rcluster 0.2.0

R clusters on AWS

rcluster makes launching and accessing an R cluster on AWS simple and
accessible.

This repository will:

* Create a connection to your AWS account
* Create a R cluster AMI saved to your AWS registry
* Allow you to launch a master and a stated number of worker nodes, automating
the network connections between them and hosting a common NFS-based home
folder under the default `cluster` user:
* /home/cluster is shared between master and all workers
* /home/cluster/hostfile contains the IPs of accessible worker nodes and
spare master nodes, repeated based on the number of available worker cores
* `cluster` user's .Rprofile defines an R function (`defaultCluster()`)
which will reference the hostfile to create a PSOCK-based cluster

After that, login to RStudio Server as normal on the master, run
`defaultCluster()`, and use the returned parallel cluster object with
`parLapply()` and its peers.


# Getting Started

First, you must create and save locally your AWS access key ID and secret access
key ([instructions](http://docs.aws.amazon.com/AWSSimpleQueueService/latest/SQSGettingStartedGuide/AWSCredentials.html)).

Next, run `rcluster-config` from your command line. Note that this function
will, by default, write your AWS access key and secret access key to a hidden
folder in your user directory.

There are currently three functions to launch and manage an R cluster:

* `rcluster` - Launch an R cluster on AWS using the default configuration file.
This function will open your default browser to the RStudio Server login
page on the master instance.
* `rcluster-open` - Access an active R cluster (opens a new tab in your web
browser to the RStudio Server instance, if available).
* `rcluster-terminate` - Terminate all instances associated with your `rcluster`
configuration.