[wiki:WikiStart Orbit] > GettingStarted

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= How to get started =

First, you will need an ORBIT account. Please check the [wiki:Documents/About/UsagePolicy usage policy] if you are eligible. Typically, in order to get an account,one would have to [http://www.orbit-lab.org/userManagement/register register for an account] and get it approved by the PI in charge of the project/institution they wish to be part off. If particular institution is not available, the appropriate PI can [http://www.orbit-lab.org/userManagement/orgReg] register for an institutional account. 

A typical experiment requires the following five steps:

 * Creating reservation: before you can access the testebed,you need to [http://www.orbit-lab.org/scheduler/ make a reservation] and get it approved by the  [wiki:Documentation/Scheduler] reservation service. First time users are '''highly''' encouraged to reserve time on a sandbox instead of the main grid, and start with the built-in [wiki:/Tutorials/HelloWorld Hello World] experiment (including ability to access all 400 nodes in the grid)
 * [wiki:Documentation/Short/Login Login into reserved domain:] after you receive the confirmation email, you can access the reserved domain  by ssh-ong into the corresponding console.
 * [#LoadImage Loading an Image on the ndoes]
 * [#Run Running the experiment]
 * [#Analyze Analyzing the results]

== Reservations == #Reserve

First time users are '''highly''' encouraged to reserve time on a sandbox instead of the main grid, and start with the built-in [wiki:/Tutorials/HelloWorld Hello World] experiment (including ability to access all 400 nodes in the grid).

[[Include(Documentation/Short/Login)]]

== Loading an Image == #LoadImage

When you have successfully logged in, you can start an experiment using the [wiki:Software/cOMF#ExperimentController Orbit Management Framework (OMF)]. 

 

 5. The imageing process will turn the nodes back off after completing imageing. At this point the nodes disks are imaged with the ''basline'' image 
    and need to be turned back on before proceeding.
    {{{
    username@console.domain:~$ omf tell -a on -t all
    }}}
    Give the nodes a couple of minutes to turn on / boot, then check their status with omf stat.

== Where to go from here == #NextStep

If you are still unsure what Orbit is, please read the [wiki:FAQ FAQ] and the [wiki:Tutorial Tutorial], otherwise go ahead and [http://www.orbit-lab.org/userManagement/register register].