IRIS provides a portfolio of computing, data, federation and security services that support data-intensive research across the UK. Researchers can access cloud and high-performance computing resources, large-scale storage platforms, distributed Grid infrastructure and federation services that enable collaboration across institutions. IRIS also promotes a coordinated approach to cyber security within federated digital research infrastructures, helping communities and providers develop common policies, share expertise and strengthen operational resilience. Together, these services provide the digital foundations needed to support world-leading scientific research and international collaboration.
IRIS Capabilities
OpenStack Clouds
IRIS OpenStack Cloud Services provide flexible, on-demand virtual computing, storage and networking resources that enable researchers to deploy customised scientific platforms, data-processing environments and collaborative research services. Delivered through a federation of providers, the service supports data-intensive research across a wide range of scientific disciplines.
HPC Services
IRIS HPC services provide access to powerful CPU and GPU platforms for simulation, data analysis, machine learning and scientific computing. Delivered through leading national facilities and university providers, these services enable researchers to process large datasets and run computationally intensive workloads at scale.
Storage Services
IRIS Storage Services provide scalable data platforms ranging from high-performance S3-compatible object storage for active research data to large-scale tape archive services for long-term preservation. Together, these services enable researchers to store, share, access and safeguard scientific datasets throughout the research lifecycle, from data acquisition to archival retention.
Grid Compute and data Infrastructure
GridPP provides a nationally distributed high-throughput computing and data infrastructure that enables researchers to process large scientific workloads across a federation of UK universities and laboratories. Through IRIS, GridPP delivers large-scale compute capacity, data movement services and flexible access to resources that can be expanded to meet changing demand. While originally developed for particle physics, the platform is now used by a growing range of scientific communities requiring reliable, scalable computing and distributed data processing capabilities.
DRI Federation Services
IRIS Federation Services provide the shared digital capabilities that enable researchers and infrastructure providers to collaborate across organisational boundaries. Services such as federated identity management, accounting, software distribution and trusted access help create a secure, interoperable research ecosystem, allowing users to access distributed resources through common standards and services.
Cyber security for a Global DRI
IRIS helps research communities and infrastructure providers address the cyber security challenges of operating a federated digital research infrastructure spanning multiple organisations, facilities and international collaborations. Through community-led policy development, security training, operational security collaboration and the sharing of expertise and threat intelligence, IRIS promotes trusted, resilient and secure approaches to enabling modern data-intensive science.
