ColdFront Allocation Dashboard

ColdFront is an open-source resource allocation management system that FAS RC adapted to help groups manage their storage allocations and compute usage on the FAS RC cluster.  The dashboard supports the viewing and management of lab groups (Projects) and their storage and cluster allocations (Allocations).

Accessing Coldfront

To access Coldfront, connect to the FAS RC VPN and log in using your FASRC username and password. If you have difficulties with your password, you can reset it. You may also need to clear the cache on your website browser.

Homepage

After logging in to the dashboard, you will see a home page, with sections for your projects, storage allocations, and any pending requests or change requests for your allocations.

Click the Projects link or Allocations option to view details about a given project or allocation.

Project Pages

The Project page allows all project members to:

• view the project’s storage allocations
• view the project’s group members
• adjust project notifications

General Managers, Storage Managers, and PIs can (see below for further information about roles/responsibilities):

• request new storage allocations
• request changes to existing storage allocations

General Managers, Access Managers, and PIs can:

• add members to the project
• remove members from the project

PIs can:

• edit the roles of project members (i.e., assign or remove Manager status)

Project Allocations

The Project Allocations page provides a comprehensive view of the group’s storage allocations, showcasing detailed information including total allocation size, overall usage, and estimated monthly cost.

To view further information about the storage allocation, select View Details. The new page will display detailed information about the storage allocation, including a list of group members with data stored in the directory. Data housed in the storage allocation will be displayed in the table regardless of the active status of the original owner. If a dataset was generated by a lab member who has left the lab or university, but the data still resides in the lab folder, the individual will be listed in the member list, as they are the original owner.

Project Membership and Roles

PIs, Access Managers, and General Managers can see the option to add and remove members from the project in the group membership table. PIs and General Managers can additionally edit the roles of project members and send emails to project members that have elected to receive notifications.

The Project roles correspond to the roles as described in FASRC Roles and Responsibilities:

• PI. This role is automatically assigned to the group’s sponsor and/or PI and cannot be assigned to another Project member. The PI can:
  • Request new storage allocations
  • Request changes to existing storage allocations
  • Add and/or remove project members
  • Change the roles of existing project members
• General Manager. General Managers are assigned by PIs. They have all the permissions of a PI, save the ability to assign a General Manager role to other project members.
• Storage Manager. Storage Managers are assigned by PIs and General Managers. Storage Managers can:
  • Request new storage allocations
  • Request changes to existing storage allocations
• Access Manager. Access Managers are assigned by PIs and General Managers. Access Managers can:
  • Add and/or remove project members
• User. Project members can view project and allocation information. They cannot modify the project membership or storage allocations.

Requesting a New Storage Allocation:

PIs, General Managers, and Storage Managers can request a new storage allocation or make changes to existing project allocations in Coldfront.

To request a new allocation:

1. Go to the Project Allocations section and select Request New Storage Allocation.
2. Fill out and submit the allocation request form. You may need a 33-digit billing code to submit the request.
3. You will be notified via email when your new allocation is ready to use. It may take up to a week for the allocations to be created.

Allocations can be requested on several of the FAS RC storage offerings. To explore and understand the specifics of each storage option, please refer to our Data Storage Workflows documentation.

Submitting an Allocation Change Request:

PIs, General Managers, and Storage Managers can request a change to the size of a storage allocation associated with their project. Follow these steps to initiate the process:

1. Navigate to the Project Allocations section and the allocation you wish to modify.
2. Select the Request Allocation Change option.
3. In the resulting form, shown below, enter the total desired size of the allocation (TiBs) and the justification for the changes and click submit.
   1. For example, if your lab has a 15TiB storage allocation and you are requesting an additional 5TiB, you would input 20TiB as the requested new value.
4. You will be notified via email when the allocation is updated and ready to use. Space permitting, we try to fulfill change requests within 3-5 business days.

Allocation History

The Allocation History section showcases all of the storage allocations that have been associated with the group over time, including storage allocations that have been deactivated. It also lists the dates when the allocations were created or deactivated.

Group Membership

The Users section features a table illustrating usage per group member, with data sourced and updated daily from our data visualization tool, Starfish.

PIs, General Managers, and Access Managers can add or remove group members using the provided buttons.

PIs and General Managers can also modify the role of the individual by clicking Actions and selecting the desired role based on the available options in the dropdown menu. 

For more information about the available storage offerings, including their features and costs, please review the Data Storage Workflow documentation on our website.

If you have any questions, please email us at rchelp@rc.fas.harvard.edu.