Choosing the right profile

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Profiles can be seen as templates for tasks. They define the type of the task and can be parametrized through constants. Every task has a profile.

Profiles can be divided in two main categories:

• Software-specific profiles are made for a single software and sometimes for a single version of this software.
• Generic profiles let you choose the Docker image and the command it will run when the task is started. Their names generally start with "docker".

Each profile defines the set of constants that can be used to parametrize its behavior. These can be read in Tasq. Profiles also influence the computing environment, such as the network interface.

Generic profiles

Generic profiles let you choose your Docker image and command. The most common is docker-batch, but others exist. They can enable you to do various things like getting access to the Internet or starting a task on a cluster.

Here is the basic process to chose your profile:

1. If your task needs to run on a cluster, choose docker-cluster. Learn how to use it: Running on a cluster.
2. If your task needs access to the Internet, there are two use cases:
   • If you need direct access to the remote instance, you need to use docker-network-ssh and create ssh tunnels. This is because our computing nodes are not accessible from the exterior by default. Learn more on: Accessing a task through ssh.
   • If the task only needs to query the Internet, use docker-network. An example of its use is available here: Accessing the internet.
3. If your task needs none of those, use docker-batch or one of its variants (like docker-batch-smt if you want the ability to disable hyperthreading).

Some other profiles also influence the hardware that will be used (docker-batch-2950X...). However, these exist for legacy reasons, if you need to use specific hardware, you should use hardware constraints.

Some profiles are not public and may not be available to you. Get in touch with us at qlab@qarnot-computing.com to be granted access to those.

Related Article

For more information on profile please consult the following articles:

• Core concept Profiles: which describes how profiles behave
• Information on the Docker Profile