Site Report

1. Site Report Stephan Wiesand DESY -DV - May 24, 2004

2. Platforms • Windows • XP replacing NT4 and 2k on desktops & machine controls • new server installations are Windows 2003 Server • Solaris/SPARC: 2.6 - 9 (mainstream: 8) • last Solaris/x86 to go this year • Linux/x86 • DL5 (SuSE 8.2) replacing DL4 (SuSE 7.2) • to come: Linux/amd64 • HP-UX, IRIX: gone or scheduled to go; AIX: few servers • w/o central support: debian/x86, RedHat 7, some OS X ...

3. Windows • new domain win.desy.de in production since January • XP, 2003 • migration from old domain in progress • more than 1000 accounts and 500 PCs exist in new domain • several smaller groups already migrated completely • largest group of Windows users (Hasylab) started in April • Samba Server migrated to 3.02 • other groups begin with smaller work groups or projects • Samba 3.02 print server is a domain member

4. Linux • DL5 (SuSE 8.2) rollout in progress (25% done) • support for base distribution ends April 2004 • 9.0 patches will help for another 6 months • successor - better: continuation - needed early next year • DL5 is most likely the last DESY Linux based on SuSE • if a common HEP distribution with long lifetime is available and affordable, that's what we'll use • started looking at Scientific Linux • thanks to Fermilab for providing this! • current version seems very compatible with DL5 (for users) • purchase of licenses is an option - if price/value ratio ok

5. Linux/amd64 • aka ia32e aka x86_x64 • first test system is a success • IBM eServer 325, 2 x Opteron 246 (2.0 GHz), 4 GB RAM • SuSE 9.0 Professional/amd64 • performs superior to fastest Xeon Systems (3.2 GHz) • except FP • ROOT applications especially fast, benefit from 64bit mode • deployment of a small number of production systems soon • seamless integration is relatively easy • concern: cernlib dependency locks users into 32bit past

6. GRID • participation in D-GRID and EGEE • DESY Grid Testbed2 in operation, see http://grid.desy.de • complete LCG2 site, including RB and BDII

7. Grid Testbed2 • operated in Hamburg on Red Hat 7.3.3 systems • includes nodes in Zeuthen, running on DL5 • running: WN, CE, UI; in preparation: SE, RB • data management service includes SRM and GridFTP • SE with dCache backend developed & being tested • resources are included in LCG2 head site at CERN • D-GRID partners are using DESY's ResourceBroker • DESY is Tier 0 and Tier 1 center for HERA • VOs exist for the active HERA experiments, linear collider activities, international lattice data grid

8. Security • rules for individually maintained systems are in effect now • regular scans from outside our firewall • of all hosts with any port open through firewall • for open ports and known vulnerabilities • by commercial service provider • access to mail servers now by imaps only • got rid of clear text protocols pop and imap • automated deployment of patches • linux, old NT domain (netinstall), new XP domain (SUS) • policies still evolving

9. Security continued • due to recent sasser threat, manually checked ALL notebooks brought on site for two days • only a few systems got infected • increased update frequency for virus signatures • update server: hourly, client: every three hours • a few users were tricked into installing Bagle.J • lesson: treat encrypted attachments like executables, and quarantine them • firewall now inhibits outgoing SMTP, except for approved mail servers • imagine all sites and providers did that

10. Mail & Groupware • MS Exchange 2003 • only candidate for a DESY-wide central service • planning integration into new windows domain • may also become the solution for Linux/Unix users • evaluating Exchange Connector for Ximian Evolution • but has many requirements • library versions not available from distributions (incl. SL3) • deployable without red carpet ? • no successful test installation yet • consolidation of mailing list administration • will move from PMDF to Sympa, for whole lab

11. Web Office • support for any DESY group providing web content • centrally supported servers • setup with load balancing & failover • full access to backend services like oracle • Zope application server • ZMS content management system • instantiation of new virtual sites within minutes • including structure and design

12. Disk Storage • HP MSA 1000 • systems installed in Hamburg & Zeuthen • used for Windows home directories • experience is good, system is easy to handle • performance problems for NT4 Clients to W2K3 server • probably not the devices fault... • StorageTek D178 • systems installed in Hamburg & Zeuthen • not without flaws • several downtimes (planned & unplanned) during past year • FC, SAN & $$ no guarantee for availability

13. Disk Storage (medium grade) • continuous demand for high volume affordable storage • dCache read cache; MC/data accessible by NFS, AFS, CIFS • no way to provide this but IDE-RAID • past: 3ware Escalade (still used in workgroup servers) • now moving to SCSI/FC attached subsystems • Infortrend IFT6xxx, more recently: EonStor A16xx (SATA) • better MTBF of disks (due to lower vibrations ?) • EonStor teething problems (still frequent firmware upgrades necessary, controller chip data corruption issue in 2003) • dCache still detects data corruption at 1E-12 level • first linux AFS fileservers with O(TB) partitions/volumes

14. Miscellaneous News • batch: SGE(EE) • test installation in Hamburg is up (production is LSF) • has been in production on common farm in Zeuthen for years • now running with krb5 integration (through arcX) • acron/arc successors from two student projects available • k5cron (Hamburg) & arcX (Zeuthen) - see talk by W. Friebel • draft of common usage regulations well advanced • planning an infiniband evaluation cluster for this year • new 155Mb/s connection Hamburg-Zeuthen with flat fee • allows projects impossible before (alas, still no redundancy)