Permission issue with file deletion within Jupyter environment on dali

[basderonde]

Deleting a file from within the Jupyter environment can give a permission error, under certain conditions. The error is as follows:

This happens both for deleting newly created files as well as existing files. I have checked the permissions of these files from the command line when I am logged into dali. I can delete files directly from the terminal.

I start the Jupyter environment by calling the "start_jupyter.py" script on the dali cluster. I am using the latest version from the master branch. I am calling the script from within my own folder on dali (/dali/lgrandi/bderonde) with the following command:

python3 /dali/lgrandi/bderonde/env_starter/start_jupyter.py --tag 2023.11.1 --partition dali --cpu 6 --ram 45000 --exclude_node dali001

Using the stable env_starter branch located in "/project2/lgrandi/xenonnt/development/env_starter/start_jupyter.py" gives the same problem.

Supposedly, the issue arises from the fact that the Jupyter environment tries to move a file to the dali trash folder, which I don't have permission to, rather than actually deleting the file. A similar issue is discussed here: (jupyter-server/jupyter_server#1338).

A solution to the problem was suggested on the linked github page as well: adding the "--FileContentsManager.delete_to_trash=False" option to the line of code that calls Jupyter changes the behaviour of Jupyter, where files are now directly deleted instead of moved to a trash folder. This line of code is in the "start_notebook_dali.sh" shell script; the suggested change is highlighted in the picture below:

I tested this solution myself on a local copy of the scripts and this resolved the issue.