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Using the GUI Dashboard

This guide explains how to use the A-LEMS web-based GUI for experiment monitoring, visualization, and analysis.


🚀 Launching the GUI

# From project root with virtualenv activated
streamlit run streamlit_app.py

Expected output:

You can now view your Streamlit app in your browser.

Local URL: http://localhost:8501
Network URL: http://192.168.0.166:8501

Note: CORS warnings are harmless and can be ignored.


🖥️ GUI Overview

The A-LEMS dashboard is organized with a sidebar navigation menu containing:

Section Pages
Overview Dashboard home
Execute Run Run new experiments
Experiments Browse past experiments
Energy Energy consumption analysis
Sustainability Carbon, water, methane metrics
Tax Orchestration tax analysis
Run Explorer Deep dive into individual runs
SQL Query Custom database queries

Section Pages Purpose
Overview Overview Dashboard home
Experiment Control Execute Run, Experiments, Settings Run and manage experiments
Energy & Compute Energy, Domains, Sustainability Visualize metrics
Orchestration Tax, Agentic vs Linear Tax analysis
System Behavior CPU, Scheduler Hardware telemetry
Exploration Run Explorer, Sessions Data exploration
Research Research Insights Analysis tools

🎯 Key Pages

1. Overview Page

Dashboard home showing:

  • Recent experiments
  • System status
  • Quick stats (total runs, energy saved, carbon avoided)
  • Latest results

2. Execute Run Page

Run experiments directly from the GUI with a simple form:

Field Options Description
Task gsm8k_basic (default) Select from 16+ predefined tasks
Provider local / cloud Local TinyLlama or cloud (Groq/OpenRouter)
Repetitions 3 (configurable) Number of runs for statistical significance
Optimizer Checkbox Enable runtime optimization (experimental)

Controls: - 🚀 RUN EXPERIMENT - Start the experiment

Live Progress Display:

Progress: ████████░░░░ 4/8 runs completed

Real-time Results:

Metric Value
Linear Energy 1.2 J
Agentic Energy 2.6 J
Orchestration Tax 2.2x

3. Experiments Page

Browse and filter all experiments:

  • Filter by: Task, provider, date, status
  • Sort by: ID, date, energy
  • Actions: View details, compare, export
  • Statistics: Summary of selected experiments

4. Energy Page

Visualize energy consumption:

  • Bar charts: Linear vs Agentic comparison
  • Line charts: Energy over time
  • Distribution: Histogram of energy values
  • Raw data: Sample-level view

5. Tax Page

Orchestration tax analysis with statistical summaries:

Metric Value 95% Confidence Interval
Mean Tax 12.5x [10.2x, 14.8x]
Median Tax 11.8x -
Std Deviation 2.3x -
Min/Max 6.2x / 18.9x -

6. Sustainability Page

Environmental impact metrics:

  • Carbon footprint by experiment
  • Water usage
  • Methane emissions
  • Comparison to everyday activities
  • Country-specific grid intensity

7. Run Explorer Page

Deep dive into individual runs:

  • Select run ID
  • View all 80+ metrics
  • Plot energy curves
  • Export raw data
  • Compare with other runs

8. SQL Query Page

Advanced users can run custom SQL:

SELECT 
    run_id,
    workflow_type,
    dynamic_energy_uj/1e6 as energy_j
FROM runs
WHERE exp_id = 185
ORDER BY run_id;

Results exportable to CSV.


📊 Interactive Visualizations

Charts Support:

Feature Action
Zoom/Pan Click and drag
Hover See exact values
Legend Toggle series
Download Save as PNG
Reset Return to original view

Chart Types:

Chart Use For
Bar Comparisons
Line Trends over time
Scatter Correlations
Histogram Distributions
Box plot Statistical spread

📄 Generating PDF Reports

  1. Navigate to Session Analysis page
  2. Select an experiment from the list
  3. Click "Generate PDF Report"
  4. Report downloads automatically

Report contains:

  • Experiment metadata
  • Energy comparison charts
  • Orchestration tax analysis
  • Thermal profiles
  • CPU and scheduler metrics
  • Sustainability impact
  • RAPL domain breakdown
  • Hardware and software fingerprints

🔍 Searching and Filtering

Experiments Page Filters

Filter Options
Task All tasks, specific task
Provider All, cloud, local
Date Range Today, week, month, custom
Status Completed, running, failed
Energy Range Min-max slider

Run Explorer Filters

  • Run ID range
  • Workflow type
  • Energy threshold
  • Tax threshold
  • Date/time

📈 Custom Queries

The SQL Query page offers:

  • Auto-complete: Table and column names
  • Syntax highlighting: SQL keywords
  • Query history: Recent queries
  • Export: CSV, JSON, Excel
  • Visualize: Plot results directly

Example Queries

Top 10 highest energy runs:

SELECT run_id, workflow_type, dynamic_energy_uj/1e6 as J
FROM runs
ORDER BY dynamic_energy_uj DESC
LIMIT 10;

Average tax by task:

SELECT 
    e.task_name,
    AVG(ots.tax_percent) as avg_tax
FROM orchestration_tax_summary ots
JOIN runs r ON ots.linear_run_id = r.run_id
JOIN experiments e ON r.exp_id = e.exp_id
GROUP BY e.task_name;

🎨 Theme and Appearance

  • Dark theme by default for reduced eye strain
  • Color coding:
  • 🟢 Linear: Green (#22c55e)
  • 🔴 Agentic: Red (#ef4444)
  • 🔵 Tax/Other: Blue (#3b82f6)
  • Responsive design works on mobile/tablet

⚡ Keyboard Shortcuts

Shortcut Action
Ctrl+Enter Run query (SQL page)
Ctrl+S Save current view
Ctrl+E Export data
Ctrl+P Print/PDF
Esc Clear selection

🔧 Configuration

Settings Page

  • Database path: Change SQLite location
  • Refresh interval: How often to update
  • Chart defaults: Colors, sizes
  • Export format: CSV, JSON, Excel
  • Theme: Dark/Light toggle

🐛 Troubleshooting GUI

Issue Solution
GUI won't start pip install streamlit
Blank page Clear browser cache
Charts empty Check database path
Slow loading Add database indices
CORS warnings Safe to ignore
PDF not generating pip install reportlab kaleido

✅ Next Steps