On-HBS-Campus

To connect to the HBSGrid from on-campus, you must be connected to the HBS Network via either a wired ethernet connection or the HBS Secure Wireless Network.

Off-HBS-Campus

From off-HBS-campus, the HBSGrid can only be accessed through a virtual private network (VPN) connection using the Pulse Secure software. A VPN ensures that all communication between your computer and grid resources are encrypted. Harvard University also mandates that all persons accessing sensitive systems use two-factor authentication as a part of their login process.

Persons with HBS-issued desktops and laptops may already have the necessary software. If you need to re-download, re-install, or download a new version of the software (e.g., VPN with two-factor), it can be found here.

Collaborators and guest users can download the VPN Pulse Secure software (with two-factor) here for PC or Mac.

Please ensure that the VPN software Pulse Secure has been installed as described in the previous step, and that the Duo Mobile app (or some other two-factor authentication method), also described above, has been installed and registered/configured.

For connecting to the HBS campus network, please follow the appropriate section on the VPN/DUO Quick Reference Guide. For example, to connect to the VPN with Duo Mobile 'push' using the smartphone mobile application, please see Section 3, steps 1 and 5 through 8.

If you wish to use applications on the HBSGrid via a graphical user interface (GUI), we support remote desktop sessions using the NoMachine NX client software. Like Windows RDP or VNC running Stata on the cluster looks like running Stata on your desktop, for example. An additional application to run X11 (a long-established Unix graphics windows system) such as Xming or XQuartz is not needed. With NoMachine, Unix/Linux knowledge is not required.

Note: NoMachine also has a browser-based interface which you can connect to at: https://hbsgrid-nx.hbs.edu:4443/nxwebplayer. However, we've found connection speeds of the installed softwareto be significantly faster.

Local Client Installation

1. Please download for Mac or PC and run the NoMachine version 6 installer application on your desktop (use all default settings during the installation).
2. After the desktop installation is complete, please restart your machine before proceeding.

Local Client Connection

On the Welcome page, click on “Create a new connection” and click "Continue."

On the "New connect" screen use the default Protocol setting "NX" and click "Continue." Next, enter host information for the compute grid, hbsgrid-nx.hbs.edu, on port 4000. Ensure the checkbox for UDP communication is checked and click "Continue."

On the next screen choose "Password" selected and click "Continue." Next, please check "Don't use a proxy" check and click "Continue." Select the checkbox for "Create a link on the desktop," and click "Continue."

Next click "Settings" in the top right corner, click "Privacy", and check the option "Don't show other computers on the network," and click "Done."

Highlight the hbsgrid-nx.hbs.educonnection and click "Connect."

In the window "Verify host authenticity", click "Yes." Next enter your username and password. For security purposes, do not select "Save this password."

After a few moments, a window will appear for windowing options. Click "New virtual desktop or custom session," click "Create a new GNOME virtual desktop” and click "Continue."

On the next few pages leave the default setting and check "Don't show this message again."

The virtual desktop then appears. Congrats. You are now on one of two login nodes that are the gateway to the Grid!

Configure Your Desktop

If you find that your desktop is the wrong size (e.g., is larger than the window containing it) you can adjust it via the NoMachine settings page. When you hover over the upper right corner of the screen a page peel-back icon appears. Click on the image of the peel-back.

Next click on "Display" and "Resize remote screen" and click "Done" twice. For more details about configuring your display you may refer to the NoMachine documentation.

The Grid runs the Gnome desktop and includes "Tweak Tool", a configuration utility for customizing your desktop. For example, to add icons back to your NoMachine desktop, launch Tweak Tool

and click on the Desktop left tab (1) and turn on the Icons on Desktop option (2):

More information about configuring NoMachine and the Gnome desktop are available in our NoMachine Interface Changes guide.

PC

If using an HBS-owned machine, the SSH client SecureCRT should already be installed. For all other machines, please download SecureCRT here.

Open SecureCRT and select from the menu File > Quick Connect.

3. Enter the hostname information, hbsgrid.hbs.edu, your username (e.g., jharvard), and click “Connect.”

4. Several dialogue boxes may come appear; please press "Yes" or “Allow” for each. When prompted, please enter your HBS password.

If you’ve logged in successfully, you'll see a last login, greeting, and quota information, as well as the Unix (bash) prompt researchgrid$.

For future logins, after opening SecureCRT, the Sessions Manager window pane appears on the left. Double click on hbsgrid.hbs.edu to connect, and enter your password when prompted.

Once logged in successfully, you’ll be placed in your home directory at:

/export/home/<group>/<username> (e.g. /export/home/faculty/jharvard).

Project spaces are located at:

/export/projects/<projectname>

See our Research Storage instructions for more information on home folders and project spaces.

Continue on to our Running Jobs section for instructions on getting work done.

Guest Users can download Putty to gain terminal access to the HBS grid. Download Putty from this URL.

Mac

1. Open Terminal
2. Once the Terminal is open type: ssh  username@hbsgrid.hbs.edu
3. Your username is the local part of your HBS email address (e.g., jharvard) and your password is the same as your HBS credentials password

Once logged in successfully, you’ll be place in your home directory at /export/home/<group>/<username> (e.g., /export/home/faculty/jharvard).

Project spaces are located at /export/projects/<projectname>.

See our Research Storage instructions for more information on home folders and project spaces.

Continue on to our Running Jobs section for instructions on getting work done.

Guest Users

Guest Users can download Putty to access the HBSGrid via terminal sessions.

Once logged in successfully, you’ll be place in your home directory at /export/home/<group>/<username> (e.g., /export/home/faculty/rcs_jharvard).

Project spaces are located at /export/projects/<projectname>

See our Research Storage instructions for more information on home folders and project spaces.

Continue on to our learn about transferring and prepaing your data files and starting your analyses.