Using ssh and sshfs to virtualize Grid job submission with RCondor

The HTCondor based glideinWMS has become the product of choice for exploiting Grid resources for many communities. Unfortunately, its default operational model expects users to log into a machine running a HTCondor schedd before being able to submit their jobs. Many users would instead prefer to use their local workstation for everything. A product that addresses this problem is RCondor, a module delivered with the HTCondor package. RCondor provides command line tools that simulate the behavior of a local HTCondor installation, while using ssh under the hood to execute commands on the remote node instead. RCondor also interfaces with sshfs, virtualizing access to remote files, thus giving the user the impression of a truly local HTCondor installation. This paper presents a detailed description of RCondor, as well as comparing it to the other methods currently available for accessing remote HTCondor schedds.