How Do I ?
Here are a list of commonly asked questions and answers. If you have any questions which are not on this list, please see the NGS user support page.
- Submit a job
- There are a number of ways to submit jobs depending on your requirements. These include:
- The NGS Portal, for browsing, selecting and tweaking pre-configured application templates for subsequent submit/monitor by a Web browser.
- Log into the NGS WMS Resource Broker to submit and monitor multiple jobs.
- Use the 'globus-job-submit' and 'globus-job-run' commands. These commands allow you to submit jobs that are both interactive (i.e. short-lived) and long running (batch). Please refer to this page for more details.
- Copy data between Grid resources and my desktop
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There are a number of ways to copy data between Grid resources and your local desktop (i.e. upload/download). This includes:
- Use the Hermes desktop GUI which provides drag-n-drop capabilities for copying data between different remote resources and your desktop.
- Use the Sftp client that is in-built with the GSI-SSHTerm desktop application. This can be used to upload and download files between your desktop and the remote Grid resource that you are logged into.
- Use the Globus command line 'globus-url-copy' if you have Globus installed (this is installed on all our Grid resources). Please refer to this page for more details.
- Install the Java CogKit on your desktop and use the Java version of the 'globus-url-copy' command.
- Backup my certificate from my browser
- You will need to backup your certificate and its accompanying private key from your browser by exporting both the cert and the key to a single file. This file will be password protected and has either a '.p12' or a '.pfx' file extension. You can use your browser to do this. Once you have exported your cert and key, you can proceed to the next step below (Install/configure my certificate and setup my desktop ready for using the Grid).
- Install/configure my certificate and setup my computer ready for using the Grid
- Please run the Certificate Management Wizard (also known as 'MyProxyUpload' tool). This application will lead you through exporting your certificate from your browser, configuring your desktop's Grid settings and will deploy necessary CA (Certificate Authority) certificates.
- Install my certificate into a new/different browser
- You may need to install your certificate into a new or different browser. You can do this by first exporting (backing-up) your certificate and key as a .p12/.pfx file as described above and then re-importing this file into the selected browser.
- Resolve the "Illegal Key Size" error when accessing certificate backup files (.p12/.pfx) with the NGS user tools
- If you exported your PKCS#12 file from your browser and used a password that is greater than 7 characters, you will need to download and install the Java Cryptography Extension (JCE) Unlimited Strength Jurisdiction Policy Files so that Java applications such as the Certificate Management Wizard and GSI-SSHTerm can read this file. This is a matter of U.S. policy and U.S. export controls (not due to technical reasons).
- Clear my Java WebStart cache
- You may need to periodically clear your Java WebStart cache and reload your Java WebStart applications from their launch website. This may be necessary if the launch location of the application has changed.
- Join or Start a Virtual Organisation (VO)
- VOMS stands for Virtual Organisation Membership Service. It is used to manage the membership and authorization of users who belong to Virtual Organisations (VOs). VO membership is delegated to the users of the VO who can create and control membership through a VO manager. Being a member of a VO means you do not have to individually register with each resource provider as access can be controlled by VO membership. NGS are in the process of adopting VOMS to authorize NGS members, and in future the number of VOMS-aware resources is likely to increase.
- Compile my own code
- Compiling code on NGS resources is determined by whether a particular site supports this function as part of their Service Level Description. Sites also have a wide variety of compilers and libraries installed such as, gcc or Intel. All of this information can be found on the member site information pages.
Help and Support
if you require assistance please contact the NGS support centre.