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Quick Start

Drona Workflow Engine is a React/Flask application that provides a graphical interface for creating and submitting HPC jobs. This guide covers the essential steps to get it running.

Prerequisites​

  • Python 3.8+
  • Node.js and npm
  • Git

Installation​

Clone the repository and run the setup script:

git clone https://github.com/tamu-edu/dor-hprc-drona-composer.git
cd dor-hprc-drona-composer
./setup

The setup script creates a Python virtual environment, installs all dependencies, builds the frontend, and creates the necessary directories (environments/, logs/). For a detailed breakdown of what the script does and manual installation steps, see the Installation guide.

Configuration​

After setup, review config.yml in the project root. The setup script will populate some values automatically, but you should verify the following:

development: &common_settings
  cluster_name: "Grace"                      # Display name for your cluster
  modules_db_path: "/path/to/modules/bin/"   # Path to modules database script
  driver_scripts_path: "/path/to/machine_driver_scripts"
  env_repo_github: "https://github.com/..."  # Repository for importable environments
  • cluster_name — Used internally and displayed in form titles
  • modules_db_path — Required by the module form element to retrieve available modules
  • driver_scripts_path — Absolute path to the machine_driver_scripts/ directory
  • env_repo_github — GitHub repository that powers the environment import feature

For additional configuration options and cluster-specific adjustments, see the Installation guide.

Adding Workflows​

Drona looks for workflows in two locations:

  1. System workflows — Placed in the environments/ directory within the Drona installation. These are available to all users and appear in black in the dropdown. Administrators manage these by adding workflow directories directly to environments/.

  2. User workflows — Stored in each user's personal directory at $SCRATCH/drona_composer/environments/. These appear in blue in the dropdown. Users can import workflows through the UI by clicking the + button next to the environments dropdown, which copies workflows from the configured repository to their personal directory.

Environments Dropdown

The environments/ directory starts empty after installation. We recommend adding at least the Generic environment — examples are available in environments-repo/<clustername>/.

Users can browse and import available workflows from the import window:

Import Environments

For more on how workflows are structured, see Environment Development. For details on user workflows, see User Workflows.

Next Steps​

Texas A&M University High Performance Research Computing