CCLS Cluster Computing Resources

This website describes the SFSU Center for Computing for Life Sciences (CCLS) cluster computing resources, how to request access to them, and information on how to best utilize the clusters. A cluster is simply a number of computers which are connected by a network and work closely together such that they can be viewed as a single computer. The computational power of a cluster is more-or-less proportional to the number of processors in the cluster. Clusters are well-suited to running parallel computations. Parallel computations can be used to solve problems that can be divided into many smaller-sized independent problems where the solution to the entire problem can be found by combining the solutions to the smaller problems. Some examples include: applications to predict molecular structure (such as protein folding), gene sequence searches (such as BLAST searches), and applications for genome clustering (such as phylogentics).

CCLS Clusters

Dell HPC Cluster		Instructional Cluster
10 nodes 4 processors each	The CCLS Dell PowerEdge Cluster is a high-performance computer cluster designed for general scientific, technical, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) research in the field of life sciences.	6 nodes 2 processors each	The CCLS Instructional Cluster provides an environment where Computer Science and Biology students can gain hands-on experience in designing and executing parallel computations and is a key component to our undergraduate and graduate educational program.

Getting Access and Using the Clusters

• Request Cluster Account to request an account on a cluster
• Request Software Installation on the Cluster
• Computing Resource Use Policy
• Perl Tutorials
• Current Cluster Users
• A Brief Overview of the CCLS Cluster Computing Program for CSUPERB

Other Clusters available to SFSU Researchers

Dr. Barry Levine is working with the Institute for Informatics and Automation Problems, National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia Armcluster. In the spirit of cooperation, they have graciously offered usage of their cluster. Contact Dr. Barry Levine for details and access information.