2. Introduction to HTCondor

2.1. What is HTCondor?

HTCondor is a software that creates a High-Throughput Computing environment. Such an environment can deliver a high capacity of computing power over a larger period of time. HTCondor can manage a dedicated cluster of computers, but its true power comes from the ability to effectively harness non-dedicated, preexisting resources under distributed ownership.

Like other batch systems, HTCondor provides a job queuing mechanism, scheduling policy, priority scheme, resource monitoring, and resource management. Users submit their jobs into a HTCondor queue. HTCondor then chooses when and where to run the jobs, and monitors the job through to its completion

More information available at:

• What is HTCondor

• High Throughput Computing

2.2. Why do we use HTCondor?

HTCondor can help us solve or improve the following issues.

• Fair sharing of the resources

  • We want everyone to have fair and easy access to the resources available. HTCondor takes various factors into account to calculate a priority for each user.

• Less idle resources

  • We want our resources to be utilized to their full extent, if possible. HTCondor can help us know of idle resources, and keep a steady flow of jobs for them to run.

• Flexibility in the running environment

  • We want to customize the running environment of our jobs to our specifications. Faster than IT would respond. HTCondor can run containerized jobs, with Docker.

• Abstraction layer

  • Allows you to be less concerned with the underlying hardware/tech. Just give me the resources!!