Getting Started with Endeavour
Endeavour is a high-performance computing cluster that comprises the condo resources that Condo Cluster Program (CCP) users lease or subscribe to. CCP is a service available to USC researchers that require dedicated computing resources for their work. CCP gives researchers the convenience of having their own dedicated compute nodes, without the responsibility of purchasing and maintaining the nodes themselves.
The difference between the Endeavour cluster and the Discovery cluster is that the Endeavour cluster comprises the condo resources that CCP users lease or subscribe to, but each research group’s own resources are for their dedicated use only. The Discovery cluster is CARC’s public cluster; any CARC user, including CCP users, can use Discovery.
Endeavour’s file systems and software module system are identical to those of the Discovery cluster; users won’t see any difference between Endeavour and Discovery when using storage and applications. However, each research group’s compute resources are for their dedicated use only, unlike Discovery, which is a public, shared resource accessible to any CARC user. As such, the majority of our user guides are applicable to both Discovery and Endeavour.
On Endeavour, each research group can have customized Slurm configurations on their condo nodes. For more information about custom Slurm configurations on Endeavour, please contact us at carc-condo@usc.edu.
Currently, CARC systems do not support the use or storage of sensitive data. If your research work includes sensitive data, including but not limited to HIPAA-, FERPA-, or CUI-regulated data, contact us at carc-support@usc.edu before using our systems.
0.0.1 Accessing your CCP resources
All CARC systems, including the Endeavour condo cluster and the Discovery cluster, are accessed using your USC NetID and password, so there is no additional requirement for CARC-specific account creation. To log in to your CCP nodes, you’ll need to be included in a research project that uses CCP nodes. Only the project’s Principal Investigator (PI) can add you to their project.
Your USC NetID is the first part of your USC email address (e.g., ttrojan@usc.edu’s NetID is ttrojan).
A connection to either the USC Secure Wireless network or secure wired network on campus or a USC VPN off campus is required to access Endeavour. Instructions for connecting to a VPN can be found here.
Duo two-factor authentication is also required for the USC VPNs. If you have not already signed up for Duo on your USC NetID account, please visit this page to enroll.
For more information on accounts, see our Project and Allocation Management pages.
0.0.2 Logging in
Endeavour uses different login nodes than the Discovery cluster. You must use endeavour.usc.edu to access your condo nodes on the Endeavour cluster. Otherwise, Endeavour is very similar to the Discovery cluster. You will have access to the same file systems and software module system.
To log in to the Endeavour login node, you will need to use a secure shell client. This is a small application that enables you to connect to a remote computer via SSH (Secure SHell), a cryptographic network protocol for securely operating network services. You will need your USC NetID to SSH in to the login node.
Accessing the cluster via the Remote SSH extension of VSCode is blocked. This extension spawns too many processes on the login nodes, exceeding the process limit. Additionally, the processes started by Remote SSH are not properly killed after the user logs out of the application, which may lead to an account hold preventing the user from accessing the cluster, even from the terminal. It is recommended to use the SSH-FS extension in VSCode instead. These measures are set in place to prevent the login nodes, as shared resources, from becoming saturated and sluggish.
→ SSH login: macOS and Linux
macOS users can connect to Endeavour using the Terminal application that is natively installed. Linux users can similarly use the natively installed terminal application that comes with their distribution of Linux (e.g., Terminal on Ubuntu).
To connect, open a new terminal window and enter:
ssh <username>@endeavour.usc.eduMake sure to substitute your USC NetID as the username. This is the same username for your USC email account (e.g., ttrojan@usc.edu’s NetID is ttrojan). After entering the command, you will then be prompted to enter your USC NetID password. This is the same password for your USC email account.
There will be no visual feedback as you enter your password. This is a security feature designed to obscure your password and is expected.
→ SSH login: Windows
Windows users may need to download and install a third-party SSH client to connect to Endeavour. A popular client is PuTTY, which is available through the developer’s website. Another popular option is MobaXterm, which also provides file transfer capabilities. It is also available through the developer’s website. On Windows 10, there is a natively available Windows Terminal that has a built-in SSH client.
Whichever option you choose, you will log in using your USC NetID and password. Your NetID is the same username for your USC email account (e.g., ttrojan@usc.edu’s NetID is ttrojan). Your USC NetID password is the same password for your USC email account.
0.0.2.0.1 Windows Terminal
To connect using Windows Terminal, open a new terminal window and enter:
ssh <username>@endeavour.usc.eduMake sure to substitute your USC NetID as the username. You will then be prompted to enter your USC NetID password.
0.0.2.0.2 PuTTY
To connect using PuTTY, start in the Configuration window under the Session category and enter endeavour.usc.edu as the hostname with port 22 and select Connection type: SSH. Then select Open to open a connection window, enter your USC NetID as the username, and finally enter your USC NetID password.
There will be no visual feedback as you enter your password. This is a security feature designed to obscure your password and is expected.
0.0.2.0.3 MobaXterm
There are two ways to connect using MobaXterm. If you prefer the command-line interface, select “Start local terminal” and follow the instructions above using the Windows Terminal. If you prefer a GUI interface, select the icon “Session” on the top left corner (or, Sessions > New Session from the menu at the very top of the window). When prompted to choose a session type, choose “SSH.” Under “Basic SSH Settings” enter endeavour.usc.edu as “Remote Host” and enter your USC NetID as the username after checking “Specify Username”. Keep the port as 22. There are additional settings below that you may want to adjust as necessary, particularly the Bookmark settings if you want a shortcut. Click OK to open your SSH session. Enter your USC NetID password when prompted for a password to finish logging in.
If you are having issues with the MobaXterm SSH session disconnecting due to timeout/inactivity, click the “Settings” icon from the top menu. Then click to the SSH tab and under “SSH Settings” make sure to check “SSH keepalive” and then click OK. Restart MobaXterm and try again.
0.0.2.1 SSH keys
You can find instructions for setting up SSH keys for faster login here on our User Forum.
CARC does not manage your USC NetID password. If you are having difficulty using your USC NetID and/or password, please contact USC IT Services.
0.0.3 Allowed Endeavour partitions
Run the command myaccount to see your accounts and allowed Endeavour partitions for running jobs.
0.0.4 Getting help
If you need additional assistance getting started with CARC and Endeavour, please see the User Support page for more information.