[slurm-users] Exclude Slurm packages from the EPEL yum repository

[Brian Andrus]

That is basically how I do it.

I created a local repository for the packages I build (slurm and any 
other, like openmpi). This provides as much control as I could possibly 
need/want. I can name them how I like to avoid conflict with any 
external repositories.

I think it is a good idea to have them in EPEL for so many folks that 
just want to try the basic setup. This is how we get adoption by more 
people. As they learn and want more, they can start building their own 
with any options they desire.

Also, a plug for support contracts. I have been doing slurm for a very 
long while, but always encourage my clients to get a support contract. 
That is how SchedMD stays alive and we are able to have such a good 
piece of software. I see the cloud providers starting to build tools 
that will eventually obsolesce slurm for the cloud. I worry that there 
won't be enough paying customers for Tim to keep things running as well 
as he has. I'm pretty sure most folks that use slurm for any period of 
time has received more value that a small support contract would be.

Brian Andrus

On 1/25/2021 7:35 AM, Jeffrey T Frey wrote:
>> ...I would say having SLURM rpms in EPEL could be very helpful for a lot of people.
>>
>> I get that this took you by surprise, but that's not a reason to not have them in the repository. I, for one, will happily test if they work for me, and if they do, that means that I can stop having to build them. I agree it's not hard to do, but if I don't have to do it I'll be very happy about that.
> There have been plenty of arguments for why having them in EPEL isn't necessarily the best option.  Many open source products (e.g. Postgres, Docker) maintain their own YUM repository online -- probably to exercise greater control over what's published, but also to avoid overlap with mainstream package repositories.  If there is value perceived in having pre-built packages available, then perhaps the best solution for all parties is to publish the packages to a unique repository:  those who want the pre-built packages explicitly configure their YUM to pull from that repository, those who have EPEL configured (which is a LOT of us) don't get overlapping Slurm packages interfering with their local builds.
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> ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
>   Jeffrey T. Frey, Ph.D.
>   Systems Programmer V & Cluster Management
>   IT Research Cyberinfrastructure
>        & College of Engineering
>   University of Delaware, Newark DE  19716
>   Office: (302) 831-6034  Mobile: (302) 419-4976
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