Getting Started
From Unofficial BOINC Wiki
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[edit] General
It's easy to participate in a BOINC project.
- Download and install the BOINC Client Software. You will be asked to enter the project's URL, your email address and a password.
That's it!
[edit] How It Works
When you run the BOINC Client Software on your PC, it works as follows (see below):
- Your PC gets a set of instructions from the Project's Scheduling Server. The instructions depend on your PC: for example, the Server won't give it work that requires more RAM than you have. The instructions may include multiple pieces of work. Projects can support several Science Applications, and the Server may send you work from any of them.
- Your PC downloads executable and input files from the Project's Data Server. If the Project releases new versions of its applications, the executable files are downloaded automatically to your PC.
- Your PC runs the Science Application programs, producing output files.
- Your PC uploads the output files to the Data Server.
- Later (up to several days later, depending on your Preference Settings; see: "Preferences in the BOINC System") your PC reports the completed results to the Scheduling Server, and gets instructions for more work.
This cycle is repeated indefinitely. The BOINC Client Software does this all automatically; you don't have to do anything.
[edit] Credit
The Project's BOINC Database keeps track of how much work your computer has done; this is called Credit. To ensure that Credit is granted fairly, most BOINC Powered Projects work as follows:
- Each Work Unit may be sent to several computers.
- When a computer reports a Result, it claims a certain amount of Credit, based on how much CPU Time was used.
- When at least three Results have been returned, the server compares them. In general, it will use the middle value (or the average of the middle values if there are 4 or more Results) of the Claimed Credits, throwing away the top and bottom claim. The Participants are granted this average of the middle of the Claimed Credits.
- Note:
- This is a simplification of the rules. They are covered in depth in the topics on Credit.
Please keep in mind:
- There may be a delay of several days between when your computer reports a Result and when it is Granted Credit for the Result. The "Your Account" Page shows you how much Credit is 'pending' (claimed but not granted).
- The credit-granting process starts when your computer reports a Result to the Scheduling Server (not when it finishes computing the Result or uploading the output files).
- In rare cases (e.g. if errors occur on one or more computers) you may never receive Credit for a computation.
[edit] UCB Source
[edit] Copyright ©
- 2005 University of California
- 2005 Paul D. Buck
Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2 or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation.
