Job Templates
Applies To: Windows HPC Server 2008
You can use job templates to define sets of customized job submission policies. With job templates, administrators can effectively limit the types of jobs coming into the cluster, while also providing default values that aid users who are unfamiliar with the HPC Job Scheduler Service terminology. Because the job template provides default values, users can even submit jobs without specifying any job properties. For more information, see Managing the Job Queue.
With job templates you can:
Enforce run time and size limits on jobs
Limit job priority
Send different types of jobs to different sets of nodes
Partition the cluster for different user groups
Simplify job submission for the user
Customize the job submission process to support different user scenarios
Job template settings
Each job template consists of:
A list of job properties and associated value settings. For each property, the administrator can define:
A default value which will be used if no value is specified by the user
Constraints on what values are acceptable
An access control list (ACL) defining which users have permission to submit jobs using the job template.
In HPC Job Manager, when a user selects a job template for a new job, the available values for job properties change accordingly. For example, the Priority drop-down menu only shows the priority levels that are valid under the selected template, the run-time setting cannot be raised above the defined maximum, and where applicable, the default values are already filled in. After the user submits the job, the HPC Job Scheduler Service confirms template permissions, applies default settings for any properties that the user did not specify, and validates each property against value constraints.
Note
Job templates do not need to include definitions for every job property. If a property is not specified in the job template, the HPC Job Scheduler Service applies the defaults and constraints from the Default job template instead.
The Default job template
Windows HPC Server 2008 includes one pre-defined job template called “Default”. The Default template does not specify any constraints; users can change any property for their job using this template.
Important
When a user submits a job without specifying a job template, the HPC Job Scheduler Service automatically assigns the Default job template.
As a cluster administrator, you can edit property settings and modify user permission for the Default job template. For more information, see Edit a Job Template and Set Job Template Permissions. Note that you cannot delete the Default job template, and you cannot remove required job properties from the Default template.
When a user submits a job without specifying a job template, you can systematically assign specific job templates based on information of your choosing by creating a submission filter application. For more information, see Understanding Activation and Submission Filters.