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Computing with BOINC new

David Anderson edited this page Mar 4, 2026 · 5 revisions

BOINC is a platform for 'volunteer computing', in which consumer devices (desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones) are used for high-throughput scientific computing.

The goal of BOINC is to provide researchers with lots of computing power at a small (or zero) cost.

For more information, contact BOINC staff. To contact admins of existing BOINC projects, post to the BOINC projects email list.

1. Use BOINC Central

By far the easiest way to compute with BOINC is to use BOINC Central. BOINC Central uses a Docker-based system called BUDA. To use it, all you need to do is:

  • Register with BOINC Central.
  • Package your application using Docker.
  • Manage your apps and submit jobs through a simple web interface.

2. ... or create your own BOINC project

Alternatively, you can create and operate your own BOINC project. This can potentially give you more computing power than BOINC Central. However, it requires that you buy or rent server hardware, and that you have various technical skills (Linux sysadmin, MySQL, network management).

3.1 Use BUDA if possible

We recommend that your project use BUDA to package applications and handle job processing.

3.2 ... or use lower-level systems

However, BUDA has some limitations, and it can only use volunteer computers that have Docker installed. BOINC provides other ways to package applications and process jobs.

3.3 Project operation and maintenance

Once your project is operational, you'll need to deal with

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