Registering for Services

To use grid resources within Oxford or anywhere you will first need a digital certificate. (The only exception to this is the managed Access Grid facilities; you may be able to use those without having a digital certificate).

Once you have a certificate, you may also need to register directly with the service in Oxford that you wish to use. However, please note that - at present - possession of a digital certificate is not itself an automatic entitlement to access resources. That right of access has to be negotiated separately. The digital certificate is merely the security mechanism used to enforce access control.

(For some background on certificates and to the whole area of public key infrastructure in general, please visit the DCOCE project web site. This project has now completed but contains much useful introductory information.).

You should be able to obtain a certificate from the e-Science Certification Authority if you are working on:

• a project approved by the e-Science programmes of any of the UK Research Councils; or,

• a project in collaboration with the National e-Science Centre (NeSC) or any of the Regional Centres.

Your UK e-Science certificate, should you obtain one, will be valid for one year, after which you need to renew it.