---
title: "Troy Redfearn pursues better user experience with new test cluster"
description: "A recent graduate of New Mexico State University, Troy Redfearn is one of the newest additions to the University of New Mexico Center for Advanced Research Computing team."
type: News
tags:
  - News
date: "2019-08"
generated:
  by: "process:scripts/port_legacy_pages.py"
  at: "2026-09-10T00:00:00Z"
sources:
  - id: carc-web
    resource: "https://carc.unm.edu/news--events/News/redfearn-wheelie.html"
    title: "Troy Redfearn pursues better user experience with new test cluster (carc.unm.edu)"
    author: "team:unm-carc"
---

# Troy Redfearn pursues better user experience with new test cluster

<p class="carc-byline">August 2019</p>

![](/assets/wheelie-test-cluster-troy-for-story.jpg)

A recent graduate of New Mexico State University, Troy Redfearn is one of the
newest additions to the University of New Mexico Center for Advanced Research
Computing team. His fresh perspective and experience in network engineering
have become an invaluable asset to the center’s elite staff of computer
scientists.

Redfearn grew up in Riverside, California, but moved to New Mexico to attend
NMSU in Las Cruces. After settling in, he found himself enchanted by our
unique state. “I just love the blend of cultures that coexist here,” Redfearn
states, “It’s got a certain charm.” At the outset of his college career, he
was most interested in entomology, the study of insects. Over time, however,
his enthusiasm for the subject waned. “I didn’t connect with the material,”
Redfearn recalls. He began exploring new avenues and soon discovered his
talent for computer science. “I instantly loved it,” Redfearn says. “There was
never any doubt.”

While studying, Redfearn began his career in computer science by working at
New Mexico State University Network Engineering Services. There, he performed
beta testing implementation of a network architecture system. Upon graduation
from NMSU, he was offered the position of HPC Systems Specialist 1 at the
Center. Since beginning his work at UNM in June, Redfearn has already
established himself as an indispensable part of the systems team.

For the past month and a half, Redfearn has dedicated much of his time to a
new test cluster project named “Wheelie.” Wheelie, so named because it is the
“little brother” of the [Wheeler computer system](wheeler-named.md), will be
used to test new programs in a safe environment without disrupting user
experience. Once Wheelie is up and running, CARC systems staff will be able to
simulate the outcome of novel programs without interfering with those programs
currently relied upon by UNM researchers. In particular, CARC scientists would
like to test JupyterHub, a web-based interface for high-performance computing.
This new interface will make log-in easier for CARC system users and create a
more efficient platform.

Redfearn is joined in his work on the Wheelie system by Systems Analyst Jose
Sanchez and Research Assistant Professor Dr. Matthew Fricke. “It’s really
impressive;” says Fricke of Redfearn’s work on the Wheelie project. “He’s
already built this whole new system in . . . six weeks.”

The aim of Redfearn and his colleagues is to use their innovative techniques
to make advanced research computing at UNM faster and more user-friendly.
These improvements will aid in the completion of countless new research
projects in the years to come. As for the future of his work with CARC,
Redfearn reports, “The biggest thing we have in mind is modernizing.” Redfearn
and his colleagues plan to continue merging network expertise with unbridled
creativity to support research discoveries at UNM.