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CPE in a container updates #311

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update cpe in a container docs to include zen2, remove necessitiy to …
finkandreas Dec 9, 2025
abdd992
add note that home is not mounted by default
finkandreas Dec 9, 2025
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24 changes: 9 additions & 15 deletions docs/software/prgenv/cpe.md
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Expand Up @@ -22,26 +22,17 @@ The CPE is provided to users on Alps as containers.
### Available versions

The `PrgEnv-gnu` and `PrgEnv-cray` programming environments are provided as separate containers, instead of having both in one container, named `gnu-$version` and `cray-$version` respectively.
The `version` is the CPE version in the container.
The `version` is the CPE version in the container. Deployed versions can be found at `/capstor/store/cscs/cscs/public/containers/edf/<microarchitecture>`.
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@bcumming bcumming Dec 11, 2025 •
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The `version` is the CPE version in the container. Deployed versions can be found at `/capstor/store/cscs/cscs/public/containers/edf/<microarchitecture>`.
The `version` is the CPE version in the container.
Deployed versions can be found at `/capstor/store/cscs/cscs/public/containers/edf/<microarchitecture>`.
!!! example "Listing all available CPE containers"
```console
$ find /capstor/store/cscs/cscs/public/containers/edf -type f -printf '%P\n'
zen2/cpe-cray-24.07.toml
zen2/cpe-cray-25.03.toml
zen2/cpe-gnu-25.03.toml
zen2/cpe-gnu-24.07.toml
zen2/.cpe-base.toml
gh200/cpe-cray-24.07.toml
gh200/cpe-cray-25.03.toml
gh200/cpe-gnu-25.03.toml
gh200/cpe-gnu-24.07.toml
gh200/.cpe-base.toml
```


| | `zen2` | `gh200` |
|-----------------|----------|---------|
| `cpe-gnu-24.7` | ❌ | ✅ |
| `cpe-cray-24.7` | ❌ | ✅ |

!!! warning "only available on gh200"
The CPE container is only provided on systems with the "[container engine][ref-container-engine]" container runtime, which is currently the Grace-Hopper systems [Daint][ref-cluster-daint], [Clariden][ref-cluster-clariden] and [Santis][ref-cluster-santis].
| `cpe-gnu-24.7` | ✅ | ✅ |
| `cpe-cray-24.7` | ✅ | ✅ |
| `cpe-gnu-25.3` | ✅ | ✅ |
| `cpe-cray-25.3` | ✅ | ✅ |

### How to use

!!! info "Before you start"
To use the CPE containers as documented below, you need to set the `EDF_PATH` environment variable.
```console
export EDF_PATH=/capstor/scratch/cscs/anfink/shared/cpe/edf:$EDF_PATH
```
Note that the current location of the EDF files is temporary, to work around a file system bug.
The environment variable __will not be required__ once this issue is fixed.

To start a session with the CPE (see [available-versions][ref-cpe-versions] above):
```console
$ srun --environment=cpe-cray-24.07 --pty bash
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -109,4 +100,7 @@ The recommended way of using CPE in a container is to start the container, and u
!!! note
By default, the paths `/capstor`, `/iopsstor` are mounted to the same paths inside the container.

Additionally `/users` will be mounted at `/users.host`, so you can access data in your home folder, but with a slightly different path. This is on purpose, and you can override this behaviour by writing your own [EDF file][ref-ce-edf-reference], especially using the key `base_environment`, referencing the predefined CPE environment files and override what you would like to change.
!!! note
`/users` will not be mounted by default.
If you need your home directory, you need to override the `mounts` directive.
The recommended way is to derive from existing EDF file using the key `base_environment`, further details at [EDF file reference][ref-ce-edf-reference].