CodaLite

codaLite Data Acquisition Package

codaLite is a lightweight and easy to install and use DAQ package suitable for everything but full-scale high-speed DAQ systems (CODA3 is being developed for these). It is in use in numerous test stands at JLab and at universities, and has been in use for a number of years. It is composed of components taken from CODA3, prototypes of still to be fully developed CODA3 components, and other software written specifically for codaLite.

codaLite has much of the functionality of CODA3, but sacrifices scalability and robustness against component failure for simplicity and ease of use. Extensive use is made of the cMsg interprocess communication package (a CODA3 component), which allows for a complete decoupling of DAQ components so that they can be developed and tested in isolation. In CODA3 cMsg will be used for control, but the ET system (a very high-speed shared-memory based interprocess communication system) will be used for event transfer. In codaLite cMsg is used for both.

codaLite optionally supports AFECS, the CODA3 run control package, but this is not required as simple scripts can be used to start and stop runs. AFECS provides a graphical run control interface, real-time histograms of event and data rates, etc, but requires creation of configuration files covering all possible DAQ configurations (not a big deal in most cases).

codaLite.tar.gz can be found on the CODA ftp site. Included in the distribution is a README file describing how to install and use codaLite.