Server Options

The Fornax Science Console offers four server types: Small, Medium, Large, and XLarge. They differ in the amount of CPU and RAM they provide. Their basic specifications and intended use are described below.

Server Types¶

Small (8 GB RAM, 2 CPU)

Ideal for exploratory or prototype work. This is the best place to start developing.

Medium (16 GB RAM, 4 CPU)

This is a good server size to test workflows.

Large (64 GB RAM, 16 CPU)

Suited for tested and parallelized workflows.

XLarge (512 GB RAM, 128 CPU)

Reserved for the most demanding, highly parallel jobs. You are welcome to use this server, however you should be aware that this powerful server uses significantly more credits than the others (see Fornax User Resource Allotments and Costs), and therefore its use should be planned. To help with this, you may receive regular emails from the Fornax team while the XLarge instance is running. These are meant to serve as reminder notifications that the server still is running.

Starting a Server¶

You can choose a different server size each time you start one up. When you start a server session, you will see a Server Options page similar to the screenshot below where you can choose a Server Type.

Guidelines for Use¶

Compute resources on Fornax are cloud-based and funded by NASA. While the platform is designed for high performance, please use the resources wisely to help ensure that NASA can continue to provide these free services to the broader astrophysics community.

Start small¶

Begin by testing your workflow on the smallest server that meets your needs. Limit initial runs in scope (e.g., fewer sources, shorter iterations, smaller datasets). Scale up to a larger server or full analysis only after verifying that your code runs successfully at smaller scale.

Shut down when done¶

You are continuously charged credits for a running server regardless of whether you’re actively using it. So it’s important to stop your server when you’re done using it for a period of time (for example, overnight).

To properly stop your server, go to Fornax → Shutdown Server and then click Stop My Server.