Requesting Resources From IRIS

RSAP Process

The IRIS Delivery Board has mandated that Resources be allocated to its collaborating members via a scrutiny process based mainly on the successful CERN Computing Resources Scrutiny process (CRSG) http://wlcg.web.cern.ch/collaboration/management/computing-resources-scrutiny-group with additions from the DIRAC Resource Allocation Committee processes https://dirac.ac.uk/resource-allocation-committee/

  • The Delivery Board has created a body, the Resource Scrutiny and Allocation Panel (RSAP), to recommend allocations of IRIS resources to members of the IRIS Collaboration.  Every year the RSAP should scrutinize the following:
  • The resource accounting figures for the preceding year
  • The use the Projects made of these resources
  • The overall request for resources for every Project for the following year and forecasts for the subsequent two years
  • The RSAP shall also examine the match between the resource requests and available (actual and predicted) IRIS resources.
  • The RSAP shall make recommendations concerning apparent under-funding

Every year the RSAP will make resource allocations to Projects: –

  • Each year the RSAP will communicate its Allocation Recommendations to the IRIS DB for approval
  • Each year the RSAP will communicate its Allocation Recommendations to the IRIS Technical Working Group for implementation.
  • It should be noted that this is not an application process.
  • Rather it is a regularly organized opportunity for Collaborating members of IRIS to make Resource Requests to IRIS so ensure already approved activities can be carried out.
  • The RSAP may need to alter Resource Requests if there are not enough resources. For example, the application of a common % reduction in Resource Requests to all Requests is a way to ensure the Allocations do not exceed available resources. In such an example smaller Resource Requests may be protected to ensure Project viability.
  • However, the RSAP is expected to use its judgement and experience when deciding allocations.
  • The use a Project’s makes of its previous year’s allocation may affect the size and nature of future awards.

Resources will be granted to Approved Activities. In the main Approved Activities means:

  • Resource requests from already peer reviewed PPAN Activities
  • Provision being made for Facilities themselves, and users with awarded time.
  • Approved activates for partner facilities outside of STFC

Approved Activities should not face double jeopardy in respect of the science or the fundamental need for computing resources for production work, i.e. they should NOT have to re-present science cases. They should however have to justify their requested computing resource volumes needed to do their approved science programmes.

Non-approved Activities should be subject to appropriate peer review scrutiny of science and computing resources.

  • For the Facilities requests that might fall into this category the case should be considered by the ALC and the Chair of the RSAP
  • For PPAN activities The DIRAC RAC will be used to facilitate a peer review process to scrutinize non-approved Activities
  • Anything falling outside of the above will be considered on a case by case basis by the Chair of the RSA.

There are several documents from the 2018/9 round to help you navigate this process.  These can be found under Documents.

Your contacts are

Application for Small Activities / Seedcorn time

The purpose of this scheme is to provide a light-touch review process for modest allocations of Iris computing time and/or storage for Activities in the following categories:

  • Small activities requiring some 10s to 100s of cores for a short time, whether peer reviewed or not;
  • Seedcorn projects;
  • Activities starting in year (out of RSAP cycle) who need to get going and then submit full RSAP docs next year;
  • and possibly other categories as arise from time to time.

These all require relatively modest resource, generally for a limited time in the first instance.

See the application form and further instructions elsewhere on this site.