Quantum computing - Getting started with Emulators Notebooks

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Quantum computing - Getting started with Emulators Notebooks


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Some links on this documentation refer to the AI and Machine Learning solution. Quantum computing shares the same infrastructure as a service so you might be redirected to another section of this documentation.

Introduction

A Notebook is a document that integrates code, rich text elements, and multimedia, making it a convenient tool for quantum analysis and visualization.

OVHcloud Quantum Emulators is our managed solution for Jupyter and VS Code Notebooks. You can easily launch Notebooks with the required CPU and GPU resources while enjoying benefits like pre-installed dependencies and Quantum frameworks, secure user access, and simplified data management.

Objective

This guide demonstrates how to create, configure, access, stop, restart and delete a Quantum Emulators Notebook from the OVHcloud Control Panel (UI). This method is user-friendly and ideal for beginners.

Alternatively, you can use one of the following methods:

  • The ovhai command-line interface (CLI)
  • The Quantum API
  • The ovhai Python SDK

Each method offers its distinct advantages, depending on your expertise and preferred workflow.

Requirements

Instructions

OVHcloud Quantum Solutions authorization process

If you're using the CLI, API, or SDK, you will need to complete an authorization process before creating a Quantum Emulators Notebook. To do so, follow these steps:

  1. Log in to the OVHcloud Control Panel and navigate to the Public Cloud section.
  2. Select the Public Cloud project you want to use and click the Quantum Emulators category.
  3. Click the Create a Notebook button. The authorization process will take place silently in the background.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 01

Launch your first Quantum Notebook

To create a Quantum Notebook, follow these steps:

  • Using the Control Panel (UI)
  • Using ovhai CLI
  • Using the AI Solution API
  • Using the Python SDK

Navigate to the Public Cloud section of the OVHcloud Control Panel, click the Quantum Emulators category. Click the Create a Notebook button and follow the prompts to specify the configuration of your Quantum Notebook.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 01

1. Notebook name

Give a name to your notebook. This will make it easier to manage when you have multiple Quantum Notebooks created.

2. Notebook location

Next, select a location.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 02

3. Compute resources

Specify and adjust the type and amount of computing resources (CPU / GPU) for your Quantum Notebook. Use the + and - buttons to increase or decrease the number of CPUs and GPUs, depending on your needs.

Click Next.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 03

4. Pre-configured frameworks

Choose the Quantum Python framework you want to use, which will be pre-installed and ready to use when your notebook is launched. A wide range of Quantum frameworks are available in different versions. Select the version that suits your needs. Then, click Next to continue.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 04

5. Live-code editor

Choose the code editor you want.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 05

6. Privacy settings

Then, select your privacy settings and click Next.

Public access will expose your data and code to anyone getting the Quantum Notebook link. Be careful not to use it with sensitive data. On the other hand, Restricted access will require a user and password combination or a Quantum token to access the Notebook content to ensure a secure environment.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 06

7. Notebook lifecycle

Our main motivation is to keep the platform up-to-date in terms of security patches and new feature alignment. To achieve this, we need to update and restart hosts from time to time, which requires them to be free from any customer workload.

By default, your AI notebook will automatically shut down after 7 consecutive days of running. Rest assured that all your settings and data will be preserved. You have the option to enable Automatic Restart, which will automatically restart your notebook every 7 days, ensuring minimal disruption to your workflow. Alternatively, you can also contact our support to extend this automatic restart period from 7 to 28 days.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 06

8. Advanced configuration

By default, your Quantum Notebook comes with ephemeral storage (local storage). But in this step, you can also link Object Storage containers and Git repositories to your notebook to easily access your remote data.

If you want to learn more about configuring containers and Git repositories in the Notebook, you can refer to this AI & Machine learning documentation. For now, we will launch a classic Notebook without any external volumes added to it.

Click Next.

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 07

SSH public keys allow you to access your Notebook remotely. This section is optional, click Next.

9. Launch the Quantum Notebook

At the end of the process, review your settings and click the Order now button to confirm and launch the creation of your Notebook. You will be redirected to your notebook dashboard:

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 10

Note at the bottom of the screen the equivalent ovhai CLI command. This command allows you to run the exact same Notebook using the CLI.

When your Notebook is created, it will appear on your Quantum Emulators tab:

Create a Notebook Control Panel manager 11

If you prefer to use the command line interface to launch your Quantum Notebook, please follow these steps:

  1. Follow this AI & Machine learning documentation to install the ovhai CLI and log in.
  2. Visit this second documentation to learn how to create your Quantum Notebook using commands.

Create a Notebook ovhai CLI

  1. Create a bearer token from the ovhai CLI. For more detailed instructions on creating a token, check the manage access tokens documentation.
  2. Navigate to the desired region and follow the instructions to create a Quantum Notebook.
  3. Submit a new notebook POST method

Make sure to select Bearer Auth instead of OAuth 2.0, which is selected by default.

Create a Notebook API token authentication

Alpha version warning: This package is currently in the alpha phase of development. The APIs and functionalities of the package may not be fully tested.

  1. Create a bearer token from the ovhai CLI. For more detailed instructions on creating a token, check the manage access tokens documentation.
  2. Install the ovhai Python SDK and follow the instructions in the ovhai PyPI page to create a Quantum Notebook.
  3. Finally, open your terminal and run pip install ovhai.

Here is a basic example of how to do it, making it easy for you to get started:

from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient
from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_new
from ovhai.models import NotebookSpec, Notebook
from ovhai.ovhai_types import Response

client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)

# Define notebook parameters
editor_id = "jupyterlab"
framework_id = "alicebob"
framework_version = "1.2.0-py312-cpu"
nb_cpu = 1

# Create the notebook creation request
notebook_specs = {
    "env": {"editorId": editor_id, "frameworkId": framework_id, "frameworkVersion": framework_version},
    "resources": {"cpu": nb_cpu},
}

with client as client:
    response: Response[Notebook] = notebook_new.sync_detailed(
        client=client, body=NotebookSpec.from_dict(notebook_specs)
    )

    import json
    response_content = response.content.decode('utf-8')  # Decode bytes to a string
    response_dict = json.loads(response_content)

    status_code = response.status_code
    id_ = response_dict['id']
    spec = response_dict['spec']
    status = response_dict['status']
    state = status['state']
    info = status['info']
    url = response_dict['status']['url']

    print(f"Status code: {status_code}")
    print(f"ID: {id_}")
    print(f"Spec: {spec}")
    print(f"State: {state}")
    print(f"Info: {info}")
    print(f"URL: {url}")

Accessing your Quantum Notebook

Once your Quantum Notebook is created and running, you can access it using the JupyterLab link in the Quantum Notebooks board or through the ovhai CLI, Quantum API, or Python SDK.

  • Using the Control Panel (UI)
  • Using ovhai CLI
  • Using the Quantum API
  • Using the Python SDK

Click the JupyterLab link in the Publisher column:

Accessing a Notebook Control Panel manager 1

You can also access the Notebook from its dedicated page:

Accessing a Notebook Control Panel manager 2

On the Notebook page, you will find information about the Notebook, including specifications, billing, and attached data, as well as a monitoring URL for real-time metrics.

The URL of your Notebook should be displayed in your terminal and you can display it by running ovhai notebook list to retrieve the URL.

Access a Notebook ovhai CLI

You can also get Notebook information using ovhai notebook get <NOTEBOOK_UUID>.

The URL of your Notebook should appear in the Response panel:

Access a Notebook API

If not, use the Paginated list of notebooks GET endpoint method:

You can also get Notebook information using the Get notebook information GET endpoint method.

Run the following code to list all Quantum Notebooks:

from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_get_all
from ovhai.models import NotebookList
from ovhai.ovhai_types import Response

from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient

client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)

with client as client:
    response: Response[NotebookList] = notebook_get_all.sync_detailed(client=client)
    import json
    response = json.loads(response.content.decode())
    for notebook_info in response["items"]:
        print(f"ID: {notebook_info['id']}")
        print(f"Name: {notebook_info['spec']['name']}")
        print(f"Status: {notebook_info['status']['state']}")
        print(f"Framework: {notebook_info['spec']['env']['frameworkId']}")
        print(f"Framework version: {notebook_info['spec']['env']['frameworkVersion']}")
        print(f"Editor: {notebook_info['spec']['env']['editorId']}")
        print(f"Access link: {notebook_info['status']['url']}")
        print("---------------")

You can also get Notebook information with this code sample:

from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_get
from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient
import json

client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)
id = "YOUR_NOTEBOOK_UUID"

with client as client:
    response = notebook_get.sync_detailed(
        id=id, client=client
    )

print(json.loads(response.content.decode()))

Connecting to your Quantum Notebook

To connect to your Quantum Notebook, you'll need to authenticate using a username and password combination or an access token.

Using a Username and Password

Enter your Public Cloud project user's credentials to log in to your Quantum Notebook.

Notebook Authentication Credentials

Using an Access Token

Click the Login with token button and enter your access token to log in to your Quantum Notebook.

Notebook Authentication Token

Stopping a Quantum Notebook

You can stop your Quantum Notebook at any time to release its compute resources. This will release its compute resources but will keep your Notebook data and installed libraries. Therefore, you will not incur any further charges for compute unless you restart the Notebook. However, attached storage will be billed at the price of OVHcloud Object Storage (consult the Quantum Notebooks Billing documentation for more information). To do so, follow these steps:

  • Using the Control Panel (UI)
  • Using ovhai CLI
  • Using the Quantum API
  • Using the Python SDK

Go to the Quantum Notebooks board and click on the ... button next to the Notebook you want to stop. Click the Stop button to stop the Notebook. Or, on the notebook board, you can click on the red button at the top of the page.

Stop a Notebook Control Panel manager

Run the command ovhai notebook stop <NOTEBOOK_UUID> to stop the Notebook.

If you do not know its UUID, remember that you can easily list all your existing Quantum Notebooks by running ovhai notebook list.

Select the Stop a running notebook endpoint and provide the UUID of the Notebook you want to stop.

Stop a Notebook API

Use the notebook_stop method to stop the Notebook.

from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_stop
from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient
client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)
id = "YOUR_NOTEBOOK_UUID"

with client as client:
    response = notebook_stop.sync_detailed(client=client, id=id)

Restarting a stopped Notebook

To restart a stopped Notebook, follow these steps:

  • Using the Control Panel (UI)
  • Using ovhai CLI
  • Using the Quantum API
  • Using the Python SDK

Go to the Quantum Notebooks board and click on the ... button next to the Notebook you want to restart. Click the Start button to restart the Notebook. Or, on the notebook board, you can click on the blue button at the top of the page.

Restart a Notebook Control Panel manager

Run the command ovhai notebook start <NOTEBOOK_UUID> to restart the Notebook.

Select the Start a stopped notebook endpoint and provide the UUID of the Notebook you want to restart.

Restart a Notebook API

Use the notebook_start method to restart the Notebook.

from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_start
from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient
client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)
id = "YOUR_NOTEBOOK_UUID"

with client as client:
    response = notebook_start.sync_detailed(
        id=id, client=client
    )

Deleting a Notebook

The notebook must be stopped before deleting it. To delete a Notebook, follow these steps:

  • Using the Control Panel (UI)
  • Using ovhai CLI
  • Using the Quantum API
  • Using the Python SDK

Go to the Quantum Notebooks board and click on the ... button next to the Notebook you want to delete. Click the Delete button to stop the Notebook. Or, on the notebook board, you can click on the Delete notebook button at the bottom of the page.

Delete a Notebook Control Panel manager

Run the command ovhai notebook delete <NOTEBOOK_UUID> to delete the Notebook.

Select the Delete permanently a notebook endpoint and provide the UUID of the Notebook you want to delete.

Delete a Notebook API

Use the notebook_delete method to delete the Notebook.

from ovhai.api.notebook import notebook_delete
from ovhai import AuthenticatedClient

client = AuthenticatedClient(
    base_url="https://gra.ai.cloud.ovh.net",
    token="YOUR_QUANTUM_TOKEN",
)
id = "YOUR_NOTEBOOK_UUID"

with client as client:
    response = notebook_delete.sync_detailed(
        id=id, client=client, force=False
    )

    print(response.content.decode())

Go further

  • Discover how to access your Object Storage data and Git repositories from your Notebooks using the UI here.
  • Learn about the technical features, capabilities, and limitations of the Public Cloud Quantum Notebooks offering here.
  • Get some hints on how to debug your Notebooks if things go wrong here.

If you need training or technical assistance to implement our solutions, contact your sales representative or click on this link to get a quote and ask our Professional Services experts for a custom analysis of your project.

Feedback

We would love to help answer questions and appreciate any feedback you may have.

Please send us your questions, feedback, and suggestions regarding Quantum Notebooks:

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