Only if they differ new constants are loaded into the detector. The Configuration Manager can be triggered to send a configure command either by the shifter via the Load Constants button or indirectly through a run state transition. For both, BeginHEP and BeginRUN the RunControl object tells the ConfigurationManager to verify that the correct constants are loaded. This mechanism allows for configuration changes between runs but nothing can be altered during a run. The selection criterion is provided by the configure call Loading the detector constants by itself does not change either system or run state.
Components can define the granularity of their configuration and snapshot records.
Currently we will not support partial insertion of configuration data at the user level. The DAQ config file list the crate Data Movers along with the other components. It is in this file where the assignement between crate and component is made. Actually, that is not quite correct. Obviously, the granularity of the constants database has to match the physical split into front end crates.