High Performance Computing

The Partnership for an Advanced Computing Environment (PACE) serves the Georgia Tech community with a sustainable, leading-edge high performance computing environment.

All academic and research faculty participating in PACE are automatically granted 1TB of project storage and a number of credits equivalent to 10,000 CPU-hours (per month) on a 192GB compute node. PACE also provides student access and regular entry level to advanced level training for anyone interested.

PACE Services

• Phoenix  – The Phoenix cluster is the largest computational resource in PACE. It ranked #277 on the November 2020 Top500 (top500.org) list of world-wide supercomputers.
• Firebird  – The Firebird cluster supports research involving Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), including ITAR and other forms of protected data.
• ICE – The Instructional Cluster Environment is an educational resource separate from production research resources intended to provide students at the undergraduate and graduate level with an opportunity to gain first-hand scientific computing experience including HPC and GPU programming.
• OSG – The Open Science Grid is a national, distributed computing partnership for data-intensive research. PACE operates resources that participate in OSG, supporting various projects including LIGO, VERITAS, and CTA.
• ScienceDMZ – The PACE ScienceDMZ uses Globus to facilitate high-speed data transfers between PACE and research cyberinfrastructure.
• Archive storage – Archival storage is a low-cost storage tier designed for long-term storage of data sets, and can be included as a key component of data management plans.

For further information on available services and to engage with PACE please visit the PACE website.

If you don't see what you're looking for here, please feel free to submit a question through our helpdesk and someone will contact you as soon as possible.

1. What computer should I purchase?

Georgia Tech provides recommended hardware specifications for student computers. Before purchasing a computer, review the requirements listed on the Georgia Tech Hardware Recommendations website:

• Hardware Recommendations

Note: In COE and ME, we also have virtual labs (VLAB) students can access from their web browsers or Citrix Workspace App in order to use most of their course-specific software. VLAB software runs on the virtual lab server hardware, so the laptop hardware becomes less relevant when using VLAB. Please see notes on access to VLAB below.

2. How do I access VLAB?

COE and ME/NREMP students have access to virtual desktops with course specific engineering software pre-installed (CAD, MATLAB, LabView, etc), access to campus student printers, and network storage.

The COE VLAB is intended to support all engineering students, while ME/NRE VLABs are available to specific ME & NRE courses. ME & NRE VLAB access is granted only to students, instructors, and other authorized users associated with a specifically supported ME or NRE course. Access is based on official course participation and is not granted for general use. 

The portal access can be found here: https://mycloud.gatech.edu/

Courses currently supported for ME & NRE VLABs include:

Important: The list of supported courses may change. Enrollment in an ME or NRE program does not automatically provide access to the ME & NRE VLAB. Users must be associated with an approved course.

3. What activities are permitted in the ME/NRE VLAB?

The ME & NRE VLAB is intended exclusively for instructional activities associated with supported ME and NRE courses. It may not be used for:

• Faculty, staff, or student research
• Independent projects that are not part of an approved course
• Student organization or competition team activities
• Administrative or departmental work
• Personal or other non-course-related activities

Users who need computing resources for research or another non-course purpose should work with their faculty sponsor.

4. How is software selected for the ME & NRE VLABs?

Software installed in the ME & NRE VLAB is based on annual requests from teaching faculty. Applications are installed and maintained specifically to support instructional requirements.

Note: Woodruff School IT does not install additional software for research, personal projects, or other non-course-related activities. Students should not submit software installation requests directly.

5. How do teaching faculty request ME & NRE VLAB software for a course?

Faculty who would like to use the ME & NRE VLABs for course delivery should submit notice to Woodruff School IT at support@me.gatech.edu

The notice should identify:

• The course number and section
• The instructor or designated course contact
• The expected number of students
• The semester in which delivery is needed
• The software required for the course
• Any anticipated modules, storage, or hardware requirements

Notice should be communicated before the end of the semesterly VLAB survey to ensure adequate time for access configuration, software installation, licensing assessment, and testing activities.

6. Where can I find software provided directly from GT?

The Office of Information Technology has made agreements with various software distributors in order to supply the campus community with their software needs. To use the website, you must meet the following requirements:

• You must be a current Georgia Tech student, faculty, or staff.
• You must have access to active GT-VPN or the GT Network.
• You must have an active GT Account.

OIT Software

7. AI: Pro License Eligibility and Funding (ChatGPT EDU, M365 Copilot)

a.) Who receives school-funded Pro AI licenses?
School-funded licenses are provided to teaching faculty, administrative faculty, and staff.

b.) I am funded by sponsored research. Can I receive a license?
Yes. Licenses for personnel supported by sponsored research must be purchased using the appropriate sponsored project funding source.

c.) How do I request a license funded by a sponsored project?
Complete the request form and indicate the funding source:

• License Request Form

I believe I should have received a school-funded license but did not. What should I do?
Please contact IT and confirm that your position qualifies for a school-funded license. We will review the situation and correct any allocation errors if a license was missed in error.

8. How do I connect to GT Wifi?

• Connect to GT Wifi 

9. Where do I manage my GT user account, sponsor a guest or setup 2FA?
 

You can manage multiple aspects of your GT account including:

• Password resets
• Sponsoring a Guest Account
• Two-Factor Settings
• GT Emergency Notification System (GTENS)

at GT Passport: Passport