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Glasgow Site report A personal view

This report from the UK HEP System Managers Meeting held in April 2003 provides insights into evolving trends in computing, equipment updates, networking changes, staffing updates, and key concerns regarding self-management, security, and purchasing practices within the HEP system. The report includes details on desktop installations, laptop usage, network upgrades, system hacking incidents, and recommendations for system administrators. It also highlights the collaboration with non-HEP E-Science fields and the increasing importance of E-Science funding for the future. Stay informed on the latest developments in the HEP computing landscape.

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Glasgow Site report A personal view

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  1. Glasgow Site report A personal view David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  2. Trends • Continuing move away from group based to experiment/project based local computing - STOP PRESS - evidence of second thoughts • Reduced importance of PPARC Rolling grant funding • Increased importance E-Science funding • Collaboration with non HEP E-Science • Grid is the future for Monte Carlo and Analysis • Laptops are becoming more important than desktops • Continuing move towards self management and self support of desktops and laptops • Average age of system increasing - no Pentium disposals yet • It’s getting harder going David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  3. Equipment • > 80 Desktop PCs of ages up to ~ 6½ years • Windows 95, NT, 2000, XP • Linux ( RedHat 6.1 and 7.2) • 1 Tbyte File Server ~ 3 years old • RedHat 6.1 with kernel 2.2.19 + NFS3 patches • 2.5 Tbyte File Server - new • just being installed by Will Bell • CDF • original IBM x370 • new Dell cluster • ScotGRID • expecting upgrade via transfer of 5 Tbyte IBM x370 fileserver from ScotGRID-Edinburgh David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  4. Laptops Last year’s slide - • 8 for ScotGRID (organised by P.Millar) • 4 For CDF • 3 For Detector Developers • ?? Personal Mixture of Windows 2000 and Linux Latest count (26/3/03) 25 laptop users David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  5. Networking • within HEP - mostly switched 100baseT • dual 1GBit /s on Campus backbone • Internet connection now bypasses the ClydeNET-MAN/SuperJanet router (that just happens to be on our campus) giving the Glasgow a direct connection to SuperJanet • works fine David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  6. CDF • national CDF procurement • globus toolkit • OpenPBS (?) • D0’s SAM (Sequential data Access via Meta-data http://d0db.fnal.gov/sam/) • 8 x 700 MHz Xeon IBM xSeries 370, 4GB memory, 1TB disk • AIT-3 tape library (no photo) David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  7. 59 IBM X Series 330 dual 1 Ghz Pentium III with 2GB memory • 2 IBM IBM X series 340 dual 1GHz Pentium III with 2GB memory and dual ethernet • 3 IBM IBM X series 340 dual 1GHz Pentium III with 2GB memory and 100 + 1000 Mbit/sec Ethernet • 1 TB disk • LTO/Ultrium Tape Library • Cisco Ethernet Switches • No Myrinet high performance interconnect for MPI style computing David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  8. Desktop Installationand Update • Windows NT • support almost dropped • Windows 2000 • Paul Millar, factory, user, department • Redhat Linux • via m4 generated kickstart file and nfs • minor updates via autorpm (http://www.autorpm.org/) David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  9. Staffing • Rolling Grant • Alan Flavell (incl Dept work) • Stan Thompson (CDF) • JREI - ScotGRID • David Martin • Other • Will Bell • Paul Millar (Laptops, incl Dept work) David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  10. Hacking • 2 incidents - both on Grid Systems • test box with Apache unpatched because it was not thought to be running - actually it had been activated by a software installation performed by a colleague at CERN … got slapper • SucKit rootkit appeared to have been installed during 1 minute logon from CERN from lxplus using a sniffed username and password. • Moral • there aren’t the resources to do things “properly” • failed to spot warning in Tripwire - lost in the noisy report • such incidents are inevitable ScotGRID hacked 25th March 03 new RedHat kernel built 14th March 03 • perhaps we should ban the storage/processing/accessing of sensitive material • but do what we can to prevent such incidents and have a repair kit • recommendRedHat Linux X.Y System Administrator’s Survival CD out of RedHat Linux Professional Box (credit card sized CD) David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  11. Concerns (1) • Self Management • low effectiveness from lack of opportunity to develop and access skill • inefficiency from duplication of effort • Purchasing • poor experience of Linux support from suppliers in PC Purchasing Framework Agreement eg supply of Intel 845G chipset • purchasing Linux systems within the local and legal rules is a problem • how does EU Public Body Purchasing Aggregation Rules work wrt Linux ? David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

  12. Concerns (2) • Security • low security culture • no plan • thought to be technical matter • self management of systems • mixing of research, teaching and administrative IT • insufficient effort to track and apply patches • got stung by SucKIT coming via CERN • patches break things eg OpenAFS • RedHat’s new more commercial Errata Policy - i.e. need RH9 by 1/1/04 • http://www.redhat.com/apps/support/errata/ • do we pay for RedHat Enterprise versions ? • is there an alternative source of security patches ? • do we abandon RedHat ? David Martin / UK HEP System Managers Meeting 28/29 April 2003

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