hms-clone-components

name	hms_clone_components
shared_corpus	true
harness_scope	shared
source_owner	gpt-cmdr
security_review	internal
description	Clones HEC-HMS components (basins, met models, control specs, runs) using the CLB Engineering LLM Forward approach. Creates non-destructive, traceable, GUI-verifiable copies for QAQC comparison, scenario analysis, and parameter sensitivity testing. Use when creating alternative scenarios, setting up QAQC workflows, comparing baseline vs updated models, preserving originals while testing modifications, Atlas 14 precipitation updates (keep TP40 baseline), or model calibration with different parameter sets. All clones appear in HEC-HMS GUI with separate DSS outputs for side-by-side comparison. Trigger keywords: clone, duplicate, copy, QAQC, scenario, alternative, baseline, comparison, side-by-side, non-destructive, traceable.

Cloning HMS Components

When This Skill Is Activated

You are the HMS cloning specialist. Follow the CLB Engineering LLM Forward approach: Non-Destructive, Traceable, GUI-Verifiable.

Decision Tree

1. User wants a simple component clone → "Clone a Component"
2. User wants a full QAQC workflow → "QAQC Clone Workflow"
3. User wants parameter sensitivity analysis → "Sensitivity Analysis"
4. Complex multi-component scenario → Delegate to basin-model-specialist agent

Clone a Component

The project MUST be initialized first:

from hms_commander import init_hms_project, hms
init_hms_project("project")

Then clone the component the user needs:

Basin:

HmsBasin.clone_basin("Baseline", "Updated_Basin",
    description="Updated with Atlas 14 precip", hms_object=hms)

Met model:

HmsMet.clone_met("Baseline_Met", "Atlas14_Met",
    description="Updated to Atlas 14 depths", hms_object=hms)

Control spec:

HmsControl.clone_control("Jan2020", "Jun2020",
    description="Extended to June 2020", hms_object=hms)

Run (most important — always specify separate DSS):

HmsRun.clone_run("Baseline", "Updated",
    new_basin="Updated_Basin", new_met="Atlas14_Met",
    output_dss="results_updated.dss",
    description="Atlas 14 update QAQC", hms_object=hms)

Critical: Always specify output_dss for cloned runs — separate DSS files enable side-by-side comparison.

QAQC Clone Workflow

Follow these steps in order:

1. Initialize project: init_hms_project("project")
2. Clone the component being modified (basin or met):

   HmsMet.clone_met("Baseline_Met", "Atlas14_Met", hms_object=hms)
   

3. Modify the clone (not the original):

   HmsMet.set_precipitation_depths("project/Atlas14_Met.met", new_depths)
   

4. Clone the run with new component + separate DSS:

   HmsRun.clone_run("Baseline", "Atlas14_Update",
       new_met="Atlas14_Met", output_dss="results_atlas14.dss", hms_object=hms)
   

5. Execute both runs:

   HmsCmdr.compute_parallel(["Baseline", "Atlas14_Update"])
   

6. Compare results → delegate to hms_extract_dss-results skill

Sensitivity Analysis

For parameter sweeps:

for cn in [70, 75, 80, 85, 90]:
    HmsBasin.clone_basin("Baseline", f"CN{cn}", hms_object=hms)
    HmsBasin.set_loss_parameters(f"project/CN{cn}.basin", "Sub1", curve_number=cn)
    HmsRun.clone_run("Baseline_Run", f"Run_CN{cn}",
        new_basin=f"CN{cn}", output_dss=f"results_cn{cn}.dss", hms_object=hms)

HmsCmdr.compute_parallel([f"Run_CN{cn}" for cn in [70, 75, 80, 85, 90]])

CLB Engineering Principles

• Non-Destructive: Never modify the original — always clone first
• Traceable: Use description parameter to document why the clone was made
• GUI-Verifiable: All clones appear in HMS GUI immediately for visual review

If Something Goes Wrong

• Clone not appearing in HMS GUI: Re-initialize the project or restart HMS
• Run disappears after opening in HMS: Components referenced in the run must exist — validate before cloning the run
• DSS collision: Two runs writing to the same DSS file corrupt results — always use separate DSS files

Primary Sources

• hms_commander/HmsBasin.py#clone_basin(), HmsMet.py#clone_met()
• hms_commander/HmsControl.py#clone_control(), HmsRun.py#clone_run()
• .claude/rules/hec-hms/clone-workflows.md — CLB Engineering approach

Implementing Agent

For complex multi-step scenarios, delegate to: .claude/agents/basin-model-specialist.md

Delegation Points

• Modify cloned basins → hms_parse_basin-models skill
• Modify cloned met models → hms_update_met-models skill
• Run cloned scenarios → hms_execute_runs skill
• Compare cloned results → hms_extract_dss-results skill