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Shifter

Shifter is a container runtime that converts Docker images to a common format for distribution and launch on high-performance computing (HPC) systems. With Shifter, you select an image from Docker Hub and submit jobs that run entirely within the container.

Prerequisites​

Shifter must be installed in your execution environment.

On a distributed cluster, install Shifter on all compute nodes, make the shifterimg command available, and configure Shifter to access the Image gateway. For more information, see the Shifter documentation.

Images​

Shifter converts a Docker image to Squashfs layers that are distributed and launched in the cluster. To build Shifter images, see the Shifter documentation.

How it works​

Enable Shifter in the Nextflow configuration file:

shifter.enabled = true
process.container = 'dockerhub_user/image_name:image_tag'

Shifter always searches the Docker Hub registry for images. If you do not specify an image tag, Shifter fetches the latest tag.

Advanced settings​

See the shifter configuration scope for advanced Shifter settings.

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