Fractal Server Init

The sub-command for the qcfractal-server CLI which initializes a new server instance, including configuring the PostgreSQL database if it is not setup yet.

Command Invocation

qcfractal-server init [<options>]

Command Description

This command will attempt to do the following actions for the user in default mode (no args):

  • Create the QCFractal Config directory

  • Create a blank Fractal Config file (assumes defaults)

  • Create the folders for housing the PostgreSQL database file, which will be the home of Fractal’s data.

  • Initialize PostgreSQL’s service at the database location from above

  • Start the PostgreSQL server

  • Populate the database tables and finalize everything for Fractal’s operation

In most cases, the user should not have to change any configurations if they are the system owners or admins. However, if users want to do something different, they can write their own Config File and change the settings though the CLI to start the server.

Options

This is a set of GLOBAL level options which impact where the ``init`` command looks, and how it interacts with the config file

--overwrite

Control whether the rest of the settings overwrite an existing config file in the QCFractal Config directory

--base-folder [<folder>]

The QCFractal base directory to attach to. Default: ~/.qca/qcfractal

This set of options pertain to the PostgreSQL database itself and translate to the database header in the Fractal Server Config.

--db-port [<port>]

The PostgreSQL default port, Default 5432

--db-host [<host>]

Default location for the Postgres server. If not localhost, Fractal command lines cannot manage the instance. and will have to be configured in the Config File. Default: localhost

--db-username [<user>]

The postgres username to default to. Planned Feature - Currently inactive.

--db-password [<password>]

The postgres password for the give user. Planned Feature - Currently inactive.

--db-directory [<dir_path>]

“The physical location of the QCFractal instance data, defaults to the root Config directory.

--db-default-database [<db_name>]

The default database to connect to. Typically used if you already have a Fractal Database set up or you want to use a different name for the database besides the default. Default qcfractal_default.

--db-logfile [<logfile>]

The logfile to write postgres logs. Default qcfractal_postgres.log.

--db-own (True|False)

If own is True, Fractal will control the database instance. If False Postgres will expect a booted server at the database specification. Default True

The settings below here pertain to the Fractal Server and translate to the fractal header in the Fractal Server Config.

--name [<name>]

The Fractal server default name. Controls how the server presents itself to connected clients. Default QCFractal Server

--port [<port>]

The Fractal default port. This is the port which Fractal listens to for client connections (and for the URI). This is separate from the --db-port which is the port that PostgreSQL database is listening for. In general, these should be separate. Default 7777.

--compres-response (True|False)

Compress REST responses or not, should be True unless behind a proxy. Default True.

--allow-read (True|False)

Always allows read access to record tables. Default True

--security [<security_string>]

Optional security features. Not set by default.

--query-limit [<int_limit>]

The maximum number of records to return per query. Default 1000

--logfile [<log>]

The logfile the Fractal Server writes to. Default qcfractal_server.log

--service-frequency [<frequency>]

The frequency to update the Fractal services. Default 60

--max-active-services [<max-services>]

The maximum number of concurrent active services. Default 20

--heartbeat-frequency [<heartbeat>]

The frequency (in seconds) to check the heartbeat of Managers. Default 1800