Alexandre Shertnev, Moscow State University

Monte Carlo Data Base:

Future Steps

Outline

Why MCDB?

What is MCDB?

Status and plans

How to work with MCDB?

Why MCDB?

If you needs Monte-Carlo:

Use Monte-Carlo generator yourself (full control over the generation, but knowledge needed...)

Take pre-generated samples (just take event files, but where??? --> MCDB)

Requirements:

Simple and flexible search: Web+SQL

Simple way to publish event samples

Full description of samples (we need to know what we will use)

Publicity of samples in MCDB

Rapid communication between users and authors

What is MCDB?

Services for event consumers (user area):

MCDB Web site: all MCDB functionality is provided via the Web

MCDB Web catalog: published articles (descriptions of event samples) are arranged in a “tree” with possibility to browse it

Reliable downloading system of event files (HDD,CASTOR,GRID)

Search engine in MCDB SQL database (via the Web)

Web interface for posting user comments on articles

API for experiments software: take events for productions from MCDB directly

Services for events authors (author area):

Web-interface for article creation/editing

Interface for answering to users’ comments

Uploading system: possibility to upload large files

What is MCDB? (2)

Toolkit for management of MCDB (administrative area):

User management

Articles management

Web catalog management

checking of user comments to articles

Other functionality:

Security subsystem

Mailing subsystem

Statistical subsystem

Logging subsystem

Current status (21/09/04: S. Belov)

SQL tables structure: done

Internal Perl modules (access to the MCDB SQL tables, parse configuration file, many others): partly done

User area:

Web site: first prototype done (mcdb.cern.ch)

Web catalog script: done

Author area

Web interface for creation of articles: done

Web interface for editing of articles: in progress

Uploading of files to HDD: done, to CASTOR: in progress

Administrative area:

User management interface: done

Article management interface: in progress

Immediate plans (this year)

Documentation

Internal programming interface with CASTOR

Web-interface for editing of articles

First real tests

Web access control: internal login/password, GRID certificates

Internal access control: to provide author’s privacy

Web-server tuning

Providing of compatibility with different browsers (IE, Netscape, Opera)

HEPML: developing of XML tag set

Main milestone: first working prototype in December

Future plans

Search engine in MCDB SQL database

Moderator interface (to manage articles and related objects, user comments, Web catolog)

Internal parser for HEPML

Security subsystem

Logging subsystem

Subsystem of collection of statistics

How to work: end-users.

Go to MCDB site

Find an interesting article either via the MCDB search or browsing the MCDB Web catalog.

In ideal, information in the article has to be sufficient to understand what the described events are.

Download the event sample

Make your analysis!

If you have doubts/questions about the sample, post a comment to the author.

How to work: authors of events.

Get password (moderator creates a new author account for you)

Download your event sample

Describe the sample via the Web interface (no HTML knowledge needed) in a new MCDB article

Publish the article on the Web (one click!)

If you will need you can edit your old articles in your MCDB account.

Don't forget to answer on user's questions conserning your event...

Where to look at MCDB?

Previuos MCDB (working DB):

http:// cmsdoc.cern.cern.ch/cms/generator/mcdb

Current MCDB (our test prototype):

http:// mcdb.cern.ch

Developers team: S. Belov, L. Dudko, A. Sherstnev, A. Vologdin.

Other information

Software

SQL DBMS: MySQL

Script system: Perl

Web-server: Apache2

Web-interface: CGI+Perl

CASTOR: RFIO package

All the products are supported as standard software in LCG

MCDB talk

2004-09-23T10:41:52