AutoSys Monitoring with WCC — Workload Control Center Guide
- WCC (Workload Control Center) is the browser-based monitoring dashboard for AutoSys, hosted on Tomcat
- Flow View shows jobs as a visual dependency graph — essential for understanding blast radius of a failure
- Every WCC action is equivalent to a sendevent command — WCC is a visual wrapper, not a different system
WCC (Workload Control Center) is the browser-based monitoring and management UI for AutoSys. It's hosted on Apache Tomcat (which AutoSys installs automatically) and accessible via a standard web browser. While experienced admins often prefer the command line for speed, WCC is invaluable for understanding the state of a complex job flow at a glance — especially during incident response.
Accessing WCC
WCC runs on the AutoSys application server. The default URL is typically http://autosys-server:8080/wcc or https://autosys-server:8443/wcc for SSL.
# Default WCC URL format # http://autosys-server-hostname:8080/wcc # https://autosys-server-hostname:8443/wcc (SSL) # Check if WCC (Tomcat) is running on the server ps -ef | grep -i tomcat # Check the Tomcat port is listening ss -tlnp | grep 8080 ss -tlnp | grep 8443 # If WCC is down, restart Tomcat $AUTOSYS/wcc/bin/shutdown.sh $AUTOSYS/wcc/bin/startup.sh
Key WCC views for day-to-day monitoring
WCC provides several views. These are the ones you'll use most:
Monitor > Jobs: A real-time list of all jobs with their current status, colour-coded. Filterable by status, machine, owner, or name pattern. This is your primary monitoring view.
Monitor > Flow View: Shows jobs as nodes in a dependency graph with connecting arrows. When a job fails, you can immediately see which downstream jobs are blocked. Essential for understanding impact during incidents.
Monitor > Job Activity: A timeline view showing job start and end times. Useful for spotting jobs that are running longer than usual.
Administration > Calendars: View and manage AutoSys calendars.
Administration > Machines: View agent machine status — which are ACTIVE, MISSING, or INACTIVE.
Using WCC during an incident
When the on-call team gets paged at 3 AM because a batch run is failing, WCC is where you start. The flow of an incident investigation:
# Step 1: Check WCC Monitor > Jobs, filter by status = FAILURE # Visual: red jobs immediately visible # Parallel: command-line equivalent autorep -J % -s FA # Step 2: Click the failed job in WCC to see its attributes and log paths # Command-line equivalent: autorep -J failed_job -d cat /logs/autosys/failed_job.err # Step 3: Use Flow View to see which downstream jobs are blocked # Command-line equivalent: autorep -J % | grep -E 'AC|IN' | head -20 # show ACTIVATED/INACTIVE jobs # Step 4: After fixing, restart via WCC (right-click > Force Start) # Command-line equivalent: sendevent -E FORCE_STARTJOB -J failed_job
| WCC View | What it shows | CLI equivalent |
|---|---|---|
| Monitor > Jobs | All jobs with real-time status | autorep -J % |
| Monitor > Flow View | Visual dependency graph | No direct equivalent |
| Monitor > Job Activity | Timeline of job runs | autorep -J % -run 1 |
| Administration > Machines | Agent machine statuses | autorep -M % |
| Administration > Calendars | Calendar definitions | autocal_asc -r calendar_name |
🎯 Key Takeaways
- WCC (Workload Control Center) is the browser-based monitoring dashboard for AutoSys, hosted on Tomcat
- Flow View shows jobs as a visual dependency graph — essential for understanding blast radius of a failure
- Every WCC action is equivalent to a sendevent command — WCC is a visual wrapper, not a different system
- If WCC is down, all monitoring and operations can continue via command-line tools (autorep, sendevent, autostatus)
⚠ Common Mistakes to Avoid
- ✕Not bookmarking WCC in your on-call browser — when you're paged at 3 AM, fumbling to remember the URL wastes time
- ✕Using WCC for bulk operations — it's slow for mass changes; use JIL scripts or sendevent loops from the command line
- ✕Confusing WCC's refresh cycle with real-time — WCC auto-refreshes but there may be a few seconds lag; for immediate status, use autostatus or autorep
- ✕Leaving WCC sessions open across multiple tabs — can cause confusing behaviour if one tab has stale data
Interview Questions on This Topic
- QWhat is WCC in AutoSys?
- QWhat is the Flow View in WCC and when would you use it?
- QHow do you access WCC?
- QCan you perform all AutoSys operations from WCC or only some?
- QWhat do you do if WCC is down but you still need to monitor and manage jobs?
Frequently Asked Questions
What is WCC in AutoSys?
WCC (Workload Control Center) is the browser-based UI for AutoSys. It provides real-time job monitoring, visual dependency flow views, calendar management, and machine status. It runs on Apache Tomcat, which AutoSys installs automatically.
What port does WCC use?
WCC uses port 8080 by default (HTTP) or 8443 (HTTPS). Access it at http://your-autosys-server:8080/wcc from any browser with network access to the server.
What is the Flow View in WCC?
Flow View shows AutoSys jobs as nodes in a visual dependency graph, connected by arrows representing condition dependencies. When a job fails, you can immediately see which downstream jobs are blocked, making it invaluable during incident response.
Can I manage AutoSys without WCC?
Yes. Everything WCC does can be done via command-line tools: autorep for reporting, sendevent for job control, jil for job definitions, and autocal_asc for calendars. WCC is a convenience layer, not a requirement.
What should I check if WCC is not loading?
Check if Tomcat is running (ps -ef | grep tomcat) and the port is listening (ss -tlnp | grep 8080). Restart Tomcat if needed with the startup.sh script in the WCC bin directory. Also check disk space on the AutoSys server — full disks stop Tomcat.
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