Running Windows-only projects on Linux, using Wine

[StefanR5R]

If a Distributed Computing project provides only a Windows application, but you have hosts running Linux, you could

• either virtualize Windows,

Spoiler: summary of the steps involved; downsides of this approach

• install a virtualization solution on Linux (KVM, Xen, Virtualbox...)
  
• buy Microsoft Windows
• install it onto a virtual machine
• boot the VM and proceed as on a regular Windows host (i.e. install the Windows version of BOINC, attach to the project, run tasks...)

downsides:
license costs; an additional host with its OS and applications and everything needs to be administered
​

• or run BOINC via Wine,

Spoiler: summary of the steps involved; downsides of this approach

• install Wine on Linux
• download the Windows version of BOINC
• run its installer using Wine
• start the Windows version of boinc using Wine
• proceed as on a regular Windows host (attach to the project, run tasks...)

downsides:
a separate client instance needs to be used; GUI communication with the client may be laggy
​

• or run the science application via Wine within the native Linux BOINC client.

Spoiler: summary of the steps involved; downsides of this approach

• requirement: The project needs to permit the anonymous platform mechanism
• install Wine
• for projects which require .Net, install Mono
• attach the Linux client to the project
• either copy the required science application files from a Windows host which is already attached to the project, or download these files from known URLs
• copy these files into the project directory
• create a little wrapper script in the project directory
• write an app_info.xml which describes the files and application
• restart the client
• request work, run tasks...

downsides:
the anonymous platform mechanism is poorly documented; if you don't have a Windows host where you can copy the files from, you need to ask somebody for the download URLs and certain other information about the Windows application version found in client_state.xml
​

A variation of the third method is employed when yoyo@home's evolution@home is run on Linux. evolutio@home on Windows is already a wrapper project. Hence, yoyo wrote a little more extensive wrapper for evolution@home, which combines the functionality of the original native Windows wrapper with the embedding into Wine when run on Linux.


Step-by-step Example

I am now explaining the third method by the example of Acoustics@home. This project provides a native Linux application version, hence, none of the following is required to run Acoustics@home on a Linux host. But I tried the Wine approach while exploring a current performance problem with Acoustics on Linux.

Step 1:

Attach the Linux host to Acoustics@home.
Maybe run some tasks; complete them and set the project to no-new-tasks.​

Step 2:

Install Wine.
I have Linux Mint 18.3, which provides Wine 1.6.2 as package.​

Step 3:

Copy or download the necessary application files.
Acoustics@home's current SSPEMDD v0.18 application uses one exe and two data files on Windows:
sspemdd_0.18_windows_x86_64.exe
ac_modes_R7km_dtimes1.txt
ac_modes_R7km_spmag1.txt

The two data files were already there from when I ran some native Linux tasks. I copied the sspemdd_0.18_windows_x86_64.exe binary from a Windows host.

Download URLs for all these files can be looked up in client_state.xml of a Windows host that is attached to Acoustics@home.​

Step 4:

Copy these files into /var/lib/boinc-client/projects/www.acousticsathome.ru_boinc/.​

Step 5:

In this directory, create a file called "sspemdd_wine_wrapper.sh" with the following contents:​

#!/bin/bash

exec /usr/bin/wine /var/lib/boinc-client/projects/www.acousticsathome.ru_boinc/sspemdd_0.18_windows_x86_64.exe

Step 6:

Still in this directory, create a file called "app_info.xml" with the following contents:​

<app_info>
    <app>
        <name>sspemdd</name>
        <user_friendly_name>SSPEMDD-Wine</user_friendly_name>
    </app>

    <file_info>
        <name>sspemdd_wine_wrapper.sh</name>
        <executable/>
    </file_info>
    <file>
        <name>sspemdd_0.18_windows_x86_64.exe</name>
        <executable/>
    </file>
    <file>
        <name>ac_modes_R7km_dtimes1.txt</name>
    </file>
    <file>
        <name>ac_modes_R7km_spmag1.txt</name>
    </file>

    <app_version>
        <app_name>sspemdd</app_name>
        <version_num>18</version_num>
        <api_version>7.9.0</api_version>
        <file_ref>
            <file_name>sspemdd_wine_wrapper.sh</file_name>
            <main_program/>
        </file_ref>
        <file_ref>
            <file_name>sspemdd_0.18_windows_x86_64.exe</file_name>
        </file_ref>
        <file_ref>
            <file_name>ac_modes_R7km_dtimes1.txt</file_name>
            <open_name>ac_modes_R7km_dtimes1.txt</open_name>
            <copy_file/>
        </file_ref>
        <file_ref>
            <file_name>ac_modes_R7km_spmag1.txt</file_name>
            <open_name>ac_modes_R7km_spmag1.txt</open_name>
            <copy_file/>
        </file_ref>
    </app_version>
</app_info>

I copied much of this from the contents of client_state.xml of a Windows host.​

Step 7:

Make sure that the data files can be read by all, and that the wrapper and exe are executable by all:
chmod a+r /var/lib/boinc-client/projects/www.acousticsathome.ru_boinc/*
chmod a+x /var/lib/boinc-client/projects/www.acousticsathome.ru_boinc/*.{exe,sh}

(Alternatively, you can set ownership of the files to boinc and restrict access permissions to boinc.)​

Step 8:

Restart the BOINC client:
sudo service boinc-client restart

Check boincmgr's event log that it says "Acoustics@home ... Found app_info.xml; using anonymous platform", and that it doesn't show any errors for Acoustics@home.​

Step 9:

Allow new tasks for the Acoustics@home project. You should now receive tasks, and they should show up in boincmgr's task list with the application name "Local: SSPEMDD-Wine 0.18". Complete them, and go look up later on the Acoustics@home web page whether the tasks validated correctly.​

Done.

Edit,
in this case I measured 8 % increased run time of the tasks when running on Wine and Linux, compared to running natively on Windows on the same hardware.

 

[biodoc]

This is an excellent tutorial Stefan and thanks for sharing all your work.

 

[zzuupp]

Pardon my paranoia: Is this just PPS and not PPSE / PPS Mega?

I'm setting myself up for just PPS, but I usually split 'em.

 

[Ken g6]

Pardon my paranoia: Is this just PPS and not PPSE / PPS Mega?

I'm setting myself up for just PPS, but I usually split 'em.

Yes, it is. It's also the wrong thread.