The STAR experiment

Minutes 

Attendees: Dmitry A., Wayne B., Leve H., Jérôme L., Gene V.B., Jan B., Maxim N.

Online webserver:

• Wayne installed: SSH key client, osiris
• ITD backups nominally working
  • Warning message noted to ITD
  • Restore from backup (targeting machine with warning messages) by Wayne went fine
• Synchronization with secondary new webserver done manually, not yet automatic
• Tomcat restarted for Leve's scheduler statistics redeployment
  • Jerome's service idea should be copied from old server so that intentional downtimes don't trip the watcher

ShiftLog:

• Detector checklist being posted to the ShiftLog regularly now. A suggestion from Jan to make it easier was to make a shortcut to the checklist document from the ShiftLeader's desktop (post-meeting Leve learned that each new checklist is given a new document name; finding the document isn't that difficult anyhow)

Online user support:

• Enabling migration off sc.starp and onto linux pool
  
  • Dmitry notes that Corba libs are present on linux pool
  • Jan says Brian Page is in the midst of trying to move two components:
    • cdev reader (needs Corba libs, will try compiling)
    • DB writer (Gene will provide Brian with a working example code)
• Two online disks (noted by Wayne in previous meetings): replaced
• Some additional network issues this week
  • Initially fixed with a switch replacement
  • ...but addition failures occurred
  • Wayne will try to fix during access later today (post-meeting update: this went successfully; topic closed)
• starutilities replacement: usage extension currently with "soft" limit
  
  • Matt could not install C-AD software in XP mode on new box
  • next possibility is dedicated XP machine (needs a software extension from ITD)
• Other tasks (noted in previous meetings) in queue

Databases:

• Shift sign-up un-subscriptions now exclude trainees [Dmitry]
• Feedback to slow controls to implement monitoring of their automated services (are they running? is data flowing? for now, only Dmitry's dbPlots and an environment monitor)
• TPC anode voltage migration was not running, but Dmitry will turn it on (we are aware of its shortcomings)
• Dmitry noted RHIC clock seems to be variable even during fills (Gene will follow up)
• Some discussion of when DB snapshots run; Jan seems OK with packaging at midnight for 4am usage for cloud jobs
• Dmitry notes that there's an open discussion about recorded prescales being wrong. If this is corrected later in the DB, it shouldn't be a problem for offline users as long as they access from the DB and not from the DAQ files. Needs to be sorted out by trigger group first.

FastOffline:

• Laser files were being skipped; fixed by Jerome
• Automatic drift velocity calibrations started (and working)

QA:

• OnlinePlots had 3 problems spurred by update of starnew to SL11a library
  
  • Macros used (Load.C) needed modified loading order of libraries (fixed)
  • Numerous histograms getting skipped, and others in unusual order in output PDFs (RT 2085)
    • Temporary solution: run in starpro (SL10k) patched for TOF/VPD updates
  • Code for inserting PDFs into database should use 'REPLACE INTO' instead of 'INSERT INTO', but we only have a binary of the current version
    • Dmitry had source code from an old version which Gene edited to work as desired now (update: codes committed to CVS)
• Offline QA histogram filling needed to update code for TPC padrow determination
• AutoCombining of offline histograms stopped working (Elizabeth investigating) (update: fixed for a changed function interface in QA daemon)
• No references yet, but shift crew (Lanny) looking at data
  • Call for setting references will go out when physics readiness is achieved (many problems in current data)

Minutes 

Attendees: Dmitry A., Wayne B., Leve H., Jérôme L., Gene V.B.

Online webserver:

• Went live on Monday
• No user complaints reported
• Jerome: identified and fixed several problems
• Jerome: started tomcat watcher script (he noted that it already caught a number of trips)
• Dmitry: though crontab had been copied, cron file entries had been missed
• Wayne: to-do list:
  • Install SSH key client
  • Install osiris
  • Tomcat log file rotation
  • ITD backups (noted as priority)
  • Synchronization with secondary new webserver

ShiftLog:

• 'thumbnailer' problem, Jerome is helping
• MTD subsystem added by Leve
  
  • Used the opportunity to move the array of subsystems to a single place

Online user support:

• sc.starp crashes (RT 2077)
  • Was repeatedly shutting down
  • Wayne: Box replaced (drive swapped), working fine...
  • ...but suspicion is UPS, battery replaced
  • Leave as is for now
  • Dmitry suggested providing Corba libs on online linux pool nodes to allow users an alternative to sc (Gene spoke with Jan B. about this post-meeting: Brian P. will try migrating his code)
• Two online disks (noted by Wayne in previous meetings): still need replacement
• QtRoot Event Display (RT 2075): Jerome notes it is low priority for now
• HPSS access from online via data carousel: Jerome indicates work in progress for authentication (perhaps try replicating what was done with stargrid04)
• starutilities replacement: extension through Jan. 30th.
  
  • trying to run C-AD software in XP mode on new box (Matt working with ITD today)
  • next possibility is dedicated XP machine
  • otherwise suggest software upgrade to C-AD (would require additional extension for procurement and delivery duration)
• rts01 replacement machine (RT 2070): machine has arrived
• Request for help restoring old FTPC event builders (RT 2066):
  • Wayne attempted to resurrect old builders but didn't succeed
  • Jeff has alternatives to move on
• Conference room PC display configuration improved by Wayne, but may still be not optimal
• FMS/Spin request for replacement machines (RT 2073 and 2074):
  • Laptop provided, and had to learn from experience to prevent power saver settings from shutting it down
  • Other machine not critical
• Renewed request today for a folder on ShiftLeader's terminal for making files web-available (RT 2083)

Databases:

• Migration macros started on onl01 by Dmitry
  • Machine died (from exhausted memory): cause is unknown, but perhaps one of the users
    • Table further investigation until it proves to be systematic
• New DB node allocation for FatOffline(+nightly tests) awaits results of Lidia's tests
• Dmitry noted that detector ID lists needed to be (and were) verified among Lidia, Tonko, and himself
  • Jerome noted that offline should rely on DB lookup by subsystem and not depend on a local list (he will follow up with Lidia)
• Dmitry implemented flexible, graphical selection of timestamps for his online DB plots upon feedback from Alexei L.
  
  • Jerome tested on several OS-browser combinations

FastOffline:

• Jerome notes that the chain needs continued attention (e.g. geometry, CA tracker), and Gene will take this

QA:

• Some minor modifications made to OnlinePlots for VPD by Kefeng and Gene