GITC4320

GITC 4320 Data Center

Purpose of GITC 4320

The purpose of the GITC 4320 data center is to host physical machines purchased by researchers.

In general, these machines provide capabilities that cannot be accommodated by NJIT's high performance computing (HPC) clusters.

GITC 4320 Capabilities

The GITC 4320 data center provides:

Power, including UPS
Data center-grade networking
HVAC
Rack/pod
Enterprise-level backups
Physical and network security
Self-service on-demand access
- Researchers can install computational resources and bring them on-line without coordinating with CST or waiting for DNS assignment

Racks/Pods

The hardware storage unit is a pod.

Pod dimensions: 39"H x 24"W x 43"D
2 pods per 78"H rack
Each pod has its own power, power distribution unit (PDU) and networking
Lockable

Provides physical security for sensitive data (e.g., medical, HIPAA)
Such security is not available in the GITC 5302 data center

Dedicated to a single researcher, or shared by a group of researchers
Room security and locking racks suitable for research involving sensitive data
Accessible from front and back

Research groups are allocated one or more pods for their exclusive use.

Wherever possible, researcher equipment located in pods should be rack-mountable.

Physical Access

GITC 4320 is locked and alarmed
Faculty and staff members of research groups are given card access to GITC 4320
Student members of research groups are not given card access
Students in research groups allowed entry into GITC 4320 by faculty/staff must be accompanied at all times by that faculty/staff person
ARCS staff are generally not available to accompany students when faculty/staff are not available. For emergency cases, contact arcs_help@njit.edu to see what, if any, arrangements can be made

Network Access

All machines are accessible from the NJIT network (includes VPN).

No machines are accessible from outside the NJIT network. This means, for example, that machines in GITC 4320 cannot act as a web server that is accessible from the Internet.

If it is desirable to have a web server open to the Internet to access data produced by a server in GITC 4320, that data can be stored in AFS, where it is accessible from web server running on a virtual machine in the GITC 5302 data center.

Conditions of Tenancy

The public SSH keys of the ARCS control machines must be installed on the researcher's servers. This allows ARCS to monitor, e.g., operating system patch level, and security status of the server.
Server usage will be monitored. Servers whose usage is below a predetermined threshold for a pre-determined period of time are subject to removal from GITC 4320.
Researchers are responsible for the hardware maintenance of their servers
Servers that are inoperative due to hardware or software failure for a predetermined period of time are subject to removal from GITC 4320.
Servers that are found to have security vulnerabilities are subject to being blocked from the NJIT network
Servers that have been determined to have been compromised will be addressed on an adhoc basis.

Agreement to Conditions of Tenancy

Researchers wishing to locate their machines in the GITC 4320 data center are required to accept the conditions stated on this page, via email to arcs_help@njit.edu.