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Prospective user guidance

Condenser is a private cloud alternative to public cloud offerings. In many cases, Condenser can provide a superior experience for UCL research and at a lower cost. We have written this guidance to help prospective users decide whether their project can run on the Condenser platform. This guidance is not a binding contract.

To discuss your potential tenancy and obtain a quote, please create a request in MyServices under the "Condenser" service.

Our responsibilities

Condenser is supported by the ARC Environments and Infrastructure teams. We maintain the hardware and virtual infrastructure for the clusters in Condenser. We are responsible for:

  • Updating the platform software
  • Implementing platform-level security measures, such as role-based access control, tenant isolation, and SSH certificate registration
  • Maintaining access from the platform to the internet
  • Making up-to-date OS images available on the platform
  • Maintaining platform features such as SSH access and web ingress for virtual machines
  • Creating and updating documentation for the Condenser platform
  • Onboarding new users
  • Provisioning new tenancies
  • Implementing and amending tenancy quotas
  • Maintaining the clusters to a standard such that users can deploy virtual machines, data volumes, networks, and other resources within their tenancy quota
  • Supporting users in their access to and normal use of the platform through UCL MyServices

Developing on Condenser

Condenser provides a platform for your team to build on. To enable your project to succeed on Condenser, please ensure that your team includes staff with the appropriate skills and time to support the project. Depending on the nature of your project, your team may need to be able to do the following tasks:

  • Developing and configuring your project's application software
  • Deploying virtual machines, data volumes, and networks (your virtual resources) for your application
  • Configuring your virtual resources to make use of platform features such as SSH access and web ingress
  • Using up-to-date operating systems for your virtual machines
  • Configuring security features in your virtual resources and application software, such as configuring the firewall in your virtual machines
  • Securing your environment to professional standards for the storage and processing of sensitive data
  • Keeping your data safe by using external version control and backups
  • Supporting third-party users in their access to and use of your application