Online: CSC Computing Environment, Part 1: Basics

Are you planning on using CSC’s high-performance computing (HPC) services (Puhti, Mahti, Allas…) in the near future? Have you been using these services already, but would like to make sure you are getting the most out of them? This intensive course is intended for you! (Please check the course prerequisites before registering – this is not a Linux101 course)

This online course consisting of 2 half-day sessions focuses on using the CSC HPC environment, which has been tailored to be easy and efficient for research and development use. The CSC services (Puhti, Allas…) discussed in this course are free-of-charge for academic research, education and training purposes in Finnish higher education institutions and in state research institutes (subsidized by the Ministry of Education and Culture, Finland). This course is also suitable for company representatives who are curious about HPC and want to learn about CSC’s computing resources and how to access and use them.

Note, that this is a shorter version of the previous CSC Computing Environment courses. Course “CSC Computing Environment, Part 2: Next steps” is organised 30.-31.10.-24, and requires separate registration.

Prerequisites

Before the course you need (see below for more details): 

• Basic Unix skills 
• CSC credentials & project
• Laptop with Zoom (and an SSH client)

To help and make sure the course participants have the needed prerequisites & skills, we have created a small self-learning course / skill test in eLena: “Basic Command Line skills“.

Please register and complete this prerequisite course before the actual course! We have a lot of topics to cover and cannot support login or very basic linux issues during the course.

1. Basic Unix skills are needed: how to move in directories, copy and edit files – basic command line usage (ls, cp, cd, nano, more, cat, echo, mkdir, rm, tar … ). If you’re not familiar with these, you can prepare by going through the recommended material (below). If you are unsure of the level, please contact us! Here are some links for easy self-study:
   • Linux command line and tutorials that you can do in your browser 
   • CSC’s Linux 1 course materials (check the materials links)
   • Basic Linux Commands 10 min tutorial video (sit back and watch)
   • CSC Linux Cheat Sheet (one page summary of the most important Linux commands – handy to have near you during the course)
   • Linux basics tutorial for CSC (thorough guide including also topics covered in the course)
   • Introduction to Linux tutorial videos (Chapters 4, 5)
2. In case you do not have an account for CSC’s services yet, please apply for one before the course – it is needed for the tutorials & exercises. Membership of a computing project with access to Puhti and Allas is also required (FAQ: Do I have a project?). Please contact us (servicedesk@csc.fi) if you have difficulties with these steps!
3. A computer with Zoom and an SSH client (see more about connecting here -one option is to use Puhti web interface).

We will organise a support session on Wednesday 25.9. at 14:00 where you can get help if there are any problems with these preparatory steps. 

Tentative schedule:

Wednesday 2.10. 9:00-12:00

• Overview, connecting, disk areas, module system, batch jobs

Thursday 3.10. 9:00-12:00

• Understanding batch job resource usage, Allas

(+ support session on Wednesday 25.9. 14:00 as part of Weekly User coffee for accessing course materials and resources. Please note that we start the course assuming that you have succesfully logged in to Puhti at least once before the course – this session helps you in the first steps on your way to mastering CSC’s HPC environment!)

Learning outcomes

After completing this course and self-studies, you should have the necessary knowledge needed to use CSC’s computing environment efficiently in different phases of your research/development projects, where to look for specific information and how to learn more.

The trainers: Maria Lehtivaara, Rasmus Kronberg, Ari-Matti Saren, Atte Sillanpää, Kimmo Mattila, Laxmana Yetukuri, Xavier Anthony Raj, Nino Runeberg, Anni Järvenpää, Eetu Huusko

Course materials: Before the course you will get access to the course materials in our eLena e-learning platform