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Compute Cluster Introduction

Introduction to the BMRC Cluster

Introduction​

​WIN@BMRC operate a compute cluster formed from rack-mounted multi-core computers. To ensure efficient use of the hardware, tasks are distributed amongst these computers using queuing software. Compute tasks are distributed amongst the cluster in the most optimum manner with available time shared out amongst all users. This means you usually have to wait a while for your jobs to complete, but there is the potential to utilise vastly more compute resources than you would have available to you on a single computer such as your laptop or a workstation.

The BMRC User guides are available at https://www.medsci.ox.ac.uk/divisional-services/support-services-1/bmrc with some additional information, particularly about the fsl_sub submission program we provide detailed in this section.

​The BMRC Cluster

The BMRC cluster consists of main user-accessible computers (some times called Head Nodes) 'cluster1.bmrc.ox.ac.uk' and 'cluster2.bmrc.ox.ac.uk' and a farm of processing nodes which are not directly visible. The two cluster head nodes should only be used to submit tasks. To view results we recommend using the WIN Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) - the hosts accessible via this route can also be used to run simple tasks or interactive analysis tools. All other tasks must be run via the job submission system described below; in this way jobs get shared among the available processing nodes.
BMRC's documentation is available here:
and
Please remember, you must not run compute tasks of any form on the cluster1 and cluster2 computers. Any tasks found running there are liable to be killed as these kind of tasks have resulted in loss of service for all uses at times.

Submitting and monitoring tasks

For details on how to submit and the monitor the progress of you jobs see the BMRC cluster page.

Long Running Tasks

Similar to the OOD cluster, BMRC's cluster does not offer 'infinite' queues. You must break your task up into shorter components or regularly save state to allow restart and submit these parts (or resubmit the job continuing where it left off) using job holds to prevent tasks running before the previous one completes.​