Setup MIDAS experiment

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Prepare the user account

  • Setup the user account for running this instance of midas. For machines part of the LADD cluster, follow these <a href="http://daq-plone.triumf.ca/SM/docs/local/NewLaddUser">instructions</a>
  • check that the account is using the /bin/tcsh shell
  • make $HOME/.cshrc look like this:
#!/bin/echo You must source

setenv LANG C
setenv SVN_EDITOR "emacs -nw"
setenv CVS_RSH ssh
setenv MIDASSYS $HOME/packages/midas
setenv ROOTSYS  $HOME/packages/root
setenv MIDAS_EXPTAB $HOME/online/exptab

# setup the MIDAS mserver

switch (`hostname`)
case ladd05*:
    unsetenv MIDAS_SERVER_HOST
    breaksw
default:
    setenv MIDAS_SERVER_HOST ladd05.triumf.ca:7071
endsw

# select 64-bit or 32-bit MIDAS and ROOT

switch (`uname -i`)
case i386:
    #export ROOTSYS=/triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_v5.20.00_SL45_32
    setenv ROOTSYS /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_v5.28.00_SL55_32
    setenv PATH .:$MIDASSYS/linux-m32/bin:$PATH
    breaksw
default:
    #export ROOTSYS=/triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_v5.26.00b_SL54_64
    #setenv ROOTSYS /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_v5.28.00_SL55_64
    setenv ROOTSYS $HOME/packages/root
    setenv PATH .:$MIDASSYS/linux/bin:$PATH
endsw

setenv PATH .:$HOME/online/bin:$HOME/packages/roody/bin:$ROOTSYS/bin:$PATH

#end
  • mkdir $HOME/packages
  • Logout and login again, for .cshrc changes to take effect

Install ROOT

  • Identify the Linux version: RH9 (Red Hat Linux 9), FC3 (Fedora Core 3), RHEL4/SL4 (Red Hat Enterprise LInux 4/Scientific Linux 4), SL5, SL6: more /etc/redhat-release
  • Decide to use 32-bit or 64-bit ROOT
  • cd $HOME/packages
  • ls -l /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/ ### to see all available ROOT packages
  • ln -s /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_vNNN_VVV_BB root, where NNN is the latest available version of ROOT ("ls -l /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root"), VVV is the Linux version code (RH9, FC3, SL4, etc) and BB is "_32" or "_64" for 32-bit or 64-bit ROOT. For example: /triumfcs/trshare/olchansk/root/root_v5.10.00_SL40
  • Check that ROOT works: "echo $ROOTSYS", "$ROOTSYS/bin/root"

Install MIDAS

Install ROOTANA

Install ROODY

Prepare VME hardware

Hardware check list:

Setup the experiment environement

  • decide which computer will host MIDAS (where MIDAS shared memory buffers will reside). This computer will run the mserver, mlogger and mhttpd.
  • in .cshrc put the name of this computer into the section for setting MIDAS_SERVER_HOST. Note that multiple experiments can run on the same computer by using different mserver ports (7071, mhttpd ports (8081) and roody ports (9091)
  • mkdir $HOME/online
  • cd $HOME/online
  • mkdir bin src elog history
  • mkdir -p /ladd/data1/t2kvme5/data; ln -s /ladd/data1/t2kvme5/data $HOME/online
  • create the exptab file "$HOME/online/exptab" following the example below. The first entry (exptname) is the name if the DAQ system (MIDAS experiment name), the second entry (/home/USER/online) is the location of MIDAS shared memory buffers (by convention, $HOME/online), the third entry (kopio03) is your username.
exptname /home/kopio03/online kopio03
  • logout and login again for all changes to take effect

Setup experiment startup scripts

  • login to the experiment host computer
  • echo $MIDAS_SERVER_HOST ### to check correct value - should be blank
  • create $HOME/online/bin/start_daq.sh, replacing XXX with the hostname of the machine running the experiment (and changing the mserver and mhttpd ports, as needed), replacing machine names in the access control list for mhttpd and mserver as needed. (NOTE: mhttpd ladd00 permission is for password-protecting the experiment via the password protected SSL proxy at https://ladd00.triumf.ca/expt/dragon/, see ladd00:/etc/httpd/conf.d/ssl.conf)
#!/bin/sh

cd $HOME/online

case `hostname` in
XXX*)
    echo "Good, we are on XXX!"
    ;;
*)
    echo "The start_daq script should be executed on XXX"
    exit 1
    ;;
esac

odbedit -c clean

mhttpd  -p 8081 -D -a ladd00.triumf.ca -a localhost -a XXX.triumf.ca
mserver -p 7071 -D -a localhost -a lxdragon01.triumf.ca -a lxdragon02.triumf.ca -a XXX.triumf.ca
mlogger -D

#end file

Setup experiment database (ODB)

  • run $HOME/online/bin/start_daq.sh
  • open the midas status page at http://localhost:8081 (you will see most stuff "red" as nothing is running yet)
  • create a frontend program (mlogger will not run without at least one equipment)
    • cd $HOME/online/src, copy Makefile, fevme.cxx
    • make (creates fevme.exe or fevme_gef.exe executable)
  • run ./fevme.exe (on the computer with the VME interface, could be different from computer hosting the experiment), observe that corresponding equipments have been created
  • odbedit, run these commands: (replace user names and directory names)
set "/Logger/Message file" "/home/kopio03/online/midas.log"
set "/Logger/Data Dir"     "/home/kopio03/online/data"
create STRING "/Logger/History dir"
set "/Logger/History dir"  "/home/kopio03/online/history"
create STRING "/Logger/Elog dir"
set "/Logger/Elog dir"     "/home/kopio03/online/elog"
exit
  • run $HOME/online/bin/start_daq.sh (observe that mlogger has started)
  • odbedit, run these commands: (replace user names and directory names)
set "/Logger/ODB dump file" "/home/kopio03/online/history/run%05d.xml"
set "/Logger/ODB dump" "y"
set "/Logger/Channels/0/Settings/Filename" "run%05dsub%03d.mid.gz"
set "/Logger/Channels/0/Settings/Subrun byte limit" "1000000000"
set "/Logger/Channels/0/Settings/Compression"   1
set "/Logger/Channels/0/Settings/ODB Dump" "y"
set "/Programs/Logger/Required" y
set "/Programs/Logger/Start command" "mlogger -D"
set "/Programs/fevme/Required" "y"
set "/Programs/fevme/Start command" "ssh -n lxdaq09 $HOME/online/src/fevme_gef.exe -O"
exit
  • open web browser: firefox http://localhost:8081
  • save the url bookmark to the "personal toolbar"
  • go to the Programs page, stop mlogger, stop fevme, start mlogger, start fevme
  • go to the Status page, start run, stop run
  • go back to the Status page, everything should be green
  • start a run
  • send signals to the ADC gate
  • you should be getting events
  • to look at data, proceed with setting up the <a href="../../../SR/rootana">ROOT analyzer</a>

Adjust MIDAS buffer sizes

Default MIDAS SYSTEM buffer size is 8 Mbytes, fairly small for high-data-rate experiments. The rule of thum is to have at least a few seconds worth of buffer space available. For example, if event size is 10 Kbytes and the event rate is 1 kHz, data rate is 10*10^3*1*10^3 = 10 Mbytes/sec. To buffer 10 seconds of data we need 100 Mbytes of buffer space.

To resize the MIDAS event buffers (SYSTEM, etc) do this:

  • stop all frontends, stop mlogger
  • start odbedit:
    • cd "/Experiment/Buffer sizes"
    • set SYSTEM 100000000
  • run "mdump -z SYSTEM"
  • if mdump complains about the size of .SYSTEM.SHM, remove it, try again.
  • ls -l /dev/shm ### to observe that the size of shared memory is correct

Install VMIC VME driver (universe-II pci/vme bridge)

  • login as root (ssh root@localhost)
  • get latest version of vmic driver from ladd00: scp username@ladd00:/home/olchansk/daq/vmisft-7433-NNN-KOMMM.tar.gz .
  • tar xzvf vmisft-7433-3.5-KO2.tar.gz
  • chown -R root.root vmisft-7433-3.5-KO2
  • cd vmisft-7433-3.5-KO2
  • cd vme_universe
  • make
  • make install
  • cd ..
  • make
  • edit /etc/rc.local, add these lines:
    modprobe vme_universe
    mkdir -p /dev/bus/vme
    mknod /dev/bus/vme/ctl c 221 8
    chmod a+wr /dev/bus/vme/ctl
  • run "modprobe vme_universe", run "lsmod" to check that the vme_universe module was loaded
  • run "ls -l /dev/bus/vme/ctl" to check that the VME device file exists, it should be "crw-rw-rw- 1 root root 221, 8 Feb 17 15:47 /dev/bus/vme/ctl"

 

Install GEF VME driver (tsi148 pci/vme bridge)

  • login as root (ssh root@localhost)
  • yum install kernel-devel
  • get latest version of the driver from ladd00: scp username@ladd00:/home/olchansk/daq/v7865/v7865-sdk-linux-R01.00-KONNN.tar.gz
  • tar xzvf v7865-sdk-linux-R01.00-KO6.tar.gz
  • chown -R root.root v7865-sdk-linux-R01.00-KO6
  • cd v7865-sdk-linux-R01.00-KO6/gefvme/module
  • make
  • make install
  • cd $HOME
  • edit /etc/rc.local, verify that it has these 2 lines:
    modprobe gefvme
    sh /root/gefvme-makedevs
  • run "modprobe gefvme", run "lsmod" to check that the gefvme module was loaded
  • run "/home/olchansk/daq/vme/vmescan_gef.exe" to check that vme access works.