Subject: Steve Ellis' batch software
Date: Wed, 07 May 1997 14:12:08 EDT
From: "Naomi B. Schmidt" <nschmidt@MIT.EDU>


I'll look through the folder for more info, but here is the
product that Steve Ellis was using.

			Naomi

------- Forwarded Message

Received: from SOUTH-STATION-ANNEX.MIT.EDU by po6.MIT.EDU (5.61/4.7) id AA02339; Fri, 3 Mar 95 10:45:05 EST
Received: from [18.78.0.189] by MIT.EDU with SMTP
	id AA20396; Fri, 3 Mar 95 08:22:25 EST
Received: by mithril.MIT.EDU (5.0/4.7) id AA12030; Fri, 3 Mar 1995 08:20:55 -0500
Message-Id: <9503031320.AA12030@mithril.MIT.EDU>
To: nschmidt@MIT.EDU, tjm@MIT.EDU
Subject: Batch queue software
Date: Fri, 03 Mar 1995 08:20:54 EST
From: Steve Ellis <ellis@MIT.EDU>
Content-Length: 2245


   I have been using Unison software's "Load Balancer" since Christmas,
on a small lab setup of 4 workstations.  Here is a brief summary
of the LB setup:

    1) One machine runs a master daemon that maintains the queue based
       on an ascii config file.  The config file can be updated without
       restarting the system. This config file allows you to establish
       different priorities for classes of jobs, set up different
       workstations to handle different jobs, and control the time a 
       machine is available for batch use, plus a number of other
       parameters. This file allows you to control job placement
       based on type of job, type of machines available, load on the
       machines, time of day, and user attributes.

    2) Each designated batch "processor" workstation runs a local daemon
       to actually run jobs

    3) User and administrator commands are provided to submit jobs, check
       status of jobs and processor machines and maintain the queue

This setup allows a user to run any executable command as a job. It also
allows a wrapper program to be specified to actually run the user's batch
job.  This may be where such tasks as authentication and other Athena specific    
requirements could be placed.  I am not sure I understand enough of the
authentication issues to tell whether this would be sufficient however.

On the whole, the only major complaint I have is that there is only 1
job queue. Using the setup file, I have set up job classes that have
different priorities, but this means that all jobs in the higher priority
class run before any lower ones. A mulitple queue scheme would be more
desireable, but as long as sufficient CPU cycles are available to
provide reasonable turn around times, I don't think it is a critical
flaw. 

Some care would have to be used since a batch command is any executable.
The simplest example I can think of is "xterm". Submiting a batch job
to run xterm is easy, and then gives the user a shell on the batch 
machine. In most cases this is not a desireable feature. 

Documentation is probably the weakest point in this package, but mainly
for the areas of setup and admin. 

Please let me know if you have any specific questions.

Steve

------- End of Forwarded Message