38CollaborationGateway<strong>CoreGRID</strong> isleading the taskscollaboration onroadmaps andtraining activities.Wolfgang ZieglerCollaboration Gateway Leader,Fraunh<strong>of</strong>er Institute, SCAI▼The <strong>CoreGRID</strong> Collaboration Gateway bundlesmajor activities aiming at collaboration with otherGrid-related projects <strong>of</strong> the seventh frameworkprogramme. The activities in the Collaboration Gatewayare organised in seven sub-tasks, which areled by different <strong>CoreGRID</strong> partners:1 Exploitation <strong>of</strong> synergies andtechnical co-ordination (leader INRIA)2 Joint <strong>for</strong>a <strong>for</strong> exchange anddissemination (leader CETIC)3 Co-ordination <strong>of</strong> standardisationef<strong>for</strong>ts (leader FHG)4 Repository <strong>of</strong> referenceimplementations and Gridmiddleware (leader FHG)5 Collaboration on roadmaps(leader FHG)6 Training activities (leader UPC)7 Collaboration with NESSIplat<strong>for</strong>m (leader CETIC)When taking a closer look at theEuropean Grid projects <strong>of</strong> the sixthframework programme it becameobvious at an early stage that despiteall differences <strong>of</strong> the projects’ focusareas, each one tends to implement asmall set <strong>of</strong> similar tasks, e.g. relatedto dissemination, standardisation,s<strong>of</strong>tware repositories, or training. Inparticular, the larger type <strong>of</strong> projects(Integrated Project (IP) and <strong>Network</strong><strong>of</strong> <strong>Excellence</strong> (NoE)) put substantialef<strong>for</strong>t into these activities. Thus, theidea <strong>of</strong> making resources and resultsavailable to other projects is quitenatural and was already implementedearly in the sixth frameworkprogramme through the co-ordinationactivities. The leadership <strong>of</strong> thesetasks on a European level has beendistributed among the IPs and theNoEs. <strong>CoreGRID</strong> is leading the taskscollaboration on roadmaps and trainingactivities. Yearly events are organisedby the projects <strong>for</strong> exchanging theresults <strong>of</strong> the ongoing collaborationactivities and the planning <strong>of</strong>the following year activities.1. Technical synergiesBased on the foci <strong>of</strong> research anddevelopment <strong>of</strong> the different EuropeanGrid-related projects, a number <strong>of</strong>areas have been identified <strong>for</strong> crossprojecttechnical co-ordination and thefollowing eight technical groups (TG)have been set up and are working:TG1 Grid Architecture, TG2 Ontologies,TG3 Workflows, TG4 Monitoringand Fabric Management, TG5 DataManagement, TG6 Trust & Security,TG7 Grid Economics and BusinessModels, TG8 Virtual Organisations.The TGs published yearly white paperson related research and developmentto identify gaps that should beaddressed in future projects andpossible synergies arising from thecollaboration. In addition to the annualco-ordination events, the TGs organisean additional annual meeting <strong>for</strong> thepresentation and discussion <strong>of</strong> thegroups’ results and the structuring <strong>of</strong>the work <strong>for</strong> the following period.2. Joint <strong>for</strong>a <strong>for</strong>exchange anddisseminationIPs and NoEs are strong atdisseminating their results and havethe necessary resources to do so. Thistask aims at identifying and using joint<strong>for</strong>a <strong>for</strong> exchange and dissemination<strong>of</strong> project results. There are several
clear benefits in co-ordinating thedissemination activities. Largeraudiences are reached by using thedifferent channels established by theprojects. Joint events usually attractmore participants. Small projectswith limited resources may hook upand use the channels and eventsmaintained by the bigger projects.Finally, these may be achieved withoutsignificantly increasing the ef<strong>for</strong>t in theindividual projects. One example is the<strong>CoreGRID</strong> newsletter, which is open tocontributions from other projects aswell. <strong>CoreGRID</strong> also submits articles onresearch activities and results in otherprojects newsletter, etc. Additionally,<strong>CoreGRID</strong> started in 2007 organisingthe <strong>CoreGRID</strong> Symposium, whichaims to become the largest Europeanconference focussing on Grid research.3. Co-ordination <strong>of</strong>standardisation ef<strong>for</strong>tsMany European projects are relying onexisting or evolving Grid standards.A number <strong>of</strong> them are actually alsocontributing to the development <strong>of</strong>standards in different standardisationbodies while other projects haveidentified requirements <strong>for</strong> standardsthat are not yet addressed. The number<strong>of</strong> European co-chairs and participants<strong>of</strong> the research and working groups<strong>of</strong> the Open Grid Forum has increasedsignificantly over the last several yearsas a direct result <strong>of</strong> this activity. Tostrengthen the European impact in thestandardisation process, the projectscollaborate in the Grid StandardsCo-ordination Group (GSCG) whereeach project is represented. The GSCGholds regular face-to-face meetingsand teleconferences and has produceda white paper. The white paperdescribes the standards activities <strong>of</strong>the projects, standards requirements,and bodies where project membersare already active. It also identifiesthe bodies to which further standardsactivities should be directed.4. Repository<strong>of</strong> referenceimplementations andgrid middlewareWithin this task, <strong>CoreGRID</strong> is focussingon creating and maintaining the“<strong>CoreGRID</strong> Repository <strong>of</strong> referenceimplementations and Grid middleware”to be filled with Grid-relateddevelopments by <strong>CoreGRID</strong> partnersover time. A Quality AssuranceGroup (QAG) has been set up, whichhas defined the process to followto ensure uploads <strong>of</strong> high-qualityGrid s<strong>of</strong>tware components. Each<strong>CoreGRID</strong> Institute has appointed arepresentative <strong>for</strong> the QAG acting asa contact point <strong>for</strong> institute memberswilling to contribute Grid s<strong>of</strong>tware. Thefolder hierarchy follows the researchareas <strong>of</strong> the <strong>CoreGRID</strong> institutesand the technical groups. Moreover,the repository will provide links torepositories maintained by otherprojects or initiatives. The BEinGRIDproject has agreed to maintain as<strong>of</strong>tware repository on a Europeanlevel. The <strong>CoreGRID</strong> repository willbe cross-linked with the BEinGRIDone to allow easy access to Europeans<strong>of</strong>tware developments withoutduplicating the management ef<strong>for</strong>t.5. Collaborationon roadmapsBased on the annual roadmaps createdby the <strong>CoreGRID</strong> Institutes and withadditional contributions from the otherGrid-related projects, this collaborationactivity has produced a first version<strong>of</strong> a European Grid Roadmap, whichwas prepared by representativesfrom all projects in the European GridRoadmap Group (EGRG). The EGRG isresponsible <strong>for</strong> gathering in<strong>for</strong>mationfrom all projects relevant to theEuropean Grid Roadmap, includingproject focus, planned developments,timelines, etc. The structure <strong>of</strong> theroadmap document follows thethematic grouping <strong>of</strong> the <strong>CoreGRID</strong>institutes complemented by the topics<strong>of</strong> the Technical Groups that have nocorresponding <strong>CoreGRID</strong> institutes.The European Grid Roadmap iscurrently being updated incorporatingcontributions from several sources:(i) the current version <strong>of</strong> the annualroadmaps <strong>of</strong> the <strong>CoreGRID</strong> Institutes,(ii) achievements made in the otherprojects, (iii) results from the TechnicalGroups, and (iv) contributions fromnew projects that have been launchedsince the last publication <strong>of</strong> theroadmap document. The updatedversion includes an overview <strong>of</strong>the research and developmentsplanned or made in the differentprojects and a SWOT analysis. Thedocument is available in the <strong>CoreGRID</strong>repository (http://www.coregrid.net/mambo/content/view/58/79/).6. Training activitiesThe goal <strong>of</strong> this collaboration taskis to co-ordinate training activitiesorganised by different projects and todefine a training activities roadmap atthe European level. This allows betteruse <strong>of</strong> the resources and ensures thatsmaller projects (STREPs) benefit fromthe training organised by the largerones. The group cross-disseminatesthe training activities through mail andvia the collaboration website. It is alsoparticipating in the training activities<strong>of</strong> the Open Grid Forum. In addition,the group jointly organises sometraining events, e.g. the <strong>CoreGRID</strong>summer school with Summer School2007 in Budapest, where severalprojects contributed to the programme.The training material is also madeavailable through the <strong>CoreGRID</strong>repository and the ICEAGE repository.7. Collaborationwith NESSIThe objectives <strong>of</strong> this task are toallow all Grid projects to be aware<strong>of</strong> the evolution <strong>of</strong> the NESSI Visionand versions <strong>of</strong> the Strategic ResearchAgenda. Also, it should promote theparticipation in specific working groupson research topics <strong>of</strong> the plat<strong>for</strong>m.Significant impact on the alignment<strong>of</strong> the projects’ R&D is expected, asNESSI is the <strong>Network</strong>ed EuropeanS<strong>of</strong>tware and Services InitiativeEuropean Technology Plat<strong>for</strong>m aimingto provide a unified vision andstrategic research agenda <strong>for</strong> Europeanresearch in S<strong>of</strong>tware and Services byestablishing the technological basisand developing strategies that willspeed up Europe’s transition to aknowledge-based economy throughservice-oriented business models.After a couple <strong>of</strong> years <strong>of</strong> experiencewith the European concertationactivities, it may be concluded that<strong>CoreGRID</strong> achieved a substantialimpact as briefly detailed inthe previous paragraphs.<strong>CoreGRID</strong> is one <strong>of</strong> the largestEuropean <strong>Network</strong> <strong>of</strong> <strong>Excellence</strong>with 46 partners from 19 countries,a NESSI partner, a sponsor <strong>of</strong> theOpen Grid Forum. <strong>CoreGRID</strong> has aleading position in the EuropeanGrid research and Grid expertise.39<strong>Annual</strong>Report2007
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