Why Clunky SSH Login Friction Stops Independent Computational Chemistry Work
Computational chemistry, Locally? My rant on SSH
I argue that the excessive friction of logging into university HPC clusters via VPN, SSH, and 2FA discourages independent researchers from pursuing computational chemistry projects. While remote clusters offer power, the clunky workflow kills motivation. Fortunately, tools like Claude Code now make installing software like OpenMolcas on local Macs easier, and for small tasks, local performance can surprisingly outperform remote clusters.
If there are too many intermediate steps to get started to work on something, I become less motivated to work on it, forget about it, and in the worst case scenario just drop the endeavour entirely.