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Global Workflow Wiki

Welcome to the NOAA Global Workflow technical wiki. This knowledge base documents solutions, configurations, and insights for operating and developing the Global Forecast System workflow.

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🧪 Background information of Cases used in the CTest Framework

The CTest framework provides self-contained test cases for validating individual workflow components. Each test creates an isolated environment with staged inputs from nightly stable baseline runs, enabling independent testing and validation.

C48 Fixed Atmosphere-Only Tests (ATM)

• C48_ATM-gfs_fcst_seg0

  • 120-hour deterministic forecast validation (209 output files)
  • 13 input files (atmosphere initial conditions)
  • 18 output files (forecast history files)
  • C48_ATM-gfs_fcst_seg0.yaml

• C48_ATM-gfs_atmos_prod_f000-f002

  • Atmosphere product generation test (f000, f001, f002)
  • 5 input files (forecast history from f000, f001, f002)
  • 12 output files (post-processed products)
  • C48_ATM-gfs_atmos_prod_f000-f002.yaml

C48 Coupled System Tests (S2SW)

• C48_S2SW-gfs_fcst_seg0

  • 48-hour coupled atmosphere-ocean-ice-wave forecast
  • Fixed coupled forecast test with proper restart staging
  • 17 input files (13 atmosphere ICs + 3 restarts + 1 wave prep)
  • 24 output files (18 atmos + 2 ocean + 2 ice + 2 wave)
  • Key fix: Added H_offset = '-6H' for staging restart files from previous cycle
  • C48_S2SW-gfs_fcst_seg0.yaml

• C48_S2SW-gfs_ocean_prod_f006 - Ocean product generation at forecast hour 6

  • 2 input files (ocean forecast at f006)
  • 2 output files (ocean products)
  • C48_S2SW-gfs_ocean_prod_f006.yaml

• C48_S2SW-gfs_ice_prod_f006

  • Ice product generation at forecast hour 6
  • 2 input files (ice forecast at f006)
  • 2 output files (ice products)
  • C48_S2SW-gfs_ice_prod_f006.yaml

C48 Ensemble Tests (S2SW_gfs)

• C48_S2SWA_gefs-gefs_fcst_mem001_seg0
• GEFS ensemble member 001 coupled forecast (48-hour segment)
  • Implemented GEFS ensemble member 001 forecast test
  • 17 input files with unique two-cycle pattern:
    • 13 atmosphere ICs from current cycle (12Z)
    • 3 restart files from previous cycle (06Z)
    • 1 wave prep file from current cycle (12Z)
  • 24 output files (ensemble forecast outputs)
  • GEFS requires different source cycles for ICs vs restarts
  • Special handling for mem001/ subdirectory structure
• C48_S2SWA_gefs-gefs_fcst_mem001_seg0.yaml

Framework Features:

• Self-contained test environments with isolated EXPDIR
• Input staging from STAGED_CTESTS (stable nightly runs)
• Consistent naming convention: CASE-JOB.yaml
• Comprehensive validation with input/output file verification

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🔧 CI/CD & DevOps

GitLab CI/CD Pipeline

• GitLab-Pipeline-MultiHost-Architecture-for-Global‐Workflow
• Managing-Multiple-GitLab-Pipeline-Scripts
• Monitoring-your-HPC-CI-CD-infrastructure-with-GitLab
• Running-.after_script-Commands-on-a-Remote-Host:-Challenges-and-Solutions

Jenkins Integration

• Configuring-the-Jenkins-Controller's-Node-default-configurations
• Increasing-the-number-of-executors-on-Jenkins-Master-(built‐in)-Node
• Scaling-Number-of-agents-on-a-Jenkins-Node
• Spreading-out-executors-on-RDHPCS-head-nodes
• SCM-Timeout-Fix

GitHub & Jenkins Integration

• Using-a-GitHub-Action-with-WebHooks-to-Dispatch-a-Jenkins-Job-for-a-Specific-PR-and-pass-it-Parameters
• Using-WebHooks-and-PR-Comments-to-Launch-a-Multi‐Branch-Jenkins-Job
• Setting-up-a-mirror-of-a-GitHub-Repo-using-GitLab-Community-Edition-Server
• Proposal-for-Creating-Dedicated-emc‐bot-Project-in-NWS-EMC-GitLab

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🤖 AI/ML & Intelligent Tools

Model Context Protocol (MCP)

• GitHub-MCP-Tools-installed-for-global‐workflow-software-development-and-how-they-work
• Global‐workflow-RAG-added-to-MCP-server
• RAG-enhanced-MCP-server-configured-and-all-8-tools-are-now-available
• MCP-RAG-Development-Status
• Differences-and-Similarities-between-MCP-(Model-Context-Protocol)-and-RAG-(Retrieval‐Augmented-Generation)-in-agentic-LLM-pipeline
• MASSIVE-IMPROVMENT
• Opps-‐-no-RAG-no-go

AI Development Tools

• Anthropic-Claude-Sonnet-4-has-the-big-picture-ahead-of-me
• Customizing-GitHub's-built‐in-Copilot's-PR-Feature
• Appreciated-Collaboration
• Thanks-Devin!!
• Thanks-Devin

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🌊 Workflow Management Systems

Rocoto Workflow Engine

• Rocoto-Example
• Tracking-UNKNOWN-states-in-Rocoto-and-suggested-updates
• "Resource-temporarily-unavailable"-when-using-rocotorun
• Fixing-the-Resource-Fork-Error-in-Rocoto-Check-Python-Script
• PID-created-and-release-on-each-call-to-rocotostat

CROW & EcFlow

• CROW-workflow-definition-explained
• Polymorphism-examples-in-CROW
• Undocumented-support-of-EcFlow-in-public-release-of-fv3gfs
• AQM‐Workflow-and-Global-Workflow-(Community-‐-Operations-version)-for-Generating-EcFlow

🌐 Weather Modeling & Configuration

Model Configuration

• How-are-IC-specified-for-Free-Forecast-Jobs
• Detailed-Analysis-of-HOMEDIR
• Prate_ave-in-atmospheric-sfc-history-files-accumulates-while-cycling
• Lingering-restart-files-can-cause-re‐ran-cases-to-fail

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💻 HPC System Administration

System Configuration

• Getting-bash-for-GitLab-Runners-to-be-a-login-shell
• Why-Admins-Configure-Role-Accounts-with-login_shell=off
• Is-VAST-like-PFS?

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🔬 Research & Theory

Scientific Computing

• Discrete-Memetic-Operators-advancing-electrodynamic-field-theory

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🐛 Development & Debugging

Bug Fixes & Solutions

• Deleted-suggestion-got-back-make-it-a-bug-...

Development Process

• Development-Processes-and-Ideas

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📚 Quick Reference

Most Viewed Topics:

• CI/CD Pipeline Architecture
• Rocoto Workflow Management
• MCP/RAG Integration
• Jenkins Configuration
• HPC System Setup

Latest Updates:

• MCP Server RAG Enhancement
• GitLab Multi-Host Architecture
• AI-Assisted Development Tools

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This wiki is actively maintained. Last organized: October 2025