EPICS synApps in a Docker Image

Docker image prjemian/synapps providing EPICS base, synApps, and Area Detector software providing IOCs (servers) for development, simulation, testing, and training.

tag	release	image	downloads

Contents

• EPICS synApps
  • Quick start
  • What this repository provides
  • How to use this image
  • Running an IOC in the container
  • Details
  • custom synApps
  • custom Area Detector (ADSimDetector)
  • Hint
  • IOCs Provided
  • Starter Scripts
  • Docker Image
  • Authors
  • Acknowledgements

Quick start

Two steps: Area detector IOC with simulated camera

1. Download and install iocmgr.sh (bash shell script for Linux).
2. Run iocmgr.sh start adsim test1 to start ioctest1

That's it! You just started a custom version of the ADSimDetector IOC.

Next steps: Get an EPICS client to operate the IOC's controls and view the images it generates.

What this repository provides

• Scripts to install EPICS software to build IOCs (servers)
• Documentation for the EPICS IOCs
• Steps to build the docker image

Note: This repository does not provide EPICS client software.

How to use this image

Run custom XXX or ADSimDetector IOCs. Copy (download) the iocmgr.sh shell script to a directory on your executable path and make the script executable.

See the Quick Start section and iocmgr.sh for examples.

IOCs are created in docker containers. If you wish, the container's /tmp is available for read-only mount on the docker host computer. This table shows the same directory from the IOC or the host filesystem. Any files created in the container (such as by an area detector IOC) will be available as long as the container is running.

Use the same docker image (prjemian/synapps:latest) for all IOCs. The iocmgr.sh script runs only one IOC per container. Starting containers is usually very fast.

Running an IOC in the container

Running an IOC in a container is usually a two-step process, similar to running an IOC in any computer.

1. Start a container with the image (and any additional features such as network and volume provisioning). Use docker run ...
2. Start the IOC in the container (usually with screen or procServ, so it runs in the background) Use docker exec ....

Details

Additional documentation is available.

custom synApps

Download iocmgr.sh (if not already installed)

These IOCs will use the GP IOC support.

cd ~/bin
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/prjemian/epics-docker/main/resources/iocmgr.sh
chmod +x iocmgr.sh

Run two separate GP IOCs with prefixes ocean: and sky:. (Do not specify the trailing :. The script will manage that for you.)

iocmgr.sh start GP ocean
iocmgr.sh start GP sky

custom Area Detector (ADSimDetector)

Download iocmgr.sh (if not already installed)

cd ~/bin
wget https://raw.githubusercontent.com/prjemian/epics-docker/main/resources/iocmgr.sh
chmod +x iocmgr.sh

Run two separate ADSIM IOCs with prefixes air: and land:. (Do not specify the trailing :. The script will manage that for you.)

iocmgr.sh start ADSIM air
iocmgr.sh start ADSIM land

Hint

You could create a new script to start all the IOCs you want. Here's an example which starts all four IOCs above:

#!/bin/bash

iocmgr.sh restart GP ocean
iocmgr.sh restart GP sky
iocmgr.sh restart ADSIM air
iocmgr.sh restart ADSIM oxy

• Save this into ~/bin/start_iocs.sh
• make it executable: chmod +x ~/bin/start_iocs.sh
• then call it to start/restart the four IOCs: start_iocs.sh

IOCs Provided

• XXX
• ADSimDetector
• ADURL (TODO)
• pvaDriver (TODO)
• GP, a custom XXX with user PREFIX
• ADSIM, a custom ADSimDetector with user PREFIX

Starter Scripts

Docker Image

The current docker image (prjemian/synapps:latest) is listed in the next table. A full list of related docker images is on a separate page.

Authors

• Pete Jemian

Acknowledgements

• Contributors

  • Chen Zhang
  • Jeff Hoffman
  • Quan Zhou

• moved here from virtualbeamline, a fork of KedoKudo/virtualbeamline.