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Getting Started
Getting 7lbd installed and configured might require a relatively lengthy installation process, but it is significantly less work to install and maintain than an entirely separate traditional Windows infrastructure for high-performance computing (HPC). There are many advantages to running 7lbd compared to maintaining a separate traditional Windows network for HPC. Please note that this Wiki contains dozens of lengthy articles, but this is not because 7lbd is overly complicated. It is because managing Windows under 7lbd is so drastically different than the "normal" way, it requires a great deal of discussion.
The first section of the installation guide, "Build and test a Windows VM", guides you through creating and running a VM on your cluster. First, connect to the VM console using noVNC to ensure that the VM boots properly. After verifying the boot, build and configure the custom Guacamole Lite client, and then connect to the VM running on your cluster using Guacamole. The custom Guacamole Lite client and server allow connections to the VM from a web page via the native Windows RDP protocol. These steps can be completed by following the instructions provided in the Wiki or by using the scripts supplied with the 7lbd project to expedite the process. All steps are executed interactively and do not involve running any jobs on the cluster. At this stage, the primary focus is on ensuring that the VM runs correctly rather than on Windows security.
The next section of the installation guide, "Get Windows jobs running in Open OnDemand", explains how to run these VMs as Open OnDemand jobs in Slurm while incorporating essential security measures. In this stage, you will configure the 7lbd jobs to run in a network namespace using the spank_iso_netns plugin. You will also install the 7lbd app in Open OnDemand and begin running test jobs. This section focuses on ensuring that the Guacamole and noVNC connectors function properly.
After running a bare-bones VM as a job on your cluster, the next step is to make the VM useful to your users to get work done. This involves configuring user file access, adding Windows startup scripts, and installing any necessary end-user software.
If your users want to access 7lbd Windows desktops directly from a native RDP client (such as Remmina, FreeRDP, or MSTSC), this option is possible using BYU's spank_oodproxy solution for Open OnDemand. This solution requires a custom proxy server, the spank_oodproxy plugin, and the 7lbd oodproxy mTLS connector. Additionally, users will need a browser plugin on their client computers to manage the proxy tunnels and launch their RDP software through the tunnel.