Update on Cybersecurity Enhancement: Implementation of Security Intelligence Filtering on 21 Feb 2025

Dear Users,

NSCC has received numerous requests regarding access restrictions to Hugging Face services and URLs due to our recently implemented Security Intelligence Filtering. In response, we have reviewed the matter and whitelisted access to Hugging Face services.

Users can now access the Hugging Face services and URLs without restriction from the HPC system. If you continue to experience any access issues, please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] for assistance.

Thank you for your patience and understanding as we enhance our cybersecurity measures.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

[Completed] Urgent Scheduled Maintenance for ASPIRE 2A+ on 7 March 2025, 3PM to 6.30PM

Dear ASPIRE 2A+ Users,

We are pleased to announce that the ASPIRE 2A+ urgent scheduled system maintenance has been completed. You may proceed to use the systems as per usual.

Should you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team


Dear ASPIRE 2A+ Users,

We wish to inform you of an upcoming urgent scheduled maintenance on the ASPIRE2A+ system. This maintenance is essential to ensure the continued reliability and performance of our services.

Maintenance Details:

  • Start: 7 March 2025 (Friday), 3:00 PM SGT
  • End: 7 March 2025 (Friday), 6:30 PM SGT
  • Duration: 3.5 hours

Purpose:

  • To perform a service failover activity on the system.

Impact During the Maintenance Period:

  • During this period, you may experience a slight disruption in service. Specifically, you may not be able to submit jobs for a short period while the system is being normalised.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your understanding. Should you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

Urgent Scheduled Maintenance for ASPIRE 2A+ on 7 March 2025, 3PM to 6.30PM

Dear ASPIRE 2A+ Users,

We wish to inform you of an upcoming urgent scheduled maintenance on the ASPIRE2A+ system. This maintenance is essential to ensure the continued reliability and performance of our services.

Maintenance Details:

  • Start: 7 March 2025 (Friday), 3:00 PM SGT
  • End: 7 March 2025 (Friday), 6:30 PM SGT
  • Duration: 3.5 hours

Purpose:

  • To perform a service failover activity on the system.

Impact During the Maintenance Period:

  • During this period, you may experience a slight disruption in service. Specifically, you may not be able to submit jobs for a short period while the system is being normalised.

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and thank you for your understanding. Should you have any questions or need assistance, please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

Cybersecurity Enhancement: Implementation of Security Intelligence Filtering

Dear Users,

As part of our ongoing commitment to enhancing cybersecurity, we have implemented a new security measure – Security Intelligence Filtering. This enhancement is designed to automatically filter and block traffic from our HPC system to known malicious websites and domains on the internet, helping to safeguard our infrastructure and users.

With this implementation, you may experience access restrictions to certain websites or domains that are categorized as potential security risks. This may include some well-known platforms such as Hugging Face.

If you encounter access issues and believe a website or domain has been mistakenly blocked, please do not hesitate to contact our helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected]. for further clarification and verification.

Thank you for your cooperation and understanding as we continue to strengthen our security measures.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

[Completed] ASPIRE 2A and ASPIRE 2A+ Scheduled System Maintenance from 28 Nov 2024, 9am to 3 Dec 2024, 1pm

Dear Users,

We are pleased to announce that the ASPIRE 2A and ASPIRE 2A+ scheduled system maintenance has been completed. You may proceed to access the systems as per usual.

ASPIRE 2A Partial System Online:
Kindly note that only 66% of the CPU compute node and all AI-GPU compute nodes are available on this release. The remaining 33% of the CPU compute nodes and all GP-GPU compute node will only be available on 5 Dec, 6pm.

ASPIRE2A Job Portal and Visualization Portal will be also temporary available until further notice.

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Please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] if you have any questions.

Thank you.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

[Resolved] Service Disruption for Users Accessing ASPIRE 2A+

Dear ASPIRE 2A+ Users,

We are pleased to inform you that the service disruption on the ASPIRE 2A+ system has been resolved. You may proceed to login as per normal and require to resubmit your jobs.

We apologise for any inconvenience this disruption may cause. If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. For enquiries regarding ASPIRE 2A+, kindly include “ASPIRE 2A+: [issue]” in the subject heading of your email.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

Service Disruption for Users Accessing ASPIRE 2A+

Dear ASPIRE 2A+ Users,

We regret to inform you there is a service disruption on the ASPIRE 2A+ system as some components are currently experiencing an outage. Our team is diligently investigating the issue and working towards a swift resolution..

We will provide updates as soon as further information becomes available.

We apologise for any inconvenience this disruption may cause. If you have any questions, please contact us at [email protected]. For enquiries regarding ASPIRE 2A+, kindly include “ASPIRE 2A+: [issue]” in the subject heading of your email.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

ASPIRE 2A and ASPIRE 2A+ Scheduled System Maintenance from 28 Nov 2024, 9am to 3 Dec 2024, 1pm

Dear Users,

Please note that the ASPIRE 2A and ASPIRE 2A+ systems will be undergoing a scheduled system maintenance from 28 November 2024 (Thursday), 9am to 3 December 2024 (Tuesday), 1pm. The scheduled system maintenance is to ensure long term reliability, uptime and stability of the systems. 

Do take note of the following dates. 

ASPIRE 2A Maintenance activities:

  1. PBS Pro Version Upgrade to 2024.1.1.
  2. Multiple Security Patches.
  3. Data Center Power Maintenance.
  4. GPFS Parallel Filesystem Storage eFix.
  5. Faulty Hardware Replacement.
  6. CDU Coolant Replacement.
  7. System Health Check.

ASPIRE 2A+ Maintenance activities:

  1. Lustre Parallel Filesystem Storage Firmware Update.
  2. Multiple Security Patches.
  3. Data Center Power Maintenance.
  4. ConnectX-7 Mellanox Firmware Update.
  5. Nvidia GPU Driver Update.
  6. Enroot Container version upgrade to 3.5.
  7. System Health Check.

Please contact our Helpdesk via the Service Desk Portal or email us at [email protected] if you have any questions. For enquiries regarding ASPIRE 2A, please indicate the following in your email subject heading – “ASPIRE 2A: [issue]”.

Thank you.

Warm regards,

The NSCC Team

[Resolved] Service Outage – NSCC Helpdesk Email ([email protected])

Dear NSCC Users,

We are pleased to inform you that the outage affecting our Helpdesk email channel ([email protected]) has been resolved. The service is now fully operational, and you can resume contacting us through email as usual.

Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time. We appreciate your support and are here to assist you with any questions or concerns.

Warm regards,


The NSCC Team

Service Outage – NSCC Helpdesk Email ([email protected])

Dear NSCC Users,

We would like to inform you that our Helpdesk email channel ([email protected]) is currently experiencing an outage. Rest assured, our team is working diligently to restore the service as soon as possible.

In the meantime, you can still reach the Helpdesk through the Service Desk Portal (https://keris.service-now.com/csm) for any assistance or questions.

We sincerely appreciate your understanding and patience during this time. Please know that we are doing everything we can to resolve the issue promptly.

Thank you for your continued support.

Warm regards,
The NSCC Team