def METHOD_NAME(essource = None, globaltag = None, conditions = None):
    """Modify the GlobalTag module configuration, allowing to use the extended
    Configuration/AlCa/python/autoCond.py functionality of specifying symbolic
    globaltags (i.e., actual global tags, plus additional payloads to get from
    the DB as customisations).
    The actual code is taken from cmsDriver's ConfigBuilder.py, adapted here to
    apply the changes directly to the process object and its module GlobalTag."""
    # custom conditions: 
    #  - start from an empty map
    #  - add any conditions coming from autoCond.py
    #  - then add and override them with any conditions explicitly requested
    custom_conditions = {}
    # if no GlobalTag ESSource module is given, load a "default" configuration
    if essource is None:
        from Configuration.StandardSequences.CondDBESSource_cff import METHOD_NAME as essource
    # if a Global Tag is given, check for an "auto" tag, and look it up in autoCond.py
    # if a match is found, load the actual Global Tag and optional conditions
    if globaltag is not None:
        if globaltag.startswith('auto:'):
            from Configuration.AlCa.autoCond import autoCond
            globaltag = globaltag[5:]
            if globaltag not in autoCond:
                raise Exception('no correspondence for '+globaltag+'\navailable keys are\n'+','.join(autoCond.keys()))
            if 'phase1_2017_design' == globaltag:
                sys.stderr.write('Warning: %s now points to %s. This has reco-Beamspot centered to (0,0,0)\n'%(globaltag,autoCond[globaltag]))
            if 'phase2_realistic' == globaltag:
                sys.stderr.write('*'*120+'\n\t\t\t\t\t\t WARNING!\n The key %s now points to %s.'\
                                 '\n Usage of this key is discretionary and users are cautioned to use it at their own risk!'\
                                 '\n This Global Tag contains tags suited for an Inner Tracker layout with rectangular (25x100um2) pixel cells (T15,T21).'\
                                 '\n If this is not the geometry you are expecting to use, please consult:' \
                                 '\n https://github.com/cms-sw/cmssw/blob/master/Configuration/AlCa/python/autoCondPhase2.py' \
                                 ' to retrieve the right key.\n'%(globaltag,autoCond[globaltag])+'*'*120+'\n')
            autoKey = autoCond[globaltag]
            if isinstance(autoKey, tuple) or isinstance(autoKey, list):
                globaltag = autoKey[0]
                # TODO backward compatible code: to be removed after migrating autoCond.py to use a map for custom conditions
                map = {}
                for entry in autoKey[1:]:
                  entry = entry.split(',')
                  record     = entry[1]
                  label      = len(entry) > 3 and entry[3] or ""
                  tag        = entry[0]
                  connection = len(entry) > 2 and entry[2] or None
                  snapshotTime = len(entry) > 4 and entry[4] or None
                  map[ (record, label) ] = (tag, connection, snapshotTime)
                custom_conditions.update( map )
            else:
                globaltag = autoKey
        # if a GlobalTag globaltag is given or loaded from autoCond.py, check for optional connection string and pfn prefix
        globaltag = globaltag.split(',')
        if len(globaltag) > 0 :
            # Perform any alias expansion and consistency check.
            # We are assuming the same connection and pfnPrefix/Postfix will be used for all GTs.
            globaltag[0] = combineGTs(globaltag[0])
            essource.globaltag = cms.string( str(globaltag[0]) )
        if len(globaltag) > 1:
            essource.connect   = cms.string( str(globaltag[1]) )
        if len(globaltag) > 2:
            essource.pfnPrefix = cms.untracked.string( str(globaltag[2]) )
    # add any explicitly requested conditions, possibly overriding those from autoCond.py
    if conditions is not None:
        # TODO backward compatible code: to be removed after migrating ConfigBuilder.py and confdb.py to use a map for custom conditions
        if isinstance(conditions, str): 
          if conditions:
            map = {}
            for entry in conditions.split('+'):
                entry = entry.split(',')
                record     = entry[1]
                label      = len(entry) > 3 and entry[3] or ""
                tag        = entry[0]
                connection = len(entry) > 2 and entry[2] or None
                snapshotTime = len(entry) > 4 and entry[4] or None
                map[ (record, label) ] = (tag, connection, snapshotTime)
            custom_conditions.update( map )
        elif isinstance(conditions, dict):
          custom_conditions.update( conditions )
        else:
          raise TypeError("the 'conditions' argument should be either a string or a dictionary")
    # explicit payloads toGet from DB
    if custom_conditions:
        for ( (record, label), (tag, connection, snapshotTime) ) in sorted(custom_conditions.items()):
            payload = cms.PSet()
            payload.record = cms.string( record )
            if label:
                payload.label = cms.untracked.string( label )
            payload.tag = cms.string( tag )
            if connection:
                payload.connect = cms.string( connection )
            if snapshotTime:
                payload.snapshotTime = cms.string( snapshotTime )
            essource.toGet.append( payload )
    return essource