Sharu Paul

Sharu Paul

Sharu Paul is a Research Scientist at the Genome Informatics Facility at Iowa State University. His background is in Biotechnology with a Ph.D. in Genetics and Genomics. His research is wide-ranging, covering topics from Single-Cell Analyses to the building of Deep Neural Networks. By employing an extensive range of bioinformatic analyses, he seeks to solve big data problems and contributes to developing workshops and tutorials for USDA scientists.

DataScience Workbook / 06: High-Performance Computing (HPC) / 1. Introduction to HPC infrastructure / 1.1. ACCESS - an advanced computing and data resource program

Introduction to ACCESS

ACCESS has now replaced a similar service called the Extreme Science and Engineering Discovery Environment (XSEDE). Similar to ACCESS, XSEDE was a NSF funded collection of supercomputers and high-end visualization and data analysis resources. XSEDE ended on August 31, 2022. Links to archives with more information about XSEDE are available here ⤴.

What is ACCESS?

Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Coordination Ecosystem: Services & Support (ACCESS) is a program funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) to provide researchers and educators access to advanced computing systems and services at no cost. This program aims to support advanced computational research and education by offering outstanding cyberinfrastructure resources.

Who is Eligible?

Researchers or educators at a U.S.-based institution, including federal research labs or commercial organizations are eligible to apply to be a PI for an allocation of compute time and storage. This includes postdoctoral researchers. PIs can share their allocation with graduate or undergraduate students as well as colleagues based outside of the U.S. in accordance with NSF and ACCESS policies. Check out the eligibility ⤴ part of the allocation policy for more details.

ACCESS - getting started

How do I get an Account?

You can Create an Account ⤴ using the link if you are a new user. If you already have an XSEDE account, you can use that to log in to ACCESS. The first step is to apply for a specific project type depending on your needs.

What are Project Types?

There are four different project types available:

  • Explore,
  • Discover,
  • Accelerate, and
  • Maximize.

The project types differ in terms of how much ACCESS credit they allocate to you. The “Explore” project type is a good starting point for a project to get familiar with the ACCESS resources. Check out the Project types ⤴ page for comparison and details. ACCESS credits are like a currency that can be exchanged for different resources.

What are the Available Resources?

There is a whole catalog of resources available to use through ACCESS. Explore the Resource Catalog ⤴ for details. You can filter the list to find the resources you are interested in using. The catalog also lists the recommended uses and user guides for each resource. Once you have selected the resources you want to use, you can ask for allocation on those resources. Use the Exchange Calculator ⤴ to estimate the conversion cost for the resources of your choice.

How do I get an Allocation?

Once you have created your account, log in and Get your first project ⤴ by submitting a request. If this is your first time using ACCESS, it is recommended to start with the “Explore ACCESS” request. The requests are short and have a quick turn around time to get you started with a small but decent allocation to get started. For the Explore ACCESS request you need Project title, abstract, and a CV. For details, check the Get your first project ⤴ page. For more information about how to prepare the request for different project types, check the Prepare Requests ⤴ page.

Guides