NSF and XSEDE management would like to hear directly from researchers and educators on how they are using the cloud, why they are using the cloud, and the advantages the cloud provides for their research. Researchers who are not currently XSEDE users are especially welcomed to participate.
The relatively short online survey may be found at www.xsede.org/cloudsurvey. (New users will need to register for an account.)
About the Survey
This information will help XSEDE management understand users’ cloud computing experiences so that they can better plan for integrating clouds into the XSEDE architecture. The survey results will be included in an XSEDE Cloud Study report.
Background
The goal of XSEDE is to enhance research productivity. NSF through the XSEDE integrating fabric is committed to promoting a diversity of computing resources, inclusive of clouds, and, in addition, recognizes the opportunity for cloud to play a significant role in many other parts of a scientific workflow. XSEDE must embrace cloud, identify complementary areas that cloud can support, and have a clear strategy for integrating cloud into national cyberinfrastructure. To achieve this objective, a clear understanding of use cases is needed in order to define an optimal cloud interoperability architecture for XSEDE.
Researchers need to perform computations and move data to/from the cloud and to/from other XSEDE resources with ease if XSEDE is to serve as a “one-stop” resource for a range of computation. Cloud integration issues such as authentication, data movement, and accounting, therefore, need to be defined and investigated.
