CS 599: Projects, Fall 2000

Overview of Projects

Students should use the class project to explore a topic that we have covered in the course more deeply. There are two types of projects: surveys of papers on particular research topics, and projects that involve experimentation with grid computing tools such as Globus, Condor, Legion, scheduling tools, network performance tools, etc.

Final project reports should be approximately 8 to 10 pages in length.

Important Dates:

October 12: Half-page project proposal due

November 9: One-page project progress report due

December 7: Final project report due


Survey Papers

Students writing a survey paper on a particular topic should read and summarize at least 8 technical papers. Besides discussing previous work on the topic, the ideal survey paper should also include an evaluation of different techniques to identify which algorithms are preferred and a discussion of outstanding research issues.

Students who do survey papers should work invidually.

Students are encouraged to choose their own survey paper topics based on their interests. Examples of topics include:

(1) Resource management in grids using advanced reservations:
This paper would survey the issues in providing advanced reservations, touching on the needs of schedulers in grid environments. The paper could also look at examples of advanced reservations in network environments and comment on extending these techniques to storage systems and computational resources.

(2) Scheduling strategies for grid computing:
Present a survey of traditional scheduling algorithms for parallel computers. Next, explain how scheduling algorithms must change in grid environments. Then, present a survey of existing grid scheduling technologies for scheduling, including GARA, AppLes, Condor matchmaking, Legion scheduling, etc. Compare the various approaches and identify the most promising approaches.

(3) The use of objects in Legion:
Discuss the Legion object-oriented approach to managing computation, network and data resources. Use examples from various papers to describe the impact of the object model on the architecture, security model, I/O performance, etc. Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of using a model like Legion objects instead of the Globus bag-of-services model. Present real-world examples of the use of Legion.

Experimental Projects

Students can choose to experiment with grid-related software. In some cases, they may conduct projects under the guidance of a member of the globus team. In other cases, the students may independently experiment with software. Note that experimental projects are not limited to Globus tools. Students are welcome to use other tools such as Condor, Legion, etc.

Students are allowed to work in groups of two. With special permission, students can work in groups of three. However, with more students working on the project, the expectations of results will increase.

Note that members of the Globus team will have limited time this semester to support students. Students who choose to do experimental projects should not expect a high level of user support!

At the end of the semester, the students should produce a project report. It should include an overview discussion of the tools the students investigated, a detailed description of the experimental plan and methodology the students used, and a clear presentation of whatever results were generated during the work.

Again, students are encouraged to define their own projects based on their interests. Examples of possible projects include:

(1) Using globus tools to perform replica selection

This project would require the students first to learn the LDAP directory access protocol. Next, the students would need to learn about globus information services, including the MDS, the replica catalog, and the Network Weather Service. The students could experiment with existing catalogs to locate replicas of data and to select among them based on current network performance.

(2) Experiments with Condor

The students should first learn about Condor. Next, the students might volunteer to participate in the SETI at home cluster, and observe how their machines are used. They could do overall research on SETI, explaining its approach and results. Finally, if the students have access to a cluster of machines, they could create a Condor pool and experiments with submitting jobs to the pool. This might involve having applications and resources advertise their needs and capabilities using classified ads, and matching these via the matchmaker protocol.