Applying for NAISS SENS project

NAISS SENS provides a secure cluster environment for the analysis of sensitive personal data. The compute cluster is called Bianca, and the storage systems is called Cygnus.

In order to move sensitive personal data from your home organisation to UPPMAX, you may need a Data Processing Agreement.

A NAISS SENS project includes both compute (Bianca) resources and storage (Cygnus) resources. Please make sure to add both types of resource to your proposal before submitting.

NAISS SENS, like all NAISS projects, are open for applications from researchers affiliated with Swedish institutions of higher education. International collaborators may become members of a project.

Important note: data stored in a SENS project on Bianca is only visible when logged in to that project. Data that will be analysed together must be placed into a single project. Separate your datasets when you need to, but only then.

Expiration of SENS projects: One month before a project is due to expire, an email reminder is sent to the PI (and proxy, if applicable). Projects can be extended by contacting UPPMAX support. Describe the need and motivate the requested resources in a similar fashion as in a new proposal.

Evaluation of SENS projects and project extensions: Project proposals and requests for extensions must be submitted before the 23rd of each month. See the evaluation page.

More information about proper handling of sensitive personal data can be found on our FAQ.

Submitting a NAISS SENS proposal

1. Estimate how much raw data you're expecting to need to store during the upcoming year, in GB.
   • If you're going to work from existing databases, this is relatively straightforward.
   • If an NGS platform is producing data for you, they can provide an estimate.​
2. Estimate the "expansion factor", i.e. how much additional data you'll produce when analyzing the raw data. This number is usually 1.5x-3x, sometimes more.
3. Calculate a final estimate of your total storage needs. This is "GB of raw data" times "expansion factor".
4. Figure out how much computation time you will need, in core-hours per month.
   • If your usage history doesn't reflect the future you expect, try to make an estimate — a rule of thumb is that you consume on average 1000 core-hours per month for every 2 TB of data (1 TB = 1000 GB) in your project.
   • Note that this value is a monthly allocation.
5. Follow the instructions for project application.
6. Complete the proposal and submit.