Command Ingest

The Astro Scheduler Engine Command Ingest feature allows you to specify an ASCII file from which a list of Astro Scheduler Engine Connect Commands will be read. Upon selection, each command contained within the file will be executed in sequential order.

By selecting File -> Ingest Commands... from the Menu Bar, you can browse and select a command file and begin reading commands.

Command File Format

Astro Scheduler Engine commands are read from an ASCII formatted file. Each Astro Scheduler Engine command must be preceded by "SCHED /". Since information cannot be returned to a client directly, commands that return information to the client do so by writing information to an ASCII file. Astro Scheduler Engine connect commands posses an argument that allows information to be written to a user-defined file.

• The file must be in ASCII format
• The file must contain a list of correctly formatted Astro Scheduler Engine Connect Commands
• The file must not contain any extraneous data or blanks

The format of the command file is such that it can be used with the STK Connect command "ConFile/" when using the Socket Interface.

Executing a Command File

Once a command file is selected, Astro Scheduler Engine will immediately begin executing each line from the command file in sequential order. During this time a form will appear in the center of the Astro Scheduler Engine form where each accepted connect command will be displayed as it is being executed. If Astro Scheduler Engine encounters an incorrectly formatted command, a message will be sent to the Astro Scheduler Engine Log before continuing to the next command.

Verifying and Debugging Command Files

During command file execution time, an entry will be made into the Astro Scheduler Engine Log for each command in the command file. Any encountered command formatting errors will be recorded in the log along with information about the nature of the error.

Example Command File

Example command files can be found in the 'C:\Program Files\AGI\STK_ODTK 13\Scheduler\Examples\CommandIngest' directory.

• Tutorial.txt is the command ingest version of the Astro Scheduler Engine tutorial.
• DailyPlanner.txt creates a week long schedule for a working professional balancing their family and career.