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🚀 Getting Started with CANFAR

Guide to setting up and using the CANFAR Science Platform for astronomical research.

Essential Resources:

1️⃣ Get Your CADC Account

If you are a first-time user, request a Canadian Astronomy Data Centre (CADC) account:

🔗 Request CADC Account

See Accounts & Permissions for more details.

Account Processing Time

CADC accounts are typically approved within 1–2 business days. For troubleshooting account issues, see FAQ or Contact Support.

2️⃣ Join or Create Your Research Group

Once you have a CADC account:

Ask your collaboration administrator to add you via the CADC Group Management Interface.

Email support@canfar.net with:

  • Your project description
  • Expected team size
  • Storage requirements
  • Timeline

See Permissions Guide for group management details. For advanced collaboration, see Storage Guide.

3️⃣ First Login and Set-up

  1. Login to canfar.net with your CADC credentials.
  2. Accept Terms of Service to complete set-up.
  3. Optional (for private containers): Access the Image Registry

See Container Guide for more about images and custom software. For building your own containers, see Building Containers.

4️⃣ Launch Your First Session

To start analyzing data, launch a Jupyter notebook:

  1. Click Science Portal from the main menu.
  2. Use the default settings.
  3. Click Launch.
  4. Wait about 30 seconds, then open your session.

🎉 You're ready to go! Your session includes Python, common astronomy packages, and access to shared storage.

See Sessions Overview for more session types and workflows. For automation, see CANFAR Python Client.

Recommended Starting Point

Start with the default astroml container – it includes most common astronomy packages and is regularly updated.

Advanced: Custom Containers

📁 Understanding Your Workspace

See the Storage Guide for full details. For VOSpace scripting, see VOSpace API.

Location Purpose Persistence Best For
/arc/projects/[project]/ Shared research data ✅ Permanent, backed up Datasets, results, shared code
/arc/home/[user]/ Personal files ✅ Permanent, backed up Personal configs, small files
/scratch/ Fast temporary space ❌ Wiped at session end Large computations, temporary files

🤝 Collaboration Features

See Permissions Guide and Storage Guide for collaboration details. For team onboarding, see Getting Started.

Storage Sharing

All group members have access to /arc/projects/[project]/ – perfect for:

  • Sharing datasets and results
  • Collaborative analysis scripts
  • Common software environments
  • Project documentation

💬 Need Help?