Computing help and supportThe South Wing Computer Room (SWCR) was set up in 2010 as a small research facility (SRF) to provide managed accommodation for rack mounted equipment for research groups. It is overseen by a Management Committee, which derives its authority from the Information Technology Strategy Committee (ITSC), and has representation from Information and Computing Services, Finance, Facilities and significant user groups of the SWCR. The committee meets at least once a Term.
SWCR SRF Committee membership
| Gábor Csányi (Chair) | Division C |
| Paul Taylor | Head of Information and Computing Services |
| Paul Whitehouse | IT Infrastructure Manager |
| Anne Waldock | Finance Manager |
| Rachel McCawley | Head of Building Estate Services |
| Stewart Cant | Division A |
| Phil Woodland | Division F |
The secretary to the committee is Diane Hazell, the ICS administrator (ics-admin@eng.cam.ac.uk).
Charging Structure
All users are charged for keeping computer equipment in the SWCR according to the following schedule.
- Basic users – Serviced Rack Space £125 / month / half-rack (equivalent to £250/month/rack, and £3000/year/rack).
This charge includes all operational, maintenance and recurrent costs, including payment of the Carbon Reduction Levy (estimated at £15/month/rack).
| User | 1/2 x rack, monthly | 1 x rack, monthly | 1 x rack, annually |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic user – Standard Space charge | £125 | £250 | £3000 |
- Server Rental Is a facility where large users can rent computer time. Large users are free to enter into long term agreements with the SWCR management committee under which equipment itself is paid for by the SWCR and rented by the user at an appropriately higher rate.
- Small Users – 2U or less One rack is reserved for Small Users, defined as 2U or less, which can be kept in the SWCR free of charge, with a time limit of one year which will be reviewed.
Adding computing equipment to the SWCR
If you are considering the purchase and installation of equipment in the SWCR you MUST:
- First consider whether central University Information Services (UIS) managed facilities could meet your requirements.
- If UIS-managed facilities cannot meet your requirements contact the ICS Administrator, ics-admin@eng.cam.ac.uk to express your interest in installing equipment in the SWCR.
Please do not purchase equipment before you have received confirmation that it will be possible to install this in the SWCR.
- Your request will be considered based on available space and power.
- You will be required to discuss your requirements with your Divisional IT Staff before purchasing.
- All hosted machines for which ICS is responsible, whether located in Departmental server rooms or in UIS-managed data centres must comply with ICS requirements for hosted servers.
- All requests must be approved by the IT Infrastructure Manager and the SRF Committee before installation can proceed.
SWCR SRF Terms and conditions
- Users of equipment kept in the SWCR should understand that placing their equipment there does not create new responsibilities and liabilities with regards to equipment damage and failure, over and above existing arrangements in the Department.
- The University has an insurance policy, and equipment owners are encouraged to find out about insurance cover and any limitations of liability.
- Equipment under the control of a PI needs to be as contiguous in its placement of the racks as possible, with the maximum current drawn being 32A for every half-rack.
- Small Users – 2U or less need to apply to the Chairman of the SRF Committee Gábor Csányi to agree on placement of their equipment; all equipment must have a valid maintenance contract.
- All equipment must have a valid maintenance contract.
- All users of equipment must agree to and accommodate an annual shutdown procedure in order for electrical testing and maintenance to be undertaken. PIs and end users will be provided with advanced warning of any shutdown procedures.
Hot weather
With the increased occurrence of high summer temperatures, and the limitations of the cooling system in the South Wing Computer Room, the SRF Committee has agreed the following, in order to safeguard the ongoing operation of equipment and the facility:
- Where temperatures are forecast to peak at between 30 and 35 Deg C for one or more days, the Chair of the SRF Committee may require those responsible for equipment in the SRF to reduce the usage of machines to as close to zero as possible. In particular, compute and GPU activity should cease during the forecast high temperatures. Intensive use of file servers, for example to support compute activity on systems elsewhere in the Department, should also cease.
- Where temperatures are forecast to peak at 35 Deg C or above for one or more days, the Chair of the SRF Committee may require all equipment in the SRF to be shut down completely for the duration of the forecast high temperatures.
Where possible, those responsible for equipment will be given at least 24 hours’ notice of such requirements.
Contact
- SWCR SRF Management Committee: Chairman – Gábor Csányi
- Computing: ics-admin@eng.cam.ac.uk
- Grant proposal details: research-applications@eng.cam.ac.uk