Platform LSF Reference Version 6.2

About Task Lists
Platform LSF Reference
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About Task Lists
A task list is a list in LSF that keeps track of the default resource requirements for
different applications and task eligibility for remote execution.
The term task refers to an application name. With a task list defined, LSF automatically
supplies the resource requirement of the job whenever users submit a job unless one is
explicitly specified at job submission.
LSF takes the job's command name as the task name and uses that name to find the
matching resource requirement for the job from the task list. If a task does not have an
entry in the task list, LSF assumes the default resource requirement; that is, a host that
has the same host type as the submission host will be chosen to run the job.
An application listed in a task file is considered for load sharing by its placement in either
the local tasks or remote tasks list.
◆ A local task is typically an application or command that it does not make sense to
run remotely such as
ls.
◆ A remote task is an application or command that can be run on another machine in
the LSF cluster. The
compress command is an example of a remote task.
Some applications require resources other than the default. LSF can store resource
requirements for specific applications in remote task list files, so that LSF automatically
chooses candidate hosts that have the correct resources available.
For frequently used commands and software packages, the LSF administrator can set up
cluster–wide resource requirements that apply to all users in the cluster.
Users can modify and add to these requirements by setting up additional resource
requirements that apply only to their own jobs.
Cluster-wide resource requirements
The resource requirements of applications are stored in the remote task list file.
LSF automatically picks up a job’s default resource requirement string from the remote
task list files, unless you explicitly override the default by specifying the resource
requirement string on the command line.
User-level resource requirements
You may have applications that you need to control yourself. Perhaps your administrator
did not set them up for load sharing for all users, or you need a non-standard setup. You
can use LSF commands to find out resource names available in your system, and tell LSF
about the needs of your applications. LSF stores the resource requirements for you from
then on.
You can specify resource requirements when tasks are added to the user's remote task
list. If the task to be added is already in the list, its resource requirements are replaced.
% lsrtasks + myjob/swap>=100 && cpu
This adds myjob to the remote tasks list with its resource requirements.