Welcome to the University of Pittsburgh Center for Research Computing (CRC)

A Faculty account and the basic resources that come with it are completely free to all Pitt faculty.  

Faculty and Principle Investigators

To get started using CRC resources, University Faculty Members and PIs can request a Faculty User Account. 

This includes:

• a User Account to log in to the clusters with
• a User Account "Group" for you and any users you add (undergraduate/graduate students, post-docs, lab staff, etc.)
• 75 GB "Home" storage locations for you and each other user in your Group
• 5 TB data storage on iX for your Group
  • Built-in fault tolerance at RAID level 6
  • No off-site backups, but 7-day images are maintained
  • $65-per-TB-per-year charge beyond 5 TB
• a "Standard Allocation" of 25,000 service units for compute jobs in SLURM (also called a "SLURM account")
  • Shared between you and the users in your Group
  • Can be used on any cluster
  • Can be renewed annually upon submission of DOIs for any publications or a short description of work done using CRC resources.

Students and Lab Staff

If you are an Undergraduate or Graduate student, Post-doc, Lab Manager, Research Specialist/Technician, etc, a faculty advisior or PI must sponsor your user on their allocation. The fastest method is to have them fill out  and submit the form to request a user account for you. 

The various request forms throughout the website can currently be submitted by anyone with a Pitt ID, but will need approval from the PI. 

FAQ 

What if I need more computing time than 25,000 service units?
Faculty can submit a short proposal requesting more computing time. See the guidelines for proposals. Proposals must be submitted through this form and should include an attached. The portal page also offers a template for proposals and example of a successful proposal.

What software does CRC have available?
The CRC continually updates and expands upon over 400 installed software packages. See the full list of available software. 

How can my students get help?
Users on an active account can submit help tickets to CRC.
You can also contact CRC directly. 
Telephone and walk-in information are available.

Does the CRC offer training?
Alongside offering a variety of workshops and in-class lectures, personal consultations to establish a workflow on the cluster are also available.
See the CRC’s most recent workshops. Recordings are available from the links on the side bar. 

Still have questions? Submit a help ticket!