How to set up billing in Terra
Contents
Getting started - $300 in Google Cloud Credits
Accessing STRIDES credits on Terra
Collaborating with someone already on Terra? Some ways to share billing
- Work in a shared workspace
- Access an existing Billing Project
- How to add or remove Billing Project users (owners)
Setting up a Terra Billing Project from scratch
Terra resources that don't cost anything to use
Start with $300 in Google Cloud Platform (GCP) credits
Google cloud credits are a way to try the platform - to see if it's right for you - before committing your own money. GCP offers $300 in credits to new users signing up for Billing Accounts. For step-by-step instructions on claiming $300 of GCP dollars to use on Terra, see this article. Once you claim the $300 credits, link your Google account to Terra (step2 below), create a billing Project (step 3 below), and start exploring in a new workspace.
Although $300 won't be nearly enough to do a full analysis, it will give you a taste for the possibilities. You can use the credits to try the Workflows QuickStart and Notebooks QuickStart tutorials. Each of these tutorials takes less than an hour and costs less than a dollar to complete. You'll have plenty leftover to practice in a Showcase Featured Workspace. These cover a variety of scientific use-cases and include downsized datasets.
Accessing STRIDES credits in Terra
Participants in programs such as the BioData Catalyst pilot program will have program credits through STRIDES loaded on a pre-associated Google Billing Account. These credits can be used for storage, compute and egress charges on the Terra platform.
These instructions assumes you have already registered for an account on Terra, and that your Terra account has already been linked to a STRIDES billing account.
To learn more about the billing structure on tera, see this article.
Create a Terra Billing Project to access STRIDES credits (step-by-step)
- Select "Your Name" --> "Billing" from the drop-down main menu (by clicking the three horizontal lines at the top left of any page in Terra) to access your Terra billing profile
- Click the "+" icon to the right of the "BILLING PROJECTS" label to create a new Terra billing project.
- Enter a unique name for your Terra Billing Project in the modal. Note that the name must be unique within the entire Terra/Google cloud platform, and it cannot be changed:
- Select your STRIDES Billing Account from the dropdown menu in the modal. This is the Billing Account associated with the Terra Billing Project you are creating. Note that it will have the format "NIH.NHGRI.BDC.Fellow.00X"
- Click on the "Create Billing Project" button at the bottom of the modal. Note that it will take several minutes to complete the billing project.
You will use this Terra Billing Project when creating workspaces in Terra, and costs incurred by any work done in a workspace will be paid for via the STRIDES Billing Account.
Collaborating with someone already using Terra?
If you are working with someone who has already set up their billing, you may be able to access their billing resources, indirectly or directly. The two options are outlined below.
Work in a shared workspace
Costs in Terra are billed to the workspace Billing project; it doesn't matter what user does the work. If a colleague shares a workspace with you and assigns you WRITER (can-compute) access, you will be able to move data into and out of the workspace bucket, store data, and run analyses within that workspace. All charges for these operations will be paid by your colleague's Billing project, which is assigned to the workspace when it's created.
For more information about controlling shared lab costs, including sharing workspaces, see this article.
Access a colleague's Billing project
In order to create or clone a workspace of your own, you will need to have a Terra Billing project. However, you don't necessarily need to set one up from scratch! Billing project owners can add and remove Billing Project users, so you may be able to access a colleague's already existing project. This may apply, for example, if you are joining a research group that is already working in Terra. You'll need to ask the Billing project owner to add you using the steps below.
Once you are a designated Billing project user, the project will appear in your Billing page, and in the drop-down menu when you create a workspace. All costs incurred in the workspaces you create will be covered by the Billing project.
How owners can add or remove Billing Project users
1. In the Terra UI, click on the User Profile drop-down from the main navigation menu at the top left and select Billing.
2. Click on the Terra Billing Project to which you want to add users. You must be an Owner of the Billing Project to add users.
3. To add a new user, click on Add User. Note that the user must first register as a user on Terra.
4. In the pop-up window, enter the user’s Terra email address. The system will add the person as a User by default. Users can create workspaces using this Billing Project, but can not add other users to the Billing Project. if you want that person to have greater control, click the checkbox labeled "Owner".
Owners can edit any user's role and delete users from a Billing Project at any time by clicking on the Billing Project from the list (access Billing from the User Profile drop-down from the main navigation menu at the top left).
Set up billing in Terra from scratch - in three steps
If you don't have access to shared workspaces or billing, follow three steps below to set up a Terra Billing project from scratch. Once you have a Billing project, you'll be able to create or clone a workspace where you can store data and do analyses. After setting it up, Terra will manage the interface with Google.
1. Set up a Google Billing Account |
2. Link Google Billing to Terra |
3.Create a Terra Billing Project |
See the sections below for more detail on each step.
1. Set up a Google Billing Account
The first step is to set up a GCP Billing Account. If you work for the Broad Institute, you can request a Google Billing sub-account. If you're comfortable working in GCP console, you can set up and manage a Billing Account in Google Cloud Platform. And if you don't want to navigate GCP console, you can go through a third-party reseller who will do it for you.
| Hint: Talk to your institutional procurement office and see if they have a preferred account set-up method with Google (such as a third party reseller or an existing account). Remember to use the same Google account ID you use to log into Terra for the GCP Billing Account. |
Request a Google Billing sub-account (Broad users)
Broad internal users can request a Google Billing Sub-Account to bill Terra usage costs to a Broad Managed Cost Object.
Before you request a Google Billing Sub-Account, please speak to your Grant Administrator and Primary Investigator (PI) to determine the availability of funding, and to discuss a monthly and total budget for Terra.
Once you are ready to request a Google Billing Sub-Account, please fill out the form at this link (You'll have to be signed in to your Broad email to access this form).
Use a third-party reseller
This is a good option if you do not want to navigate GCP consolare or are new to cloud computing. Note that the third-party reseller will be the Billing account Owner, so you may not have full access to detailed cost breakouts and spending reports in the GCP console.
Third party resellers can facilitate and manage billing, helping to alleviate anxiety around spending in the cloud. They will work with you to set up a billing environment and a budget. They may have tools to help visualize storage, egress and compute charges, broken out by project and/or workspace. For researchers on grants, they can do purchase orders, and even help prepay with grant funding so you can spend when you need to.
There are many options for third party resellers, who provide additional options for accessing and managing Google Accounts at no extra cost. Two examples are: Onix Networking or Sada Systems. To get started, you should contact the third party reseller directly.
Note that if you are located in North America, you can leverage Onix as the Google Cloud Platform re-seller. Onix is already experienced working with Terra accounts, so the setup to a new billing account is easy. Contact Onix at broad@onixnet.com or (216) 584-6649.
Create a personal Google Billing Account using a credit card or bank account
This is a good option if you want to have full control over your Billing account and are comfortable working in the GCP console. Go to the Google Developers Console Billing page, click on Add billing account and follow the instructions. Remember to use the same Google account ID you use to log into Terra for the GCP Billing Account.
You will need to provide billing information, which can be a personal or institutional credit card or bank account, as well as personal information to verify your identity (address and birthday). Note that if you have signed up for $300 in GCP credits, you will have already set up this part.
2. Link the Google Billing Account to Terra
Unless you are using a third-party reseller (who will take care of linking the accounts), the next step is to link the Google Billing Account to your Terra user account. They should have the same Google ID. You'll do this in the GCP console (separate from Terra).
NOTE: You must be an administrator on the Google Billing Account to link the account with Terra. This will automatically be true if you created the Google billing account. If you are not already an administrator on the Google Billing Account, you should contact an administrator and ask them to add you (or ask them to add Terra as a Billing Account User). This may be the PI or business administrator in your office.
Click for step-by-step instructions to link Google Billing to Terra
2.2. Select the check box beside the Google billing account you will use for Terra
2.3. On the right panel, below "Permissions," select the "Add Members" button
2.4. Add "terra-billing@terra.bio" and select the role Billing Account User. Click Add.
Note: "terra-billing@terra.bio" may show up in the list as "terra-billing@firecloud.org." This is totally okay and expected!
3. Create a Terra Billing Project
Once Terra is linked to a Google Billing account, you should be able to create a Terra Billing Project through the Billing Management Screen in the Terra UI. From the main menu (three horizontal lines in thee top left of ay page on Terra), choose "Billing" and click the "+" icon in the circle. Note that when you create a new Terra Billing Project, you are automatically designated as the Owner.
Click for step-by-step instructions to create a Billing Project
3.2. Click on "Create a New Project"
If prompted, click to Enable Billing Permissions, select the Google identity of the Google Billing Account, and click Allow. This enables Terra to access Google Billing Accounts associated with your Terra account.
3.3. Enter a unique name for your Terra Billing Project
The name of the Terra Billing Project must:
- Only contain lowercase letters, numbers and hyphens
- Start with a lowercase letter
- Not end with a hyphen
- Be between 6 and 30 characters
- Be unique across all Google Billing Projects
3.4. Select a Google Billing account to associate with the Billing Project
Note:You may see multiple Google Billing Accounts that you can select for this Terra Billing Project. If you need to locate a Google Billing account ID, navigate to the Google Developers Console and click on Billing. Look for the number below Billing account ID.
The relationship between Terra Billing Projects and Google Projects
When you create a Terra Billing project, Google automatically generates a Google Project in GCP with the same name, which you will see on the GCP Console. Sometimes, Terra Billing projects fail to get created if a project of the same name already exists in GCP.
When you look at the Google project that Terra has created, you will see that your permissions are restricted. For security reasons, this means you won't be able to create VMs or Google buckets in GCP directly using this Google project - only in Terra.
Note that creating a Project on the GCP console will not create a project in Terra. In fact, you can only create Terra Billing Projects in the Terra interface.
Now you're ready to create or clone a workspace!
Congratulations on setting up your Billing Project! You should now be able to create or clone a workspace using the Terra interface. The Billing Project should appear in the dropdown menu for Billing. For step-by-step instructions on cloning a workspace, see this article.
Terra resources that don't cost anything to use
You do not need access to your own Terra Billing Project to use Terra (although you won't be able to create your own workspace to work in).
Some things you can do without your own billing include:
- Browsing tutorial workspaces and open-access data: These resources will be available to view in the Library after your register. Note, however, that in order to run a workflow or interactive analysis, you will need to make your own copy of the tutorial with your own Billing project.
- Working in a shared workspaces with WRITER (can compute) permission: If a Terra user, such as a collaborator or PI, shares a workspace with you and grants you WRITER (can compute) access, you can run workflows and interactive analyses within that workspace. All charges incurred will be paid by the workspace owner’s Terra Billing Project.
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