[THREDDS #ZXF-199451]: some questions

Hi Martijn,

Very sorry about the late response.

> I'm having some questions about getting started with THREDDS. I'm
> working at the Norwegian Polar Institute, and we have large amounts
> of netCDF file with oceanographic data, so using THREDDS could be
> an interesting option.
> 
> Installation of Tomcat and THREDDS went OK, the demodata is available
> via TDS now. However, I ran into the problem of not being able to find
> much information/documentation about setting up and maintaining the
> TDS server and data on the server. I end up with questions like:

Have you reviewed the "TDS Installation and Administration Tutorial" and the 
"TDS Reference Document"? They should have answers to most of your questions. 
They are linked to from the TDS home page

http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/TDS.html

Here are the direct links:

http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/tutorial/
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/tds4.0/reference/

In particular, the configuration sections of the Tutorial should be quite 
useful:

http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/tutorial/BasicConfig.html
http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/tutorial/ConfigCatalogs.html

> -          How to add netCDF files?
> 
> -          Can I just stick datafiles in some directory?

You can simply place your netCDF files in any directory under the "location" 
directory given in a datasetScan element. The TDS will see the file next time a 
client requests a catalog and serve it. If you place your file under the 
"location" of a datasetRoot element, you will also have to add the dataset to 
the catalog.

> -          How does the catalog.xml get updated then?
> 
> -          Is there some way to generate or maintain the catalog.xml from 
> data?

The TDS configuration files under ${TOMCAT_HOME}/content/thredds (like 
catalog.xml) tell the TDS what to serve. They need to be created and updated by 
hand. (We're working on simplifying configuration but this is where we are not.)

> -          Or is that not the way it works at all?
> 
> -          Do I need to reboot the server when new data is added?

If you have the TDS Remote Management setup, you can click on "Reinitialize" 
from the admin page (http://server:port/thredds/admin/debug). Here's a link to 
the docs on setting up Remote Management:

http://www.unidata.ucar.edu/projects/THREDDS/tech/reference/RemoteManagement.html

Otherwise, you either have to stop/start the TDS using the Tomcat manager or 
you have to stop and start Tomcat itself.

> 
> I've tried to find more information on your website, but couldn't
> quite find it. Is there a source of information for the absolute
> beginner :)?
> 
> Any (pointers to) help would be greatly appreciated....

Hope that helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.

Ethan

> 
> Kind regards,
> 
> -- Martijn Bak
> -- Miljødata seksjon, Norsk Polarinstitutt


Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: ZXF-199451
Department: Support THREDDS
Priority: High
Status: Closed