Resources are used to specify which computers are used for running the various EnSight components, specifically the Server (ensight_server), the SOS (ensight.sos), the CollabHub (ensight_collabhub), and the distributed renderers (ensight_client). If you are running a single client and server on a single computer, you may skip this document. Resources can be useful in simple, relatively static environments. In EnSight 2025 R1, a more complete cluster virtualization system called EnShell may be used to support more complex environments that might have cross-enterprise security and other concerns that need to be abstracted.

Resources are an alternative way to specify these computers compared to SOS case files, PRDIST files, Connection Settings, and command line options. While these other ways are still valid, resources can simplify the specification of computers in a dynamic network environment. For example, SOS Case files and PRDIST files no longer need to be edited to reflect the current node allocation from cluster batch schedulers. Resources coupled with native reader support in the SOS even make SOS Case files unnecessary.

Resources files can be specified via command line arguments and environment variables. Multiple resource files can be specified; precedence rules determine which resources ultimately get used. This allows sites to specify defaults while allowing them to be overridden. Here is an example of a resource file:

#!CEIResourceFile 1.0
SOS:
        host: localhost
SERVER:
        prologue: “setup_job”
        epilogue: “cleanup_job”
        host: server1
        host: server2
        host: server3
        host: server4
COLLABHUB:
        host: pc0
RENDERER:
        prologue: “setenv DISPLAY :0.0”
#       epilogue:
        host: pc1
        host: pc2
        host: pc2

Resource files must begin with the #!CEIResourceFile 1.0 line. Subsequently, they may have up to four optional sections: SOS, SERVER, COLLABHUB, and RENDERER. Each of the four sections contains one or more host: hostname lines. These lines specify which computers to use for the corresponding section. hostname must be an Internet/intranet routable host name or IP address. A given host name may appear on multiple lines within a section or in different sections. If it appears multiple times within a section, then that host will run multiple instances of the corresponding EnSight component if needed.

Additionally, each section may have an optional prologue: cmd line and/or an optional epilogue: cmd line. These specify a command to execute on each host before and after the corresponding EnSight component.

For examples, see Use Resource Management.