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> -----Original Message----- > From: Christopher J. Walker [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > Sent: 06 September 2013 12:15 > To: Testbed Support for GridPP member institutes > > On 30/08/13 11:37, Ewan MacMahon wrote: > >> -----Original Message----- > >> From: Testbed Support for GridPP member institutes [mailto:TB- > >> [log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Martin Bly > >> > >> The problem with the central UI service at the Tier1 was not the UI > >> systems in particular, since we had (and still have) them anyway - it > >> was (would be) managing and keeping track of all the remote users. > >> > > Indeed, I don't think there's a simple way around that, but I'd hope > > that there just wouldn't be many users to keep track of; this would > > only be a fallback option for people that don't have their own in > > their departments. > > Whilst I see where you are coming from, I think it's the wrong approach. > What we should do is make the complicated bit easier rather than bodging > around it - and expending lots of effort in the process. > I think it's mostly a question of emphasis in how you define the problem; there's a degree of irreducible complexity in a full-blown UI node - it needs configuration, updates, potential firewall rule changes, package installs as root, and a system running Scientific Linux. If we define the problem as getting users onto the grid with the minimum of hassle, then if we can shift that UI/grid boundary a bit, and make the somewhat complicated thing we currently think of as a UI a service, and make the thing the user has to run much simpler, then more people will be better off. > What I intended to ask Steve to do I estimated as taking a couple of days > work. Given that I always underestimate these things, I'd expect around a > week to get a site-info.def and vo.d files that worked for the operations- > portal VOs and submitted to a WMS that actually worked for the VO in > question. That would be a big step forward I think - especially as the > EMI packages are actually quite easy to install. > I think it sounds like a useful refinement for people like us - I already have nicely maintained SL boxes with cvmfs and UIs; if I can get a well configured UI straight out of cvmfs, it makes my life easier. It's not going to reach potential users who are one or two academics with Windows desktops. If we can offer them something even better (assuming that we decide that in GridPP5 that's actually something we want to do), then that's good too. > For people for whom the command line is challenging, I suspect that > portals using institutional credentials (eg SaroNGS) would be a way > forward. > CertWizard actually takes quite a lot of the scary stuff out of getting a real grid cert, but I think there's room for both. Ewan