Cumulus.ini (preserving history)

Revision as of 20:51, 16 May 2021 by Sfws (talk | contribs) (→‎The Cumulus.ini file: Minor clarification)

Crystal Clear info.png This document is 'Work In Progress' so content may not be complete.

Request for help from Wiki Readers

  • Do you understand how MX works?
  • Do you use hardware, or MX functionality, that is not yet documented? Can you begin that documenting?
  • Can you contribute simple text for novice users, examples of what you have done, correction of typing or factual errors, or supply missing details?
  • Will you make this page more useful by bringing content up-to-date as new releases change some information written for older releases?
  • Does any page need a section for novices, so they don't need to read more technical information further down that page?
  • Is there some information on this page, that should be on a separate page? Can you create the new page and move the less relevant information off this page, don't forget this page needs a link to the new page so people who expect to find it here know where it has moved to?

If you plan on contributing to the Wiki, then you will need an account.

  • Please use the Request Account form to apply for an account. Note that the Wiki is currently undergoing restructuring and is largely locked for editing, but please apply for an account if you wish to contribute in the future.
  • You will find help on how to contribute to this wiki at How to Edit.
  • If you need to consult others, please use the Cumulus Wiki suggestions forum.

Please be aware that information on this page may be incorrect.

Cumulus Version MX Specific

History of this page

From release 3.10.1, the way that settings are changed, and the settings available have changed so much, that information previously on this page was misleading.

Anybody using an earlier MX release (3.0.0 to 3.9.7) should now go to this page

Anybody using the legacy software (e.g. 1.9.4) should now go to this page

The past history for both those two new pages remains available via the history tab on this page.

Content of this page

This page has been emptied ready for new content to reflect how MX works from 3.10.1 onwards.

The biggest change in 3.10.1 was to revise where settings are changed, and how the web pages used to change settings can vary what they show based on an earlier selection on that page. A related change is that all settings are made via the Admin interface. (In earlier releases, "read-only" settings were made directly in the "Cumulus.ini" file, while "read-write" settings were made either in the file or via the interface).

Settings are now arranged according to the menu selections, as that is the way you change them.

Consequently, the revised tables have to explain which section settings are in the file.

The Cumulus.ini file

Cumulus.ini is a text file containing initialization parameters used by the Cumulus MX software application.

When Cumulus MX is run for very first time, the file does not exist, as it is not included in the release distribution.

When MX is restarted, it reads the Cumulus.ini that now exists. The settings it finds tell it what options you have selected and which sections of the MX code apply for your selections of weather station type (input) and for your selections of what processing it should do, and where you want it to send weather data to (output).

The file is a simple text file. It is divided into sections with section names in square brackets (e.g. [Station]). These sections can appear in any order, by default new sections are appended after all previous sections.

Within each section, there are parameters. Each parameter is in format Attribute=Value, and appears on a line to itself. The parameters, within a section, can be in any order, by default new parameters are appended at end of the relevant section.

If a new release of MX adds new parameters, then they will be automatically added to Cumulus.ini when you access that setting.

Some parameters have a default value, and you need to find the appropriate setting to change that value. However, others have an initial illegal value, and you are forced to give these parameter a valid setting before MX will allow you to save settings (and these "missing" values will stop MX doing any weather data processing).

The settings pages in admin interface

Please see MX_Administrative_Interface#Changing_Settings for basic information, including how to load the admin interface.

Program settings

Accessibility

Section Parameter Line Entry Label on Settings page Default Description
[Program] EnableAccessibility=0 Enable accessibility features 0 (disable) Set to 1 to make this (and other pages) appear in a layout that is more friendly on an accessibility basis. Leave it at zero for a legacy look.

Program Start-up Options

Section Parameter Line Entry Label on Settings page Default Description
[Program] StartupPingHost= Host to PING on program start-up None (disable) Add a hostname or IP to address to ping at startup. Cumulus waits until the ping is successful before trying to read from your station. Leave blank to disable
[Program] StartupPingEscapeTime=999 PING escape time (mins) 999 (minutes) Specify a time after which if no ping response is received carry on starting Cumulus MX anyway
[Program] StartupDelaySecs=0 Start-up Delay (secs) zero (disable) Add a delay before the Cumulus tries to start reading the station.
[Program] StartupDelayMaxUptime=300 Max system uptime to apply the start-up delay 300 (seconds) The time that has passed sice MX was started (up-time) is compared against the (max delay time) figure here.
  • If max delay time less than up-time, the delay specified in previous parameter will NOT be applied
  • If up-time less than this max delay time, then MX will apply any delay specified in previous parameter
  • If this parameter is set to zero, then MX will always apply any delay specified in previous parameter

Program General Options