Use the Product Requirements Editor (PREd) to change your real-time forecast data requirements

What is the Product Requirements Editor (PREd)?

The Product Requirements Editor (PREd) is a web application for the configuration and maintenance of real-time dissemination requirements.

The PREd is available to the following real-time forecast data users:

ECMWF Member and Co-operating States
NMHS licence holders
Maximum charge licence holders

Access to PREd is arranged as part of your real-time forecast data delivery set up.

How to use the Product Requirements Editor (PREd)

Getting started with the Product Requirements Editor

Requirements are grouped in logical containers. At the top level we have the organisation. Organisation contains 1 or more destinations, each representing a physical host.

Destinations contain feeds. These are containers where you will be able to see the editor and the dissemination requirements.

Create a draft from this page and edit it. A draft is your working canvas.

If you want to install new data to test, please install your data in a test feed (that starts with T). If you would like to install your requirements in operations right away, you can install them in an operational feed.

You can install your data with the help of so-called snippets (<>), see below for more information about this tool.

By clicking on the bug symbol, you can check if your data configuration validates. The tools below can help you.

If everything is alright, the bug turns green. You can then send in a publication request.

Helpful tools

What it does: Provides users with a list of parameters that exist in the parameter database
How to use: ctrl+space
Example video: Autocomplete.mov
Future enhancements:
- search for ALL parameters by parameter ID
- only display parameters that are valid in dissemination and valid for your current request (this is currently just a dump of all parameters from the parameter database)

Data and Charts > Product Requirements Editor (PREd) > Screen Shot 2019-07-01 at 19.27.03.png

What it does: Displays the data that is being inherited from the preceding dissemination request
How to use: hover over the icon
Example video: Inheritance.mov
Future enhancements: selectively paste inherited data into the requirements

Data and Charts > Product Requirements Editor (PREd) > Inheritance .png

What it does: Allows users to insert template requirements into their feed, which they can modify and use to build requests from scratch
How to use: hover over the <> icon
Example video: Snippets.mov
Future enhancements: snippets for ALL datasets will be added prior to the first release

Data and Charts > Product Requirements Editor (PREd) > Snippets.png

What it does: Displays differences between:
1. the operational version of a feed and the amended version of that same feed
2. the operational version and a previous operational version
3. two previous operational versions
How to use: select the 'view changes' action
Example video: Diff.mov
Future enhancements: add the option to save any changes that are made to the requirements while using the diff window

Data and Charts > Product Requirements Editor (PREd) > Diff.png

Common validation errors

See common validation errors and how to solve them!

Volume estimates

The PREd provides an estimate of the number of fields and volume of data requested.