SUBJECT:

New Research CyberInfrastructure Service - Introductory Meeting - January 24

I'm pleased to announce the availability of a powerful new computing resource for our researchers, the Triton Shared Computing Cluster (TSCC), a key new component of UC San Diego's Research CyberInfrastructure (RCI) program.

This new research computing resource, housed at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC), is designed to provide campus faculty and staff with a professionally-managed high-performance resource that's both flexible and cost-effective for users. TSCC offers two alternatives for participation:

1. 'Condo' participants purchase the computing nodes they need and pay a nominal annual operating fee which is supplemented by campus via the RCI program. This option is modeled after successful programs at many research universities, and I strongly encourage researchers with their own local clusters to consider this new centralized service.

2. Hotel users can 'pay-as-you-go,' renting cycles without upfront capital costs, similar to the current Triton program.

The TSCC system is scheduled to start in February 2013. Researchers interested in owning their computer resources (condo participants) can order equipment now and their computing nodes will be added to the system within a month; both general computing and GPU nodes are offered. Researchers who prefer to rent computing resources (hotel users) can have immediate access to the existing Triton system and will be transitioned to TSCC; with general computing, large-memory and GPU nodes available.

This new research computer augments the current RCI services that include:
* Centrally managed colocation space to house computer equipment and components
* A high-bandwidth research network to facilitate collaborations and fast data exchanges, and
* Support to agency-mandated data management plans to store, manage and share your research results.

During the coming months, the RCI program will be offering additional campus services focused on reliable storage facilities, data management services, and data preservation. Please join our introductory meeting to discuss the TSCC and other RCI services from 1-2 pm, Thursday, January 24 at the Price Center West Marshall Room.

For more information about the RCI program, please visit the RCI website at rci.ucsd.edu or email rci@ucsd.edu. For specific information about TSCC and its costs, please visit rci.ucsd.edu/computing/.

RCI partners with Administrative Computing and Telecommunications (ACT), the California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (CALIT2), SDSC, UC San Diego Library, and the UCSD Office of Research Affairs to bring these advanced services to our research community.

Sandra A. Brown Vice Chancellor for Research