<div  id="load-the-file">
<span id="load-file"></span><span id="index-0"></span>
<p>The next step is to let <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-server"><em >ecf_server</em></a> know about your <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-suite"><em >suite</em></a> or to &#8220;load&#8221; the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-suite-definition"><em >suite definition</em></a> file.</p>
<p>This checks the file <em>test.def</em> and describes the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-suite"><em >suite</em></a> to the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-server"><em >ecf_server</em></a>.</p>
<p>This can be done in several ways, depending on how the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-suite"><em >suite</em></a> was created.</p>
<div  id="loading-a-suite-created-as-a-text-file">
<span id="loading-via-cli"></span><h2>Loading a Suite created as a text file<a  href="#loading-a-suite-created-as-a-text-file" title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>From within the course directory do the following from the unix shell:</p>
<div ><pre>&gt; ecf_client --load=test.def</pre>
</div>
<p>The executable <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-client"><em >ecf_client</em></a> provides the shell level interface for communication with
the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-server"><em >ecf_server</em></a>.</p>
<p>You will have already seen <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-client"><em >ecf_client</em></a> being used in <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Getting+Started#head-h"><em>head.h</em></a> and <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Getting+Started#tail-h"><em>tail.h</em></a>
include files.</p>
<p>For a full list of commands type:</p>
<div ><pre>&gt; ecf_client --help</pre>
</div>
<div >
<p >Note</p>
<p >All the functionality provided by <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-client"><em >ecf_client</em></a> is also available via the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/ecFlow+Python+Api#python-api"><em>ecFlow Python Api</em></a>. Please see <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/ecFlow+Python+Api#ecflow.Client" title="ecflow.Client"><tt ><span >ecflow.Client</span></tt></a></p>
</div>
</div>
<div  id="loading-suite-created-in-python">
<h2>Loading Suite created in python<a  href="#loading-suite-created-in-python" title="Permalink to this headline">¶</a></h2>
<p>We can ask the python script to write out the defs as &#8216;.def&#8217; definition file:</p>
<div ><div ><pre><span >#!/usr/bin/env python2.5</span>
<span >import</span> <span >os</span>
<span >import</span> <span >ecflow</span> 
   
<span >defs</span> <span >=</span> <span >ecflow</span><span >.</span><span >Defs</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;test.def&quot;</span><span >)</span>
<span >suite</span> <span >=</span> <span >defs</span><span >.</span><span >add_suite</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;test&quot;</span><span >)</span>
<span >suite</span><span >.</span><span >add_variable</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;ECF_HOME&quot;</span><span >,</span><span >os</span><span >.</span><span >getenv</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;HOME&quot;</span><span >)</span> <span >+</span> <span >&quot;/course&quot;</span><span >)</span>
<span >suite</span><span >.</span><span >add_task</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;t1&quot;</span><span >)</span>

<span ># this will generate a file &#39;test.def&#39;</span>
<span >defs</span><span >.</span><span >save_as_defs</span><span >()</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>You can also print the defs. The output will written to standard out:</p>
<div ><div ><pre><span >print</span> <span >defs</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>If you called &#8220;defs.save_as_defs()&#8221; the file <em>test.def</em> will be written.</p>
<p>This can be loaded in the server as described earlier <a  href="#loading-via-cli"><em>Loading a Suite created as a text file</em></a></p>
<p>However since the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/ecFlow+Python+Api#python-api"><em>ecFlow Python Api</em></a> allows the definition to be built in memory,
it is more efficient if this could be directly loaded into the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-server"><em >ecf_server</em></a>.</p>
<p>This can be done by using <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/ecFlow+Python+Api#ecflow.Client" title="ecflow.Client"><tt ><span >ecflow.Client</span></tt></a> python class:</p>
<div ><div ><pre><span >ci</span> <span >=</span> <span >ecflow</span><span >.</span><span >Client</span><span >();</span>
<span >ci</span><span >.</span><span >set_host_port</span><span >(</span><span >&quot;localhost&quot;</span><span >,</span><span >&quot;3141&quot;</span><span >)</span>

<span >try</span><span >:</span>
   <span >ci</span><span >.</span><span >ping</span><span >()</span>                 <span ># Ping the server, to see if its running</span>
   <span >ci</span><span >.</span><span >load</span><span >(</span><span >defs</span><span >)</span>             <span ># load the definition into the server</span>
<span >except</span> <span >RuntimeError</span><span >,</span> <span >e</span><span >:</span>
   <span >print</span> <span >&quot;failed: &quot;</span> <span >+</span> <span >str</span><span >(</span><span >e</span><span >);</span>
</pre></div>
</div>
<p>If everything is OK, you should have defined a <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-suite"><em >suite</em></a>.</p>
<p>Have a look in the window running the <a  href="/wiki/display/ECFLOW/Glossary#term-ecf-server"><em >ecf_server</em></a>, and look at the log file</p>
<p>What to do:</p>
<ol >
<li>Load the definition file</li>
<li>Check the log file</li>
</ol>
</div>
</div>