Data Management

The data flow and archival system for both SER-CAT beamlines follow the same architecture:

(1) frames are collected and written locally to the appropriate Mar computer

(2) The frames are copied over to the appropriate /data/ID_user.raw/#### directory

(3) Every 5 minutes the new files (this includes files that have been modified) are compressed and copied over to the ####.gzip directory path

The data will stay on the ####.raw directory for 24 hours and then be removed. If you need to get to your data after it has been removed from the ###.raw path, you will need the help of a staff member to uncompress and move the data off of the ####.gzip directories.

Data will be backed up onto removal hard (fire-wire) drives. It is the user’s responsibility to make sure that their data is properly backed up. SER-CAT will support drives formatted as EXT3, VFAT, and MAC. We will reformat drives as EXT3, but not as the other options. Data backup will use the program ssbackup.

Remote users should ship a drive with their samples to be used to backup their data. Remote users should discuss how they want their data backed up with their user support.

SER-CAT does not support data transfer to remote locations using ftp or any other file transfer protocol. The time and network resources required to transfer the large quantities of data generated are a drain on the facility and can impact the data collection of the current user groups.

Designed and maintained by the SER-CAT Webmaster.

We welcome your questions and comments. Send e-mail to: SER-CATwebmaster@anl.gov