Top Ten Grid Questions Written by Jennifer M Schopf Bill Nitzberg Presented by Allen Lee Also presenting 10 Things We Hate About the Grid Also by Jennifer M Schopf Powerpoint Presentation http www mcs anl gov jms Pubs TopTenTalk ppt Topics Covered How is the Grid different Why isn t the Grid a reality The Grid isn t a new concept Using multiple distributed resources to cooperatively work on a single application has been around for decades Networked OS 70s Distributed OS 80s and 90s Heterogeneous Computing http www acis ufl edu hcw2006 Parallel Distributed Computing Metacomputing http www cnds jhu edu research metacomputing How is a grid different Grids focus on site autonomy Grids involve heterogeneity Grids involve more resources than just computers and networks Grids focus on the user Grid Criticisms The Grid is a solution looking for a problem Grid Criticisms We tried to install Globus and found out that it was too hard to do So we decided to just write our own 1 Why don t Grids have basic functionality yet Grids aren t being used for what they were meant to be Application developers aren t using multiple machines at geographically distant sites to coordinate and solve a single application Used to solve embarrassingly parallel applications such as Seti home and Entropia 1 Why don t Grids have basic functionality yet What is functionality The ability to run an application in a straightforward manner using single commands for a user to just run 1 Why don t Grids have basic functionality yet Running a process isn t simple Steps Determine what software is on the machine and install it then check it Make sure all security credentials are setup certificates keys accounts etc Determine availabile resources Submit to a Grid computer set up environment Run Cleanup 1 Why don t Grids have basic functionality yet The few current users have had to go through heroic measures to achieve any functionality at all Complicated due to socio political problems It is difficult setting up and maintaining a piece of new software on one system let alone many systems Resistance from users who would have to learn a new environment Moral 1 Before we can have a successful Grid we must have a functional Grid Grid Criticisms Cynics reckon that the Grid is merely an excuse by computer scientists to milk the political system for more research grants so they can write yet more lines of useless code Economist June 2001 2 Why aren t there more Grid application developers and users There is a need for user input to guide research but users are hard to find and input is hard to receive despite large communities at NSF supercomputer centers Groups are running specialized code targeted to specific platforms Even when they use the Grid they use it improperly they use it to gain access to specific machines not as the Grid was envisioned 2 Why aren t there more Grid application developers and users Making apps Grid enabled is seen by some as a distraction from getting real science done Grid work is a buzzword for funding but takes away from other software development work Moral 2 Without users there can be no Grid Better software tools to ease transition to a new environment Standards for uniform access to Grid services Deployment of Grid software must be made easier 3 Where are the Grid software tools to aid application developers Parallel programming was difficult so few people attempted it until debuggers fast compilers and other flexible tools were available There is active work on a set of software tools for the Grid such as Globus however it has a steep learning curve 3 Where are the Grid software tools to aid application developers This is due to socio political problems Most projects are academic Little or no funding funding for hardening code Chicken and Egg problem To make tools you need use cases Without tools to use you don t know what to ask for Constructing a reasonable use case is difficult it needs specific details without too much overwhelming detail especially if you don t know what is possible 3 Where are the Grid software tools to aid application developers Different language communication styles Computer Science Centric projects Application Centric Moral 3 The Grid needs tools that facilitate the use of a Grid 4 How do we make Grids secure For many systems the mandatory security is important paragraph is all the depth problem receives GSI is accepted security infrastructure and is used in things such as CVS OpenSSH However that only resolves Authentication 4 How do we make Grids secure Local accounts are still needed and the issue of authorization and usage policy is not address uniformly Moral 4 Without a security infrastructure including higherlevel tools users will not take advantage of the Grid 5 How can we define standard interfaces and definitions for the Grid No simple answer for the following questions How do I run a job on the Grid What sort of monitoring is available Where do I get information about the Grid resources How do I make sure this operation is secure 5 How can we define standard interfaces and definitions for the Grid A lingua franca needs to be created to promote greater interoperability between current tools Lack of agreement between developers over simple terms such as Job Resource 5 How can we define standard interfaces and definitions for the Grid Example Globus Metacomputing Directory Service MDS and Grid Monitoring Architecture GMA MDS concentrates on resource discovery 2 protocols GMA concentrates on the provision of data 3 implementations However rather than interoperate to work off each other s strengths there is little collaboration between these standards interfaces and protocols 5 How can we define standard interfaces and definitions for the Grid The Global Grid Forum has standardization as a goal But so does Peer to Peer Working Group and the New Productivity Initiative for example Who will standardize between the standardization bodies Moral 5 The lack of standards continues to hinder the interoperability needed for the Grid 6 How can we manage variance on the Grid Grid resource behavior is unpredictable Unsure of who else is using a resource and in what way Users want not only fast execution times from their applications but unpredictable behavior and would be willing to sacrifice performance in order ot have reliable run times Moral 6 Varying behavior is a fact in the Grid and must be addressed Teach users how variance can affect their performance Scheduling