Research IT

Research IT Club - find out more about us and our services!

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED.

The next Research IT club will take place on the 25th of April and will feature updates from our research infrastructure and software engineering teams. Our two feature presentations will look at how Research IT is helping to create new parallel computer architecture inspired by the human brain. There will also be a presentation from IT Services on the planned changes to staff and cluster desktops across the university.

Research IT, SpiNNaker and the Human Brain

Andrew Rowley, Senior Software Engineer, Research IT

SpiNNaker is a massively parallel computer architecture scalable up to a million cores and beyond. In contrast to a super-computer, it has been designed with low-power processors and a network architecture inspired by the connectivity found in the brain. This presentation will talk about the role of Research IT in the SpiNNaker team and how the group have helped with work on the Human Brain Project and with researchers within the team to help them to achieve their goals.

The EUC Programme- helping to transform how we use IT

Tyrrell Basson, Head of Technology, Infrastructure & Operations, IT Services

IT Modernisation Programme is seeking to transform the End User Computing services available across the University. This presentation will provide an overview of the objectives of the project, the principles driving our approach and provide a description of the transformational projects they are seeking to introduce, which will include

  • Migrating from an on-premises Microsoft Exchange solution to the use of a standard cloud based Office 365 solution
  • Upgrading all the Windows 7 devices to a single Windows 10 build, including two standard Linux builds and a single MacOS build
  • Virtualising the desk-side portfolio of applications to support VDI (Virtual Desktop Infrastructure)
  • Design, Implement and (hybrid) manage a “follow-me” desk-side solution

The presentation will also discuss the high level timelines we are working to.

Don’t forget that if you have a query about including Research IT skills and expertise in grant proposals you can come along to our drop-in sessions which take place across the university campus on a regular basis. See our Twitter for the latest information.