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using the import operation. They either embed the non-native workflow as a single job
in a WS-PGRADE workflow, or create a meta-workflow combining WS-PGRADE
jobs and workflows of non-native workflows using the portal
'
s workflow editor. Then
they submit this workflow to the gateway
s WS-PGRADE workflow engine, which
forwards it to the DCI Bridge. The DCI Bridge sends the submission request of the
non-native workflow to the SHIWA Submission Service. This service retrieves
the workflow from the SHIWAWorkflowRepository, associates it with the workflow
engine that executes it, and returns it to the DCI Bridge. Finally, the DCI Bridge either
sends the workflow to a predeployed workflow engine or submits the workflow
engine with the workflow to be executed on the target infrastructure.
'
9.6 Sharing Portlets and Work
fl
ows: A Case Study
In this section we present a case study in which various components of an existing
gateway published in the repositories were reused for the development and cus-
tomization of another one. These repositories facilitate sharing various artefacts
(applications, workflows, and portlets) of science gateways to speed up the
development of new applications and gateways.
The University of Westminster developed the Westminster Desktop Grid
Gateway to support various local user communities. This gateway is connected to
the University of Westminster Local Desktop Grid (WLDG), utilizing the free
computing capacity of up to 2000 laboratory computers. The gateway offers custom
ASM portlets for molecular docking and 3D animation rendering used in both
teaching and research. The workflows and portlets developed for this gateway have
been uploaded to the SHIWA Workflow Repository and the SCI-BUS Portlet
Repository, respectively.
Molecular docking has been identi
ed as one of the key application areas that
could be supported by publicly available science gateways that would attract
potentially large user communities. However, supporting users in an open policy is
not acceptable in a closed university resource such as the WLDG. Also, a public
gateway requires signi
cant resources to serve the expected large number of end-
users. Within the SCI-BUS project, MTA SZTAKI developed and set up a cus-
tomized molecular docking gateway based on the WS-PGRADE/gUSE framework
that is operated on the EDGeS@home public desktop grid. Instead of developing
the gateway from scratch, SZTAKI utilized various repositories to download,
install, and customize the applications, workflows, and portlets already available.
First, SZTAKI selected the three molecular docking portlets that form part of the
University of Westminster Desktop Grid Gateway. Although the Westminster gate-
way also includes additional portlets, the docking portlets are separate entities and are
uploaded independently to the SCI-BUS Portlet Repository. Therefore, these portlets
can be installed on other gateways too. The docking portlets call three workflows that
are available in the SHIWA Workflow Repository. Next, SZTAKI developers
downloaded these workflows and applied some necessary transformations to the
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