Cluster/Data-Management/TCM-Fileserver.md

@@ -20,8 +20,11 @@ Now you can work in this folder. (It can be useful to make a symlink to your hom
 If any part of this fails (for example, there are no empty volumes, or you don't know how to create a README file), ask [Ilya Schurov](https://www.ru.nl/tcm/about-us/postdocs/dr-schurov/) for help.
 
 ### `tcmscratchXX` volumes
-You can use a `tcmscratchXX` volume if you need to store a lot of data during your calculations. Note that these volumes are not backed up at all. So the recommended way to use them is to do the calculations on `tcmscratchXX`, then copy all important resulting data to your `tcmXX` volume and delete unimportant intermediate data.
+You can use a `tcmscratchXX` volume if you need to store a lot of intermediate data during your calculations. Note that these volumes are not backed up at all. So the recommendation is to use `tcmscratchXX` (if it is ever needed) only as a temporary storage and move all the final results to your `tcmXX` volume as soon as they are obtained.
 
-### `tcmarchiveXX` Volumes and Annual Purge
+### `tcmarchiveXX` volumes and Annual Purge
 
-These volumes are used for long-term archiving purposes: once a year (around New Year's) their contents are backed up to tapes, and the tapes are securely stored in a special vault at Gringotts. Prior to this backup, we ask all users to move the results of their completed projects there. This allows us to make sure that there is enough free space in the `tcmXX` volumes for new projects and new people. During the cleanup, you will create a folder `<year>_<your_name>` in the active `tcmarchive` volume and put everything there. (Don't worry, we will remind you about the cleanup when the time comes, and give you all the necessary instructions.)
+These volumes are used for long-term archiving purposes: once a year (around New Year's) their contents are backed up to tapes, and the tapes are securely stored in a special vault at Gringotts. Prior to this backup, we ask all users to move the results of their completed projects there. This allows us to make sure that there is enough free space in the `tcmXX` volumes for new projects and new people. During the cleanup, you will need to create a folder `<year>_<your_name>` in the active `tcmarchive` volume and put everything there. (Don't worry, we will remind you about the cleanup when the time comes, and give you all the necessary instructions.)
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+
+## `/scratch` volume.
+Each cluster node has its own `/scratch` volume. It's a bit special: in contrast with your home directory and TCM volumes discussed above, `/scratch` volumes are not shared between nodes. They are connected to the nodes "directly" and therefore are much faster. So if need to read and write large intermediate files during your calculations a lot of times, `/scratch` can be the best place to store them. Do not forget to create a folder with your username in it (e.g. `/scratch/<your_username>`).
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