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Data Collection 
---------------

This chapter describes the ns-3 Data Collection Framework (DCF), which
provides capabilities to obtain data generated by models in the simulator,
to perform on-line reduction and data processing, and to marshal raw
or transformed data into various output formats.

The framework presently supports standalone ns-3 runs that don't rely on
any external program execution control.  The objects provided by the
DCF may be hooked to |ns3| trace sources to enable data processing.

The source code for the classes lives in the directory ``src/stats``.

This chapter is organized as follows.  First, an overview of the architecture
is presented.  Next, the helpers for these classes are presented; this
initial treatment should allow basic use of the data collection framework
for many use cases.  Users who wish to produce output outside of the
scope of the current helpers, or who wish to create their own data
collection objects, should read the remainder of the chapter, which
goes into detail about all of the basic DCF object types and provides
low-level coding examples.

.. toctree:: 
   :maxdepth: 1
  
   data-collection-overview.rst
   data-collection-helpers.rst
   probe.rst
   collector.rst
   aggregator.rst
   adaptor.rst
   scope-and-limitations.rst