Test4Theory

This is a project, to demonstrate the use of the CERN-developed CernVM and BOINCVM systems to harness volunteer cloud computing power for full-fledged LHC event physics simulation on volunteer computers.

It is the first of what is expected to be a series of physics applications running on the LHC@home 2.0 platform. These applications will exploit virtual machine technology, enabling volunteers to contribute to the huge computational task of searching for new fundamental particles at CERN's LHC.

With the support of the Citizen Cyberscience Centre and the LHC Physics Centre at CERN

• Website: http://lhcathome2.cern.ch/test4theory/
• Join to team: Ukraine

• First seen on: 2011-03-10
• Date of completion: <font color="green"><strong>Project is Active</strong></font>

In order to run the collision simulations you will need to install two key applications in your computer:

• VirtualBox
• BOINC client

VirtualBox is a free and open source virtualization tool that allows the creation of virtual machine(s) inside your PC where you can run any operating system. For example, you will be able to run CERN's Scientific Linux system in your Windows computer without risking the integrity of your machine.

Test4Theory@Home uses this technology to run the complex CERN experiment code in your computer, independently of your OS and hardware. Thus, if you want to collaborate with this project, you first have to install the VirtualBox software, (remember it is free!)

Next you will need to install BOINC (or if you already have it installed, set up correctly for your platform), a standard volunteer computing application that allows you to share your PC(s) with research projects that you choose to attach to. Our project is the first BOINC project that includes virtualization technology to run very complex software in “modest” home computers (well, if you have an eight core machine, you can say it is not modest at all!).

To summarize: if you want to help CERN researchers, you need to first install the VirtualBox software, then install the BOINC software, and finally attach your computer to the project.