Performing large three-dimensional time-dependent simulations is a complex numerical task. Managing such simulations, often several at the same time as they execute on different supercomputers, is comparable to herding cats — supercomputers differ in their hardware configuration, available software, directory structure, queueing systems, queuing policies, and many other relevant properties.

However, these differences are only superficial, and the basic capabilities of supercomputers are very similar. The simulation factory contains a set of abstractions of the tasks which are necessary to set up and successfully finish numerical simulations using the Cactus framework. These abstractions hide tedious low-level management tasks, they capture "best practices" of experienced users, and they create a log trail ensuring repeatable and well-documented scientific results. Using these abstractions, many types of potentially disastrous user errors are avoided, and different supercomputers can be used in a uniform manner.

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