1. (torsten.antoni@iwr.fzk.de) LCG Operations Workshop, e-IRG Workshop
Support in EGEE
(SA1 View)
Torsten Antoni
GGUS, FZK
with input from
LCG Operations Workshop, e-IRG Workshop

2. Why is there need for support?
New support groups
Network layer
Resource centers
CIC / GOC / etc.
more to come
New Support challenges:
Jobs are spread over several locations
New types of Job and Data access
Often more than one group is involved
Virtual Organizations

3. What kind of support? Need to have a common platform for:
Collect service requests
Exchange service requests
Document solutions
Need to document:
Quality feedback
To the VO’s
Middleware development
To the Grid Operations
FAQ’s
Build a Knowledge Base for Grid related problems and solutions

4. Support Teams in EGEE Deployment Support (DS) Middleware Problems
Operations Centers
(CIC / GOC / ROC) Operations Problems
Resource
Centers (RC) Hardware Problems
Global Grid User Support (GGUS) Single Point of Contact Coordination of User Support
Experiment Specific User Support (ESUS) VO spec. (Software) Problems
Other User Communities(VOs)
e.g. Biomed, Astroparticle Physics
in EGEE
LHC
Experiments (Alice Atlas CMS LHCb)
non-LHC
Experiments
(BaBar, CDF, Compass, D0)

5. Ops support CIC-on-duty
Responsibility rotates through CIC’s – one week at a time
Manage daily operations – oversee and ensure
Problems from all sources are tracked (entered into PTS)
Problems are followed up
CIC-on-duty hands over responsibility for problems
Hand-over in weekly operations meeting
Daily ops:
Checklist
Various problem sources: monitors, maps,
direct problem reports
Need to develop tools to trigger alarms etc

6. Ops support Cannot avoid local PTS But must have central aggregator
Where CIC-on-duty manages problems,
new problems entered
Use GGUS
Needs interfaces – automatic ticket updates in linked systems (both directions)
Needed to build knowledge db etc.

7. Tools needed for Ops support
GGUS + interfaces to Savannah + local PTS
(start with Savannah as central aggregator)
Monitoring console
Monitors (mostly have now)
Frameworks – to allow stats and triggers of alarms, notifications, etc.
Fabric management “cook-book”
Remote fabric monitors

8. VO support means… Experts with knowledge of VO specific
software environment, VO applications and
Grid middleware available functionalities
Personal contacts and participation to meetings
Help on how to best use the middleware for
specific use cases
Communication with developers for
implementation of specific features
Tools, APIs, specific distributions of single
middleware components

9. VO support means… VO support requires a more continuous effort
A test bed to play with, strictly controlled, with
prompt support reaction
Specific Tutorials (addressed to a specific VO)
Monitor VO specific services, signal problems
Site monitoring, interact with local site support
VO support requires a more continuous effort
similar to what LCG/EIS is doing for LHC
Experiments

10. Responsibilities of the Central User Support Coordination Team (CUSC) I
Members: GGUS, VOs, ROCs, CICs,
NA2-4, Deployment
Negotiate on tools and interfaces with ROCs;
Coordinate DB connection
Negotiate on docs and tools to produce
Coordinate special User Support conditions
(transition between LCG and gLite)
Establish relationship and procedures with other
Grids support groups.

11. Responsibilities of the Central User Support Coordination Team (CUSC) II
Make sure all areas of support
are convered among RUSCs
Establish procedures to spread expertise
in collaboration with NA2, NA3 and NA4
Coordinate VO support at user and operation level
with NA4
Establish the mechanism and collect feedback
from Users, Developers, ROCs, etc.

12. Responsibilities of the User Support Coordination Team at the ROCs (RUSC)
Identify local experts and communicate to Central
US Coordination Team (CUSC)
Coordinate creation of local communities of experts
Report on specific issues with local VO/Operations
support
Provide documentation, tools, how-to guides,
examples
Agree on common interfaces, tools, information
presentation whenever needed.

13. Support in EGEE User community ROC-1 CIC DS ROC-2 GGUS VO-1 VO-2 VO-n
WebInterface
Web service interface
GGUS
VO-1
VO-2
VO-n

14. GGUS as Integration Platform
GGUS provides Web Services for:
Creating service requests
Modifying service requests
Routing service requests
from connected support groups
to GGUS or other teams
GGUS provides interface examples in
several programming languages
Demo of the GGUS Help Desk
and the ROC Italy – GGUS interface
at tomorrows ROC managers meeting

15. GGUS Outlook GGUS is building interfaces to all support
groups and their helpdesk systems
(including Savannah)
Redesign of the support staff web interface based
on the input from the various support groups and
the needs from operational support (omit Java,
become W3C conform)
Integration of VOs into the support process,
defining processes needed for this

16. Summary We see all activities in support converging on:
“Regional Support with Central Coordination”
Strong overlap between Ops, VO, User Support
Building the interfaces is in progress
Defining the processes involved is most pressing
Identifying & localizing problems is least developed,
even in the software itself
(User) Support Task Force to be widened to include
VO , Operations, Middleware and Application
Representatives
Strong overlap with NA2, NA3 and NA4 activities