TDS Tutorial: threddsConfig.xml Basics

TDS Configuration File

The TDS configuration file (content/thredds/threddsConfig.xml) allows the TDS administrator to set a number of parameters that control the behavior of the TDS. Most of these parameters will default to reasonable default values. However, a number of them allow you to describe your server, provide contact information, and change the "theme" of server generated HTML pages.

Server Information

Information describing your TDS installation and providing contact information is configured in the serverInformation element of the TDS configuration file. This includes

basic information about the server (e.g., name, abstract, keywords, host institution)
contact information so that users will know where to go with problems or questions.

Here is what the default version of the serverInformation element looks like

<serverInformation>
    <name>Initial TDS Installation</name>
    <logoUrl>threddsIcon.gif</logoUrl>
    <logoAltText>Initial TDS Installation</logoAltText>

    <abstract>Scientific Data</abstract>
    <keywords>meteorology, atmosphere, climate, ocean, earth science</keywords>

    <contact>
      <name>Support</name>
      <organization>My Group</organization>
      <email>support@my.group</email>
      <phone></phone>
    </contact>
    <hostInstitution>
      <name>My Group</name>
      <webSite>http://www.my.group/</webSite>
      <logoUrl>myGroup.gif</logoUrl>
      <logoAltText>My Group</logoAltText>
    </hostInstitution>
</serverInformation>

Where is Server Information Used

The header of all TDS generated catalog HTML pages. Examples:
- http://localhost:8080/thredds/catalog.html
- http://motherlode.ucar.edu:8080/thredds/catalog.html
The Server element of the WMS GetCapabilities document:
- http://motherlode.ucar.edu:8080/thredds/wms/fmrc/NCEP/GFS/Hawaii_160km/NCEP-GFS-Hawaii_160km_best.ncd?service=WMS&version=1.3.0&request=GetCapabilities
The three supported server information documents:
- An HTML document: http://localhost:8080/thredds/serverInfo.html
- An XML document: http://localhost:8080/thredds/serverInfo.xml and
- A version only text document: http://localhost:8080/thredds/serverVersion.txt

Other Places the Server Information Will be Included

The Server element of the WCS GetCapabilities document.
All generated THREDDS catalogs that don't override this information.

Exercise: Add Server Information

Change the default server information in the TDS configuration file

Look at the current server information:
- Open the Server Info page in a browser: http://localhost:8080/thredds/serverInfo.html

Edit the main TDS configuration catalog:

[thredds@workshop00 ~]$ cd ${TOMCAT_HOME}/content/thredds
[thredds@workshop00 ~]$ vi threddsConfig.xml         // Use the editor of your choice

Restart Tomcat so the TDS is reinitialized:

[thredds@workshop00 ~]$ cd ${TOMCAT_HOME}/bin
[thredds@workshop00 ~]$ ./shutdown.sh
[thredds@workshop00 ~]$ ./startup.sh

Check that the server information has changed:
- Open the Server Info page in a browser: http://localhost:8080/thredds/serverInfo.html

Appearance of Generated HTML Pages

Server and institution names, logos, and links given in the above section are used in all TDS generated HTML pages.

You can also specify the CSS files and several icons used in the HTML pages. These are configured in the htmlSetup element of the TDS configuration file.

The following shows the default values used if the htmlSetup element is not configured:

<htmlSetup>
    <cssPage>tds.css</cssPage>
    <cssCatalog>tdsCat.css</cssCatalog>

    <folderIconUrl>folder.gif</folderIconUrl>
    <folderIconAlt>Folder</folderIconAlt>
    <datasetIconUrl>dataset.gif</datasetIconUrl> <!-- Not currently used. -->
    <datasetIconAlt>Dataset</datasetIconAlt>     <!-- Not currently used. -->
</htmlSetup>

NOTE: URLs may be absolute or relative, relative URLs must be relative to the webapp URL, i.e., http://server:port/thredds/.

More details are given in the threddsConfig.xml Reference document.

This document is maintained by Unidata and was last updated Send comments to THREDDS support.

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TDS Tutorial: TDS Configuration Basics