 32 c240g5: 2X 10-core Intel Skylake at 2.20GHz, 192GB RAM, 1TB HDD, 1 NVIDIA P100 GPU
    • 4 c4130: 2X 8-core Intel Broadwell at 3.20GHz, 128GB RAM, 2X 960GB HDD, 4 NVIDIA V100 GPU
  • Clemson/Dell: 256 nodes
    • 96 c8220: 2X 10-core Intel Ivy Bridge at 2.2GHz, 256GB RAM, 2X 1TB HDD
    • 4 c8220x: 2X 10-core Intel Ivy Bridge at 2.2GHz, 256GB RAM, 8X 1TB HDD, 12X 4TB HDD
    • 84 c6420: 2X 14-core Intel Haswell at 2.0GHz, 256GB RAM, 2X 1TB HDD
    • 2 c4130: 2X 12-core Intel Haswell at 2.5GHz, 256GB RAM, 2X 1TB HDD, 2 NVIDIA K40m GPU
    • 2 dss7500: 2X 6-core Intel Haswell at 2.4GHZ, 128GN RAM, 2X 126GB SSD, 45X 6TB HDD
    • 72 c6420: 2X 16-core Intel Skylake at 2.6GHZ, 386GB RAM, 2X 1TB HDD

5. Setup SSH

  • SSH into taz.cs.wcupa.edu or submitty.cs.wcupa.edu and run the following commands:
  • Hit Enter for all questions. Do not enter a password or change the default location of the files.
$ cd
$ ssh-keygen -t rsa

  • Run the following command to display the public key
  • Drag your mouse over to paint/copy the key (just the text, no extra spaces after the last character)
$ cat ~/.ssh/id_rsa.pub

  • Log into CloudLab, click on your username (top right) and select Manage SSH Keys:

  • Paste the key into the Key box and click Add Key:

6. Setup GitHub repository

  • Go to your GitHub account, under Repositories, select New.

  • You can select any name for your repo.
  • It must be public.
  • The Add a README file box must be checked.
  • Click Create repository when done.

  • Click Add file and select Create new file

  • Type profile.py for the file name and enter THIS CONTENT into the text editor.
  • Click Commit new file when done.

7. Setup CloudLab profile

  • Login to your CloudLab account, click Experiments on top left, select Create Experiment Profile.

  • Click on Git Repo

  • Paste the URL of your previously created Git repo here and click Confirm

  • Enter the name for your profile, put in some words for the Description.
  • You will not have a drop-down list of Project.
  • Click Create when done.

  • Click Instantiate to launch an experiment from your profile.

  • Select a Cluster from Wisconsin, Clemson, or Emulab, then click Next.
  • Do not do anything on the next Start on date/time screen. Click Finish.

  • Your experiment is now being provision, and then `booting

  • When it is ready, you can use the provided SSH command to log in to your experiment (assuming your key was set up correctly)

Key Points

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