The magneto frictional technique is one method that can be used to simulate the global solar corona over long periods of time such as months to years. Through doing so the large-scale injection and transport of magnetic helicity and non-potentiality across the solar surface can be followed for extended periods of time. This invited talk will consider how this technique has been used to understand the large-scale structure of the corona, the formation and evolution of solar filaments, Coronal Mass Ejections and the Sun’s Open Magnetic Flux using data constrained simulations. The talk will also discuss how magneto frictional simulations can be coupled with MHD simulations so that both long and short timescales of evolution can be studied.