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Difference between revisions of "Math Account"
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The math account is a username and password that is used to access the math department computing resources.
The old system existed long before NetIDs, and there are many people who are still using their pre-NetID accounts for regular work. Also, there are many rules and constraints to connecting math department machines to the central Cornell system.
The next reason is security. The Math account is controlled by the
▲There's an F.A.Q. below, but we'll answer this one up front. The old system existed long before netids, and there are many people who are still using their pre-netid accounts for regular work. Also, there are many rules and contraints to connecting math department machines to the central Cornell system. The biggest one is performance. Some parts of the system need to make many calls across the network for some operations, and it would be much slower. Also, the central system can be changed without notice, or may go down for maintenance. So we've had better speed and reliability with our separate system.
▲The next reason is security. The Math account is controlled by the netid, such as for password reset, but there is nothing in a person's netid account that is accessible from their Math account. So, math researchers can do what they want, and this separation keeps the Cornell system safe.
In the future, it may be desirable to set up access to the system that uses NetIDs as the primary username. This is possible if it's found to be necessary.
* A consistent desktop environment across all systems, from desktop workstations, to large number crunchers, to pay-as-you-go systems at the Center for Advanced Computing, or Amazon AWS.
* A personal file storage area that is backed up regularly, in your home directory.
* Access to a very large, fast volume for larger datasets, in the <code>/space</code> volume.
* Access to very fast local storage on all of the machines, in <code>/local</code>
* Commercial software such as Matlab, Mathematica, Maple, Magma, and many others, already configured for GPU and cluster access.
* Major free software titles, configured and ready to use, with GPU or cluster support as applicable. These include GAP, pari/gp, Macaulay2, Sage, Python, R, Julia, and many more.
* In-browser access to the Linux desktop environment where all of these tools are available.
Anyone at Math who is a member of the math.instructors group may send an invite to a NetID to set up a Math account, by going to https://accounts.math.cornell.edu/ and clicking the 'invite user' link.
Anyone with a NetID may have a math account, all we ask is that they're respectful of system resources (details below).
Commercial software such as Matlab, Mathematica, and Maple have a limited number of licenses. This means there can only be a certain number of these programs running at any given time in the department (including Math machines running in the cloud). Please don't leave these programs running when they're not in use, since you'll be taking up a license. Priority for these programs is for Math faculty, grad students, and researchers. Right now there is no restriction on who can run these programs, but if people have trouble getting an available license, access may be restricted to certain groups.
Files in your home account, under <code>/homes/{username}</code> are backed up every 24 hours. Please be aware of how much space you are using. A few gigabytes is fine, but large data will fill up our backups. Use the <code>/space</code> volume for that. We don't strictly enforce file quotas, but if there is a problem with accounts filling up, we may have to.
The <code>/space</code> volume is large and fast. You may put large amounts of data into <code>/space</code>, all we ask is that you are a 'good neighbor' and don't abuse the privilege. Files in the <code>/space</code> volume can be read at 10GB/second by the calculation machines. <code>/space</code> is not officially backed up, but we usually make snapshots nightly, just in case. This backup is not guaranteed to happen the way it is for your home account. To use the <code>/space</code> volume, make a directory there whose name is the same as your username. Then you may put whatever you want inside that directory.▼
Each machine has a <code>/local</code> volume. Some are larger than others. They are all VERY fast because they're on the local machine. Remember, the contents of <code>/local</code> will be different on every machine. Just like on <code>/space</code>, you may create a directory with the same name as your username, then put whatever you want inside there. Please be careful not to fill up the volume, use the
=== Connecting to your Math account ===
Connecting is very easy these days. Due to increased security requirements from Cornell, we have a [https://portal.math.cornell.edu/ portal] where all of our in-browser resources are available behind a single Cornell NetID login.
Once logged in, you have a menu with access to various resources. This resource menu will change as it's improved and new services are added.
* '''Web Desktop''' lets you connect to a Math department Linux desktop, inside your browser, without any additional software or VPN.
* '''JupyterHub''' lets you log in to a Jupyter Notebook on any of the systems. You can also open a terminal and transfer files.
* '''Webdisk''' lets you transfer files and do some other operations. It's older and you can do all of this with JupyterHub, but some people still like it.
* '''System Status''' (graphs) lets you see system resource usage in real-time (once a minute) so you can see which systems are busy and what's going on with your jobs.
* '''Wiki''' is a link to this wiki site. You may edit or add pages! Just click 'Log In' and your NetID should appear in the upper right.
* '''Account Settings''' takes you to the 'accounts' page, where you can reset your password, or if you're an instructor, you can invite users and manage your groups.
* '''Print Portal''' allows printing from any network or device, with a login. You must be in the math.dept group to use this. Upload a PDF and print it, from any phone, tablet, or computer. Please only use this when physically present at Malott hall!
These services use your Math username and password. If you're prompted for a password, that's the one to use.
Some of these use your NetID, such as wiki, graphs, or print portal. Since you're already logged in with your NetID, you should not be prompted when you use these services.
Account Settings will always prompt you again for a NetID login, for security reasons.
=== Other Connections ===
You can also connect in more traditional ways, using the Cornell VPN. You can use SSH, SFTP, and other desktop software such as X2GO or Remote Desktop Connection.
▲The /space volume is large and fast. You may put large amounts of data into /space, all we ask is that you are a 'good neighbor' and don't abuse the privilege. Files in the /space volume can be read at 10GB/second by the calculation machines. /space is not officially backed up, but we usually make snapshots nightly, just in case. This backup is not guaranteed to happen the way it is for your home account. To use the /space volume, make a directory there whose name is the same as your username. Then you may put whatever you want inside that directory.
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▲Each machine has a /local volume. Some are larger than others. They are all VERY fast because they're on the local machine. Remember, the contents of /local will be different on every machine. Just like on /space, you may create a directory with the same name as your username, then put whatever you want inside there. Please be careful not to fill up the volume, use the 'df' command to check the percentage of space used.
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