Work in progress

-- Main.Patrizia Barria - 21 Sep 2014

DATE (Data Acquisition and Test Environment)

Introduction

DATE is a software framework of the ALICE DAQ performing different functions:

• Local Data Concentrator (LDC): collects event fragments transferred by the DDLs (Detector Data Link) into its main memory and reassembles them into sub-events. It’s also able to do local data recording in used in standalone mode
• Global Data Collector (GDC): puts together all the sub-events pertaining to the same physics events, builds the full events and archives them to the mass storage system. The Event Building and Distribution System (EBDS) is balancing the load amongst the GDC's
• The DATE Run Control: controls and synchronizes the processes running in the LDCs and the GDCs
• The monitoring programs receive data from LDC’s or GDC’s streams. They can be executed on any LDC, GDC or any machine accessible via network

DDL = common hardware and protocol interface between the front-end electronics and DAQ system used to transfer raw physics data from the detector to the DAQ and to control the detector front-end electronics or download data blocks to this electronics

Starting DATE

DATE is operated using RunControl system from the control console:

• control console cannot be changed during a run
• should have access, on its mounted disks, to the two file areas used by DATE, which are pointed to by the environment variables DATE_ROOT and DATE_SITE

>dateControl (from shell) launches the RunControl program in the control console

RunControl: Phases Panel

Three sets of buttons corresponding to three phases ➜ we can move from one phase to another using arrows L1,R1,L2 and R2 ▶️

• DAQ Configuration phase
• RunParameter definition phase
• Data Taking phase

➜ background color legenda for the phase titles:

• PINK: current phase
• GREEN: completed phase
• GRAY: next phase
• ORANGE: the “Define"program associated to the phase is running

RunControl: Phases Panel➜ DAQ Configuration Phase

• DAQ Configuration is the first operation requested when running DATE
• The RunControl gets from the DATE database:
  • full list of defined detectors and their structure
  • list of LDCs connected to the detectors
  • list of possible GDCs
  • information about the hosts that may play other DAQ roles (e.g. EDM (Event Distribution Manager: checks the occupancy of each GDC and instruct the LDC to dispatch the events to the machine not crowded) or Trigger-host)
• the user defining a DAQ Configuration (may consist of all detectors, one detector, a sub-detector or a single LCD) specifies what his DAQ process will actually use
• Empty configuration is REFUSED

RunControl: Phases Panel➜ Run Parameters Configuration Phase

Run Parameters are sent to the DAQ when we start the Run:

• common RunParameters: sent to all DAQ machines

• role dependent RunParametrs: sent to the machine playing given roles➜ their values can be machine dependent

RunControl: Phases Panel➜ Data Taking Phase

We have several Run options:

• Run Autostart: if set a new run will start automatically at the end of the previous one if stopped when reaching max. number of events
• Autoset GDC: if set it forces the setting of all the selected GCSs as recording devices of all the selected LDCs as the start of run
• Recording Enabled: if set the recording will take place on the media specified in the RecordingDevice for the GDCs
• AFFAIR: if set data collectors starts on all the DAQ machines
• ALIMDC: if set the ALIMDC starts on all GDCs
• EDM: if set the run will be performed with EDM
• HLT: if set the run will be performed with HLT

The following pictures depict the Status Display and the Info Browser windows

Start the data taking with DATE

• Ethernet initialization
  • from a terminal ./FEC.sh➜it turns off the firewall iptables and set the appropriate setting for the Ethernet card
  • CHECK the communication with SRS (let’s ping the board just to be sure that is working fine)➜ in case reset SRS by disconnecting/reconnecting the 50 Ω resistor on LEMO cable nº XXX

• > DATE➜ to go in the right folder where DATE is
  • > ./date.sh (to load DATE and start the browser)
• Setup the “INFO BROWSER"
  • select ONLINE
  • under “Level" select "any"
  • select ONLINE

• Setup the acquisition system ➜Click on the lock 🔒 (select)
  • under “DISCONNECTED CONFIGURATION"
    • select DEFINE
    • LOAD
    • select Default
    • apply and OK
    • use arrow button ▶️ to go to the next step
  • under “CONNECTED RUN CONFIGURATION"
    • select DEFINE
    • LDC
    • put file name.raw (be sure to change file name)
    • put number of events (0=infinite run)
    • use arrow button ▶️ to go to the next step
  • under “READY TO START” ( 🔎 be sure “LDC: Local Recording ON” ! )
    • select START PROCESSES
    • > SLOW CONTROLC
      • ./stop.sh (disable the Trigger)
      • > ./cmsgem_physicRun.sh or > ./cmsgem_pedestaRun.sh➥ it depends on which kind of Run: for Pedestal Run load fec1PedestalRunFromOutofLatency.txt for Physics Run (Real Run) load fec1PhysicRun.txt
  • under “DATA TAKING”
    • select START
    • > SLOW CONTROLC
      • ./start.sh (enable the Trigger)
  • When Run is finished
    • > SLOW CONTROLC
      • ./stop.sh (disable the Trigger)
    • go back ◀️ to “RUN PARAMETERS” ➜ change file name/# Events and start again from step "Setup the Acquisition System"

Note for each Run

• CMSGEMRunPedestal***.raw (1K events)
• CMSGEMRunPhysics***.raw (10K events)