(external)=

# Access to ARC systems for people external to VT
Research is very often a collaborative enterprise and researchers at Virginia Tech may find it useful to have the ability to collaborate on the computational systems we have here. This comes up pretty often and we are glad to be able to faciliate it.

There are four components to getting them access to ARC systems:
1. Possess a VT Username (PID)
2. Create an ARC account 
3. Be added to the ARC project and allocations by the PI (https://coldfront.arc.vt.edu)
4. Connect to VT network or VPN

## Who
### VT former students and retirees
Former students are considered alumni and retain a VT Username (PID), so they are not considered external persons. The same is true of retirees. 
(Source: 4help.vt.edu KB0011155 "Virginia Tech Services for Retirees and Alumni" 2022-02-28)

### External researchers working in collaboration with a PI at VT
Information on external accounts from the VT IT Service Catalog:
```{note}
Departmental representatives may request a sponsored VT username for someone else. Individuals sponsored by a department can use a sponsored VT username.
```
```{note}
Individuals that are not Virginia Tech students or employees may have a need for a VT username. These individuals cannot create their own usernames, but the department with which they are associated can sponsor them and request a PID for them by requesting this service.
```
```{note}
Users with existing VT Usernames are not eligible for sponsorship. Please verify that this user does not have an existing VT Username. If they were involved with VT in the past as a student or employee they may already have a record.
```
(Source: IT Service Catalog > Accounts & Access > VT Username (PID). 2022-02-28 )
https://4help.vt.edu/sp?id=sc_cat_item&sys_id=36abf15ddb41a308cd2c56594b9619a9

### External persons not in collaboration with a PI at VT
At this time, an account for an external person is only available for those in active colloboration with a PI at VT who is a member of a VT department which is willing to approve and sponsor the external person. In short, if you are not sponsored by a qualified person at VT, then there is not any way to get a VT Username (PID) or an account with ARC.

## How
### Review requirements
An external collaborator will need to be set up with several things that will require further approvals and possibly funding, so these should be confirmed prior to starting the process.
 - VT Username via a sponsored PID (submit form with department head approval)
 - VPN access (coordinated with sponsoring department's communications liaison, has a monthly fee)
 - an ARC user account (requires only a VT Username) to log in to ARC systems
 - membership in an ARC Project and Resource Allocation in order to run jobs on an ARC system (PI of a project must add them to the project and allocation via Coldfront)
 

### Request a sponsored PID
If the external collaborator is NOT a former VT student or a VT retiree, then the sponsoring person at VT first needs to 
[Request a Sponsored PID](https://onecampus.vt.edu/task/all/request-a-sponsored-pid)


### Obtain VPN access
The sponsor should contact the Communications Liaison for their department ([list of liaisons here](https://www.nis.vt.edu/Accounts/NetworkLiaisons.html)) to request VPN access. There is a monthly fee for this access.

[Remote Access - VPN Introduction and Information](https://vt4help.service-now.com/sp?id=kb_article&sys_id=c0d7075cdb5df600294ffa38bf961918)

### Create an ARC account
Once a VT Username via a sponsored PID is created, the external person can log in to ColdFront to [create an ARC account](https://coldfront.arc.vt.edu/account/create).

### Add sponsored account to ARC projects and allocations
Then the sponsoring PI can [login to ColdFront](https://coldfront.arc.vt.edu) to manage their Projects and Allocations. They will need to add the sponsored PID to the correct projects and allocations.