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Platform Features

Overview

The ALTERNATIVE platform offers a comprehensive set of features designed to support collaborative research, data management, and analysis in the field of environmental toxicology. These features are built upon a robust cloud infrastructure, leveraging technologies such as Kubernetes, CKAN, and JupyterHub to provide a scalable and user-friendly environment for scientists and researchers.

Data Sharing

The platform's data sharing capabilities are primarily powered by CKAN (Comprehensive Knowledge Archive Network), a web-based catalog platform for managing large datasets collaboratively. Key features include:

  • Organization-based Access Control: Each consortium partner is represented as an organization, with customizable workflows and authorization mechanisms.
  • Flexible User Roles: Users can be assigned roles such as Member, Editor, or Admin, each with varying levels of access and control.
  • Rich Metadata Support: Datasets include default metadata fields, custom fields, and specialized metadata for scientific experiments.
  • Resource Management: Multiple resources can be associated with each dataset, supporting various file formats and external links.
  • Data Visibility Control: Datasets can be set as public or private, allowing for both open data sharing and restricted access scenarios.
  • Dataset Collaboration: Users can be added as collaborators on specific datasets, with granular permission settings.

Development Environment

JupyterHub is integrated into the platform to provide a powerful development environment for researchers and data scientists. Features include:

  • On-demand JupyterLab Servers: Users get personalized workspaces with a rich set of tools for data analysis and visualization.
  • Multiple Programming Environments: Support for Python, R, and other languages, with pre-configured environments and libraries.
  • Integration with Platform Data: Easy access to datasets stored in CKAN through custom Python libraries.
  • Resource Optimization: Automatic shutdown of inactive servers to manage platform resources efficiently.
  • Customizable Workspace: Users can configure their JupyterLab interface with various plugins and extensions.

Multi-user and Collaboration

The platform is designed to facilitate collaboration among diverse teams of researchers, scientists, and regulators. Collaborative features include:

  • Shared Datasets: Users can share datasets within organizations or with specific collaborators.
  • Collaborative Notebooks: JupyterHub supports multi-user access to notebooks, enabling real-time collaboration.
  • Version Control Integration: Built-in support for Git, allowing users to manage and share code effectively.
  • Customizable User Experiences: CKAN extensions allow for tailored interfaces for different user groups.

Single Sign-On

To provide a seamless user experience across different components of the platform, Single Sign-On (SSO) has been implemented:

  • Keycloak Integration: Uses Keycloak for centralized identity and access management.
  • Unified Authentication: Users can access both CKAN and JupyterHub with a single set of credentials.
  • Secure Access Control: Supports fine-grained access control and advanced security features like Two-Factor Authentication (2FA).

Elasticity

The platform leverages cloud infrastructure and Kubernetes to provide elastic scaling capabilities:

  • Dynamic Resource Allocation: Kubernetes enables automatic scaling of resources based on demand.
  • Efficient Resource Utilization: Services can scale up or down to optimize performance and cost.
  • Storage Flexibility: Utilizes various storage solutions, including block storage and S3, to accommodate different data storage needs.
  • On-demand Compute: JupyterHub spawns user environments on-demand, efficiently managing computational resources.

These features collectively create a powerful, flexible, and secure environment for collaborative research and data analysis in the ALTERNATIVE project, supporting the complex requirements of environmental toxicology studies.