WVU launches new flagship cluster for high-performance computing

The West Virginia University Research Office, together with WVU Research Computing, has launched Harpers Ferry, the University’s newest major computational facility.

This significant investment reflects the continued commitment at WVU to advancing research infrastructure and meeting the rapidly growing computational demands faced by scientists across disciplines.

The establishment of Harpers Ferry was made possible in part through NASA Congressionally Directed Spending secured with the leadership and support of U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito and former U.S. Senator Joe Manchin. According to Sheena Murphy, associate vice president for research development within the WVU Research Office, the senators’ advocacy was instrumental in enabling this strategic investment in research capacity and innovation for the state of West Virginia.

By ensuring that the WVU research community has the hardware, software and support necessary to push the boundaries of known science, Murphy said Harpers Ferry provides WVU faculty members and students with the tools to compete for federal grants, publish in high-impact journals and prepare graduates for a workforce increasingly dominated by computational modeling.

Aldo Romero, director of Research Computing, added, “The future of West Virginia University research is computationally driven, and we look forward to supporting our R1 community’s next breakthroughs.”

Romero encouraged researchers and students to integrate Harpers Ferry into their current workflows immediately.

Submit an application for a system account and project allocation here.

View technical documentation for detailed system specifications, job scheduler (Slurm) guidelines and software environment modules.

The use of Harper resembles the use of Thorny Flat and the HPC does not expect to offer dedicated training. However, users are encouraged to register for technical workshops on parallel programming, optimization and system HPC general usage.

For questions, contact aldo.romero@mail.wvu.edu or visit https://docs.hpc.wvu.edu.