Marc and Mentat 2015: Installation and Operations Guide

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Marc and Mentat 2015

® ®

Installation and Operations Guide


Corporate Europe, Middle East, Africa
MSC Software Corporation MSC Software GmbH
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Telephone: (714) 540-8900 Telephone: (49) 89 431 98 70
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Telephone: (81) (3)-6911-1200 Email: [email protected]
Email: [email protected]

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User Documentation: Copyright  2015 MSC Software Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
This document, and the software described in it, are furnished under license and may be used or copied only in accordance with the terms
of such license. Any reproduction or distribution of this document, in whole or in part, without the prior written authorization of MSC Software
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prior notice. The concepts, methods, and examples presented in this document are for illustrative and educational purposes only and are
not intended to be exhaustive or to apply to any particular engineering problem or design. THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS-
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WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, ARE DISCLAIMED, EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT
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This software may contain certain third-party software that is protected by copyright and licensed from MSC Software suppliers. Additional
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Copyright 2015.
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and DFARS 227.7202 (Commercial Computer Software and Commercial Computer Software Documentation), as applicable.

MA*V2015*Z*Z*Z*DC-OPS
Contents

Contents
Marc and Mentat Installation and Operations Guide

Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide


Chapter 1: Read me first: Installation Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
Chapter 3: Installation Procedure Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Chapter 4: Running Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Chapter 5: Running Mentat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Modifying the MPI Setting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Setting defaults with the run_marc_defaults file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Mentat External Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Jobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Plotter Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
PostScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Xdump . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
System Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Parallel Render . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
MPEG Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
FLEXlm License File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
FLEXlm License Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Environment Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Machine hostid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
Appendix A:Sample Installation of Marc and Mentat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Appendix B:Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Appendix C:Marc/Mentat Files and Subdirectories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide


Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Introduction .............................................. 34
Part 1 General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Hardware and Software Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35
Compatibility ............................................. 35
4 Marc and Mentat Installation and Operations Guide

Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .35
Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
Part 2 Installation Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Part 3 User Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
How to run a network job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
Specification of the host file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
Shared I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39
Distributed I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40
Shared vs. Distributed I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
Jobs with User Subroutine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .43

Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations


Guide
Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
Chapter 1: Read me first: Installation Prerequisites . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .50
Chapter 3: Installation Procedure Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Chapter 4: Running Marc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
Chapter 5: Running Mentat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60
Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Modifying the MPI Setting: selecting MPI version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Setting defaults with the run_marc_defaults file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .62
Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Mentat External Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Jobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Plotter Interface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
PostScript . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .63
Edit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
System Shell . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
AVI Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
MPEG Playback . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
FLEXlm License File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
FLEXlm License Manager . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Environment Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
Client/Server Licensing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66
Chapter 9: Configuring the Marc DCOM Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
Specifying the Logon User . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
Testing the installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
Contents 5

Mentat Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Appendix A: Marc Subdirectories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
Appendix B: Mentat Files and Subdirectories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Appendix C: Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Marc Parallel Network for Microsoft Windows Installation and


Operations Guide
Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77
Part 1 General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Hardware and Software Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78
Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79
Network Configuration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Part 2 Installation Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Part 3 User Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
How to run a network job . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Specification of the host file . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Shared I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Distributed I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
Example . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85
Shared vs. Distributed I/O . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Jobs with User Subroutine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Troubleshooting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
Marc and Mentat for
Linux Installation and
Operations Guide
7 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 1: Read me first: Installation Prerequisites


Before The product is available for download at the MSC Solutions Download Center available at
installing the https://mscsoftware.subscribenet.com
software
Select the product Marc & Marc Mentat and select the 2015 version on the next level. Download
the installer for your platform.
The FLEXlm security is installed separately. Select the product MSC Licensing FLEXlm and the
version 11.9 on the next level. Download the installer for your platform.
Decide where you want the product to be installed and where to perform the installation.
Marc requires approximately 1100 Mbytes of permanent disk storage capacity.
Mentat requires approximately 900 Mbytes of permanent disk storage capacity. Documentation,
stored in the separate documentation directories doc and examples, contains approximately 800
Mbytes of data.
First install security. If you are installing both Marc and Mentat, then first install Marc and then
install Mentat.
Password The Marc and Mentat version you have received is protected against illegal usage by means of
protection Flexera Software’s FLEXlm licensing software. You cannot run the program directly after you
have installed the product from the installation media until you obtain a license file from MSC
Software Corporation.
Multiple If you are installing Marc and/or Mentat on an NFS Fileserver, the install script needs to create
machines/NFS directories in which to install Marc and/or Mentat; the default NFS export options do not allow
Fileserver this level of access by root. Two approaches are possible – do not install as root, or if you must
install as root, modify your NFS export options to include ~root=list (where list can include
hostnames and netgroups).
Should I be You may need to be logged in as root if you want to create an optional link by which Marc and/or
“root”? Mentat will be known system-wide under the name marc2015 or mentat2015. This link will, by
default, be placed in the directory /usr/local/bin to which you must have write permission.
Logging in as root is one way of ensuring that you can create this link. Make sure that you have
write permission to the installation directory before you start the installation script.
For NFS fileserver networks, read the previous paragraph.
Fortran A Fortran compiler is necessary if user subroutines are to be used. For other cases, no compiler is
compiler needed. The compiler needs to be compatible with the one used in the Marc build, see the Marc
and Mentat Release Guide for a list of supported compilers.
NVIDIA An NVIDIA driver is necessary if the GPGPU capability is to be used. For other cases, no special
driver driver is needed. The NVIDIA driver needs to be compatible with the one used in the Marc build;
see Marc Volume A: Theory and User Information, Chapter 13 for the minimum driver version
supported.
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure 8

Chapter 2: Installation Procedure


Step 1: chmod +x msc_licensing_11.9_<platform>.bin Download FLEXlm from the Solutions
Security ./msc_licensing_11.9_<platform>.bin Download Center. Select the product MSC
Licensing FLEXlm, version 11.9.
For nodelocked license, run
Run the installation executable. It may be
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmhostid
necessary to give execution permission
(chmod +x) to the downloaded file. Follow
cp license.dat the installation instructions.
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat Default installation directory is
For csh and similar: /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9
setenv MSC_LICENSE_FILE Obtain a license file from MSC Software.
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat If a nodelocked license is to be used, then
For Bourne shell and similar obtain FLEXlm hostid with
MSC_LICENSE_FILE=/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9 /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmhostid
/licenses/license.dat
export MSC_LICENSE_FILE Copy the license file to the proper location.
Edit license.dat to set SERVER and DAEMON (see Standard location is
chapter 3 below for details). /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/licens
e.dat
Start the license server:
Set the environmental variable
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmgrd -c
MSC_LICENSE_FILE to point to the
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat -l
license file.
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/lmgrd.log
The license server must be running in
order to run marc and Mentat.
Step 2: mkdir /tmp/marc Download the product from the Solutions
Download the cd /tmp/marc Download Center and save the file to a
product and temporary location. Unzip the file and
Copy the file from Download Center to this
start the install extract the contents. Run the Marc
directory
script installation script install.exe that is in
gunzip <file>.tar.gz the top-level directory.
tar xvf <file>.tar Marc and Mentat are available for Red Hat
./install.exe 5.7, Red Hat 6.3 and SuSE 11 SP2. Please
download the version compatible with your
system.
Welcome to the Marc installation script for Enter the path for the directory in which
Linux systems you want to install the Marc product(s).
Enter the directory to install the software The default selection will be your current
(<current directory>) directory. You must have write permission
to this directory.
9 Marc and Marc Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Step 3: Main Menu Select option 1 to install Marc. This will


Extract the files 1 ) Install Marc take you to the Marc submenu.
from the 2 ) Install Mentat Note:
installation Remember to install Marc before you
o) Options
media install Mentat.
? ) Help information
q ) Exit from the installation script
Selection: 1
Select the Marc 2015.0 Menu Select the platform that you will be
platform L1) Install for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7 running Marc on. The script will show the
(~1000 MB) platform for which you have downloaded
the version and if this is compatible with
your system, it is shown as a default value
in brackets after the Selection prompt. Just
press Return/Enter to use the default value,
otherwise enter L1 to install the
Red Hat 5.7 version, L2 to install the
Red Hat 6.3 version and L3 to install the
SuSE 11 SP2 version. You will also be
prompted whether you want to create a
system wide link to the marc2015 script.
? ) Help information
r ) Return to previous menu
Set the default The current default MARC_MPI is set to intelmpi The script will ask about changing the
MPI Do you want to change it to hpmpi [y/N]? default MPI from its current setting to
another MPI if supported on the installed
platform. Supported MPI versions are
HP MPI and Intel MPI. The setting is
stored in the file run_marc_defaults in
the marc2015/tools directory.
r) Return to the previous menu Choose the Return to previous menu
option to return to the main menu.
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure 10

Mentat Installation Select option 2 from the main menu to


Mentat 2015.0 Menu install Mentat.
l1) Install for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7 Select the platform that you will be
(~900 MB) running Mentat on. The script will show
the platform for which you have
downloaded the version and if this is
compatible with your system, it is shown
as a default value in brackets after the
Selection prompt. Just press Return/Enter
to use the default value, otherwise enter l1
to install the Red Hat 5.7 version, l2 to
install the Red Hat 6.3 version and l3 to
install the SuSE 11 SP2 version.
You will be prompted to supply the
pathname to the directory where Marc is
installed. If the script determines that Marc
is already installed to the default location
of <parent>/marc2015, then a default
value for the path is displayed. Press
Return/Enter to use the default value.
If you do not have Marc at this site, you
can ignore the prompt.
You will also be prompted whether you
want to create a system wide link in
/usr/local/bin to the mentat script.
You must be root to perform this.
r) Return to the previous menu Choose the Return to previous menu
option to return to the main menu. Select q
to exit the installation script.
3D Mouse Mentat supports a 3-D Mouse (or Spaceball) device.
If you want to use such a device with Mentat, please
make sure that the right spacenav driver is installed
on your system (see
http://spacenav.sourceforge.net).
11 Marc and Marc Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Step 4: mkdir /tmp/documentation Download the documentation file from the


Download the cd /tmp/documentation Solutions Download Center and save the
documentation file to a temporary location. Unzip the file
Copy the file from Download Center to this
and start the and extract the contents. Run the
directory
install script documentation installation script
gunzip <file>.tar.gz install_doc.exe that is in the top-level
tar xvf <file>.tar directory.
./install_doc.exe It is important to enter the same directory in
which you want to install the
documentation as the one in which Mentat
has been installed. When doing so, it is
possible to interactively access the various
documentation files from within Mentat
and to run a selected number of procedure
files illustrating some analysis capabilities
(see also Checking Mentat).
Step 5: cd <parent>/marc2015/tools If you installed Marc, Mentat and the
Checking Marc ./maintain documentation, you can check the Marc
installation by following the instructions
under Checking Marc from Mentat.
Marc Tools Menu
Change your directory to
1) Test Marc installation marc2015/tools and start the
maintain script. This brings up a new
Test the Marc installation menu. Select option 1, “Test Marc
installation”. A new “Test” menu appears.
1.1)Run a Marc job without user
You must choose either Serial or Parallel
subroutine
depending on the license you have.
Run one of the standard Marc
demonstration examples as proof of
a successful installation by choosing
option 1.1. If all goes well, one of the final
messages on the screen should read:
Marc 2015.0
Exit number 3004
1.2)Run a Marc job with user subroutine If you have a Fortran compiler on your
system, choose a second demonstration
example, option 1.2. Here again, Marc
should give the same exit message as
shown above.
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure 12

Troubleshooting:
1. If you get an error message of f90
not found or ifort not found
when running a job with a
user subroutine and there is a
Fortran compiler, its path needs to
be appended to your path
in the .cshrc or .profile file.
0) Return to previous menu Repeatedly choose the Return/Exit option
0) Exit from the maintenance script to leave the installation script.
Choose option 0 to leave the maintenance
script.
Step 6: cd <parent>/mentat2015 Next, change your current directory to be
Checking ./bin/mentat the <parent> directory in which you
Mentat installed Mentat, and then cd to
mentat2015.
Checking Marc Run a Demo problem by selecting the menu
from Mentat Enter the command ./bin/mentat to
buttons:
start Mentat. From the Help menu, select
Help Run A Demo..., and then select the
Run A Demo... Thermal/Structural Contact demo. It will
Thermal/Structural Contact run for 50 increments.
Step 7: Please follow the Parallel Network
For Marc Version for Linux Installation Instructions
Parallel (Part 1 General Information: and
Network Part 2 Installation Notes:) on installing
version only and running jobs with the network version.
13 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 3: Installation Procedure Information


Options to the The install.exe script will accept the following options:
install.exe script -a Turns on automatic installation – installs both Marc and Mentat from the
installation media. The -i option (described below) is required.
-i <path> Specifies the installation path (<parent> directory). This option is required
when specifying the automatic installation option -a.
-l <file> Specifies a file for product listing
-v Turns on verbose mode.
The “automatic” installation will install both Marc and Mentat. To perform an “automatic”
installation, run the installation script as follows:
./install.exe -a -i <path>

License file Two lines of the file license.dat need to be modified


“SERVER” line which specifies the system hostname
“DAEMON” line which specifies the daemon name and the path to the daemon program
The content is typically something like
SERVER this_host 0022192361f 1700
DAEMON MSC /your_path/msc
The string “this_host” should be replaced by the hostname of the machine where the license
server is running.
The string “your_path” should be replaced by the full path to the program “msc”. If the default
location is used for the security installation it should be
DAEMON MSC /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/flexlm/linux64/msc
License server The FLEXlm license manager needs to be started on the license server before running Marc
and Mentat.
The license server is started with (assuming default installation location)
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmgrd -c /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat
-l /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/lmgrd.log
hostid For a nodelocked license it is necessary to obtain a FLEXlm hostid for the machine running
Marc and Mentat. This is done by running the command
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmhostid
Chapter 4: Running Marc 14

Chapter 4: Running Marc


This section describes the Marc usage on Linux based machines. The Marc programs are mainly controlled by a shell
script called run_marc which is stored in the marc2015 subdirectory tools. If you have used the option to creating
a link during the installation, this link is also known system wide as marc2015. It is designed to handle practically all
possible options.
The shell script will submit a job and must be executed in the directory where all relevant input and output files
concerning the job are available. To use the shell script, each Marc job should have a unique name qualifier and all
Marc output files connected to that job will use this same qualifier.
Marc input files should always be named job_name.dat, whereby the prefix job_name is the name qualifier which you
are free to choose. The suffix .dat is obligatory.
To actually submit a Marc job, the following command should be used. The single input line is split over multiple lines
for clarity:
run_marc -jid job name (required as minimum)
-rid restart file name
-pid post file name
-sid substructure file name
-prog name of a previously saved user executable
-user user subroutine name
-save save user executable
-back run in background
-ver verification flag
-vf view factor file name
-def defaults file name
-nprocd number of domains
-nprocds number of domains in Single Input File mode
-nts number of threads for parallel matrix solver (same as
-nthread_solver or -nthread or -nt)
-nte number of threads for element assembly and stress recovery
(same as -nthread_elem)
-nsolver number of matrix solver tasks
-mo integer mode
-mpi mpi version
-dir directory where job I/O takes place
-sdir directory where the scratch files are located
-host host file name; used for distributed execution in a network
-ci copy input files to remote machines in a network
-cr copy post files back from remote machines in a network
-ml memory limit in Megabytes
-gpuid GPU card ID or auto keyword
15 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Table 1 describes the meaning of these input options and Table 2 gives examples.
Table 1 run_marc Input Options
Keyword Options Description
-jid (-j) job_name Input file (job) name identification.
-prog (-pr) progname Run saved executable progname.marc from a previous job
(see -user and -save).
-user (-u) user_name User subroutine user_name.f is used to generate a new executable
program called user_name.marc (see -save and -prog).
-save (-sa) no Do not save the new executable program user_name.marc.
yes Save the executable program user_name.marc for a future time (see -
prog and -user).
-rid -(r) restart_name Identification of previous job that created RESTART file.
-pid (-pi) post_name Identification of previous job that created the post file.
-sid (-si) substructure Identify the job that contains the solution to the external nodes of the
superelement.
-back (-b) yes Run Marc in the background.
no Run Marc in the foreground.
-ver (-v) yes Ask for confirmation of these input options before starting the job.
Start the job immediately.
no
-def (-de) default_file File name containing user defined default data.
-nprocd (-np) number Number of domains for parallel processing.
-nprocds(-nps) number Number of domains for parallel processing using a Single Input File.
-nts (-nthread) number Number of threads per parallel matrix solver (8, 9, and 11).
-nte number Number of threads used for parallel matrix assembly and stress recovery.
-nsolver number Number of processes to use for the MUMPS parallel matrix solver
(solver 12).
-dir directory_name Pathname to directory where the job I/O should take place.
Defaults to current directory.
-sdir directory_name Directory where scratch files are placed. Defaults to -dir.
-host (-ho) hostfile Specify the name of the host file for running over a network (default is
execution on one machine only in which case this option is not needed).
-ci yes Copy input files automatically to remote hosts for a network run,
if necessary.
no
*Default options are shown in bold.
Chapter 4: Running Marc 16

Table 1 run_marc Input Options (continued)


Keyword Options Description
-cr yes Copy post files automatically from remote hosts used for a network run,
if necessary.
no
-vf viewfactor_name Name of file containing viewfactors for radiation from previous analysis
or from Mentat using either the Monte Carlo or Hemicube method.
-mpi intelmpi Select which version of mpi will be used for Domain Decomposition or
hpmpi the MUMPS solver. If not specified, the appropriate default shown below
will be used:
Platform Default MPI Alternative MPI
Linux 64 intelmpi hpmpi
-ml memlimit Memory limit for deciding if the solver should go out-of-core. Specified
in Mbyte. Defaults to the physical amount of memory on the machine.
-gpuid <id:id:id> or auto GPU card number or auto for automatic selection by program. For
parallel (DDM) jobs, multiple card IDs can be specified if available.
*Default options are shown in bold.
17 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Table 2 Examples of Running Marc Jobs


Examples of running Marc jobs Description:
run_marc -jid e2x1 Runs the job e2x1 in the background, the input file e2x1.dat
resides in the current working directory.
run_marc -jid e2x14 -user u2x14 Runs the job e2x14 in the background, using the user subroutine
-save yes u2x14.f and the input file e2x14.dat. An executable program
named u2x14.marc will be saved after completion of the job.
run_marc -jid e2x14a -prog u2x14 Runs the job e2x14a using the executable produced by job
e2x14.
run_marc -jid e3x2a -ver no Runs the job e3x2a in the foreground. The job will run
-back no immediately without verifying interactively.
run_marc -jid e3x2b -rid e3x2a Performs a restart job using the results of the previous job
e3x2a.
run_marc -jid e2x1 -nprocd 2 Runs a two processor job on a single parallel machine.
run_marc -jid e2x1 -nprocd 2 -host Runs a two-processor job over a network. The hosts are
hostfile specified in the file hostfile (refer to the Marc Parallel
Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide for runs on
a network of machines.
Chapter 5: Running Mentat 18

Chapter 5: Running Mentat


This section describes the Mentat usage on Linux based machines. Mentat is started by a shell script called mentat
which is stored in the mentat2015/bin directory. If you used the option to create a link during the installation, this
link is known system wide as mentat2015.
You do not need to start the shell script from a specific directory.
Mentat creates the default files in your current working directory; that is, where you are located at the time of starting
Mentat.
The shell-script mentat contains a number of arguments which are passed on to Mentat. Table 3 gives the meaning of
these input options. You are free to alter these commands to suit your preference.

Table 3 Mentat Input Options


Keyword Option Description
-bg This option will run Mentat in the background. Note that the
DISPLAY environment variable must point to a valid display.
-bp $(DIR)/bin/ Directory path name where the external Mentat programs and shell
scripts are located.
-compile binary_menu_filename This is used to compile ASCII menu files into a binary menu file.
The -mf option would be used to specify the new binary file.
To recompile the default binary menu file main.msb, compile as:
bin/mentat -compile menus/linux64/main.msb
Substitute for <plat> the platform name linux64.
-dr True/False Enable/disable direct rendering. Enabling this option will make
OpenGL bypass the underlying window system and render directly
from hardware to the screen, if this is supported by the system. the
default is True.
-fn 8x15 Default font type.
-fngr font Font used by the graphics windows (overrules the font selected via
the -fn option).
-fnme font Font used by the menus (overrules the font selected via the -fn
option).
-gradient This option switches on a gradient background when displaying the
various windows (Model, Table, History Plot, etc.).
-help Print a list of all of the options.
-hide_dialog Hide the dialog window at startup.
-hide_dynamic_menu Hide the dynamic window at startup.
-hide_main_menu Hide the main window at startup.
-hp $(DIR)/help/ Directory path name where the help files are located.
-lf filename Specify the Mentat log file name.
-mf main.ms The name of the startup menu file.
19 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Table 3 Mentat Input Options (continued)


Keyword Option Description
-ml $(DIR)/material/ Directory path name where the material files are located.
-mp $(DIR)/menus/ Directory path name where the menu files are located.
-nosolidmodeling Utilize the Mentat_Parasolid_CAD which allows geometric models
to be imported but does not allow solid geometry editing.
-path directory_name Provides a directory in which Mentat searches when opening an
existing input file. Multiple directories can be specified as follows:
-path directory_1 -path directory_2 etc.
-pr filename Any additional set-up commands you wish to add. Store these in a
procedure file containing the Mentat commands.
-ra This reads all of the ASCII Menu files.
-rf filename Record the Mentat commands in the procedure file filename.
-szgr width height Set the size (width and height in pixels) of the graphics area.
-ti title Append title to the name of the window.
Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs 20
Modifying the MPI Setting

Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs


Modifying the MPI Setting
The MPI version used by default is defined in the table below. It also lists an alternative MPI version to use for the
respective platform. The default MPI version to use can be set in the run_marc_defaults file (see next section).
Enter a line
MARC_MPI alternative_mpi
for setting a new default. Use the exact word as given in the Alterative MPI column. The MPI version can also be set
with the command line option -mpi to run_marc. The command line option overrides the value set in
run_marc_defaults.

Platform Default MPI Alternative MPI


Linux 64 intelmpi hpmpi

Setting defaults with the run_marc_defaults file


A file called run_marc_defaults located in the user’s home directory (as given by the environment variable
HOME) or in the tools directory of the Marc installation can be used for setting program defaults. If both are present
then the setting in the user’s home directory will be used.
The following setting is currently available:

MARC_MPI as given in the above table


This selects the MPI version to use.
21 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces


Mentat External Programs
Mentat supports a number of CAD interfaces: IGES, Patran, Ideas, VDA, etc. These interfaces are accessed using
external programs called from within Mentat. The interface programs are stored in the mentat2015 subdirectory bin.
These programs read the data files in their native format and translate the contents into a Mentat model file. This file
is subsequently read by Mentat. The external programs are called from within Mentat by means of the FILE submenu.

Jobs
The subdirectory bin contains shell script files to start a Marc FEM job using the following shell scripts:
submit1, submit2, submit3,
These shell scripts are called by means of the buttons in the JOBS menu.
You can alter these files to suit your environment; for example, set up one of the submit scripts so that it starts a Marc
job on a different machine on your network.

Plotter Interface
Because of the many variations in plotting environments, we have created plotting interfaces in the form of shell
scripts that operate from within Mentat. Currently, Mentat recognizes the following plotting formats:
• PostScript
• Xdump (translated in either PostScript or HPGL format)
This section describes a template shell script for each of the formats mentioned above. They are located in the bin
directory and are named as follows:
psgray1, psgray2, psgray3
pscolor1, pscolor2, pscolor3
xdump1, xdump2, xdump3

PostScript
The PostScript function is activated by pressing either the Gray or Color Print button from the UTILS menu on the
POSTSCRIPT panel. The program captures the graphics portion of the screen into a file and sends this file to a
PostScript printer using the psgray or pscolor shell scripts located in the bin directory. In the example listed
below, the file is sent to a computer called ‘mars’ on the network. The lpr command with the -Psupt argument sends
the file to a PostScript printer known to the spooler as supt. After the file is sent, it is removed from disk automatically.
#!/bin/csh
rsh mars lpr -Psupt < $1
rm -f $1
The argument $1 is the filename handed to the shell by Mentat. If there is more than one printer on-line, the psgray
and pscolor shell scripts can be used to address these other printers.
Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces 22
Xdump

Xdump
The xwd command, widely available on many platforms, dumps an image of an X window into a specially formatted
dump file. This file can then be read by various other X utilities for redisplay, printing, editing, formatting, and
archiving. Its complementary xpr command takes the window dump file as input and formats its output for a particular
device, such as a PostScript or other color printer. Below is an example of a shell script that uses xwd, and, in
conjunction with xpr, sends the information to printer pjetxl. See the man pages on your system for more details.
#!/bin/csh
xwd | xpr -device pjetxl -scale 2 | /etc/aprint -Abatphone2 -L25

Edit
The edit_window shell script is used to control the editor associated with the EDIT commands. It is possible to change
the type of editor, for example, from vi to emacs or change the type of windowing environment.

System Shell
The system_window shell script is used to control the type of window opened with the system_shell command. It
is possible to change the type of window.

Parallel Render
The marc_render shell script can be modified such that the photorealistic rendering is performed across multiple
CPUs. The parameter nbands is used to specify the number of CPUs.

MPEG Playback
The mpeg_window shell script is used to control the program opened with the play_mpeg command.
23 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm


FLEXlm is the network based licensing product from Flexera Software used in MSC products.
FLEXlm on-line documentation is available from Flexera, see the URL
http://support.flexerasoftware.com/doc/

Note: The above URL is not an MSC Software Corporation site, and MSC has no control over the site’s content.
MSC cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information on this site and will not be liable for any
misleading or incorrect information obtained from this site.

FLEXlm License File


The license file, license.dat, should normally be placed in the /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses
directory once you receive your licenses from MSC Software. Everyone should have read permission to the file.
The file can be located elsewhere as long as the environmental variable MSC_LICENSE_FILE points to it.
Two lines of the license file contains installation specific information:
SERVER this_host 0022192361f 1700
DAEMON MSC /your_path/msc
Here “this_host” should be set to the hostname of the machine where the license server is running. “your_path” should
be set to the full path to the msc program, by default located in /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/flexlm/<platform>
where <platform> is the name of the platform of the license server.

FLEXlm License Manager


For the 2015 version, the FLEXlm License Manager must be at version 11.9 or higher.
The license manager must be running on the license server machine.
The license manager is started with (assuming default installation location)
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmgrd -c /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat
-l /msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/lmgrd.log

Environment Variables
The environment variable MSC_LICENSE_FILE is used to specify the full path to the license.dat file, and is a
colon separated list of file pathnames. An example setting of MSC_LICENSE_FILE is:
MSC_LICENSE_FILE=/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat:/home/joe/license.dat
The environment variable MSC_AUTHQUE is used to specify the number of minutes a program will wait for a license
after it has been requested. If the license request cannot immediately be honored, the request will be queued and the
variable defines how long it should wait in this queue. The variable must be set in your environment before Marc and
Mentat are started. The default value is 5 minutes.
Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm 24
Machine hostid

It may be set as follows in a Bourne shell:


MSC_AUTHQUE=20
export MSC_AUTHQUE
In a C shell, it may be set as:
setenv MSC_AUTHQUE 20

Machine hostid
For a nodelocked license it is necessary to obtain a FLEXlm hostid for the machine running Marc and Mentat. This is
done by running the command
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/bin/lmhostid
25 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Appendix A:Sample Installation of Marc and Mentat


In this appendix, a sample installation is demonstrated of a single license installation for Linux 64-bit. It is assumed
that the licensing is already completed.

Step 1: mkdir /tmp/marc Create a temporary directory and download the product file to
Download the cd /tmp/marc that directory. Substitute the proper filename for <file>. Use
product and start gunzip <file>.gz gunzip to uncompress the file and extract the files using the
the install script tar xvf <file>.tar tar command.
./install.exe Start the install.exe script which will be in the current
directory.
Step 2: Welcome to the Marc installation script for Linux systems
Install the files on Enter a valid pathname to the directory to install the software
your system (<current directory>).
Enter the path /opt/marc
Marc Installation script for Linux systems
MSC Software Corporation
Main menu
1 ) Install Marc
2 ) Install Mentat
o) Options
? ) Help information
q ) Exit from the installation script
Select option 1 Selection: 1
Marc Installation The only options available MSC Software Corporation
will be those from the Marc 2015.0 Menu
product file. L1)Install for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7 (~1500 MB)

? ) Help information
r ) Return to previous menu

Select option L1 Selection [L1]: L1


You have selected Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7
Is this correct? [Y/n] y
Make your choice. Installing Marc 2015.0 for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7
Installing the script files to /opt/marc/install
Installing from /tmp/marc/products/al26emt0.k10
Appendix A: Sample Installation of Marc and Mentat 26

You may need to be root to Do you want to create links to the startup scripts [y/N] ? n
create the links. The current default MARC_MPI is set to intelmpi
You can use the default Do you want to change it to hpmpi [y/N] ? n
selection by just pressing
You can always change the defaults by editing the
the enter key.
run_marc_defaults file in the marc tools directory or use the
appropriate run_marc options.

Hit return to continue


Mentat The only options available MSC Software Corporation
Installation will be those from the Mentat 2015.0 Menu
product file. l1) Install for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7 (~1000 MB)

? ) Help information
r ) Return to previous menu

Select option l6 Selection [l1]: l1


You have selected Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7
Is this correct? [Y/n]: y
Installing Mentat 2015.0 for Linux 64-bit RHEL 5.7
Installing the script files to /opt/marc/install
Do you want to replace /opt/marc/flexlm/linux?
[y/N] n
/opt/marc/flexlm/linux is not empty
No new flexlm files are installed
Installing from /tmp/marc/products/gl26emt0.k10
Enter the path to the Enter the pathname to the directory containing the solver:
marc2015 directory. [/opt/marc/marc2015]
You can use the default Hit return to continue
selection by just pressing
submit1 script adjusted
the enter key.
submit2 script adjusted
submit3 script adjusted
Make your choice Do you want to create links to the startup scripts [y/N] ? n
Hit return to continue
Step 3: Return to main menu r) Return to previous menu
27 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Step 4: Run the installation executable for security. Install and run
Install Security lmtools to obtain a hostid. Send this information to MSC
Software and put the obtained license file in
/msc/MSC.Licensing/11.9/licenses/license.dat
Step 5: mkdir Enter the directory used to install Marc and Mentat:
/tmp/documentation
Installing the /opt/marc
documentation cd
/tmp/documentation
gunzip <file>.gz
tar xvf <file>.tar
./install_doc.exe

Enter the path


Appendix B: Troubleshooting 28

Appendix B:Troubleshooting
Cannot create • You have no write permission in the parent directory. Change with chmod.
Security failed Marc or Mentat was unable to obtain a license from the FLEXlm licensing software. In this case,
Marc or Mentat will exit. The possible causes for this are:
• The FLEXlm license manager is not running. See chapter 2 and 8 for information on how to
run the license manager.
• You are attempting to run on a machine that according to the license file you are not allowed
to use.
• Your license period has expired. Check the date on your machine.
• For counted licenses, currently running too many Marc jobs. Try later. If the limit has not
been exceeded, try restarting the license manager, lmgrd, and the vendor daemon MSC. Make
sure no other Marc jobs are running.
• If you have just modified the license.dat file, the lmgrd and MSC daemons may not have
been restarted. Run the lmreread utility as follows:
lmreread -c “parent”/msc/MSC.Licensing/licenses/license.dat
• If you get the FLEXlm error:
Invalid (inconsistent) license key (-8,130:2) No such file
or directory
it may be implying that the hostid value specified on the SERVER line are inconsistent with
the passwords. Check the values and restart the license manager.
• If you get the FLEXlm error:
Cannot connect to license server (-15,12:146)
and you are using a server license, the license manager (lmgrd) may not be running on the
license server, or the USE_SERVER line in your client side license.dat file is incorrect.
Also make sure that the TCP/IP port numbers used on the SERVER line are the same on both
the client and the server.
• If you get the FLEXlm error:
No such feature exists (-5,147)
and your license is limited to certain systems, you may be trying to run on a system that is not
licensed for use. Check that the lmhostid of the system you are trying to use and that on your
marc2015 (FEATURE MARC) license is the same.
29 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Link failed in • Your user subroutine causes compiler errors.


Marc
• You have no Fortran compiler.
• Fortran libraries not available.
• Check the variable syslibs in the file include in the marc installation subdirectory
tools. It references special system libraries in /usr/lib which may not exist on your
system.
Testing Marc • If you are using install.exe to test Marc installation and the Test and maintain installation
Installation fail does not respond, remove exec tcsh from your .cshrc and restart installation testing.
Mentat cannot • Make sure Mentat has X server access to your display device. The command: xhost +
open the display allows Mentat to run on a remote screen. This command must be issued while logged onto the
computer that owns the remote screen.
• If you are using a terminal other than the default screen belonging to the machine, you may
have to set the X-window output device:
C-shell: setenv DISPLAY your_terminal_name:0.0
Bourne shell: DISPLAY=your_terminal_name:0.0 export DISPLAY
Mentat runs OK, • This may happen when the model you are working on becomes very large. Mentat requires a
then aborts considerable amount of memory to store the model. We advise that a minimum of 128 MB
core memory is available in your machine.
• You can save memory by switching UNDO off in the SPEED menu.
Appendix B: Troubleshooting 30

You are • In Marc 2015.0, on Linux the default MPI version is IntelMPI. This MPI version requires that
prompted for a the ssh command has been set up such that it does not prompt for a password. Here is a
password when description on how to set this up.
running parallel
jobs • Make sure there is a directory called .ssh in the home directory (note that in this home
directory only you must have write access):
cd $HOME
ls .ssh
• If it does not exist, create it:
mkdir .ssh
chmod 700 .ssh
cd .ssh
• Execute the command
ssh-keygen -t rsa -f id_rsa -P ''
• Please note that it is -P followed by two single quotes. This will create two files: id_rsa
and id_rsa.pub. Copy id_rsa into a file called identity:
cp id_rsa identity
• Append id_rsa.pub to a file called authorized_keys
cat id_rsa.pub >> authorized_keys
chmod 600 authorized_keys
• The directory $HOME/.ssh should now contain the four files id_rsa, id_rsa.pub,
identity and authorized_keys (and possibly more files).
If all went well it should now be possible to do:
ssh thishost
with thishost replaced by the hostname of the current machine, without getting a prompt
for the password. After this it should be possible to run a parallel job without having to
provide a password.
In order to be able to connect to other Linux machines without being prompted for a
password (for example for running parallel network jobs), use the following steps:
• Copy the file id_rsa.pub that was created above to the other machine. Make sure it has a
directory $HOME/.ssh. Append the file id_rsa.pub to the files
$HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys and $HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys2 and give them
the appropriate permission:
cat id_rsa.pub >> $HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys
cat id_rsa.pub >> $HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys2
chmod 600 $HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys $HOME/.ssh/authorized_keys2
chmod 700 $HOME/.ssh
• The first time you login with ssh to the second system you will get a warning and asked if you
want to continue. Type yes to accept and the remote host will be added to the file
$HOME/.ssh/known_hosts and the next time you will not be prompted.
31 Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Appendix C:Marc/Mentat Files and Subdirectories


The Marc version you have received contains a full set of subdirectories listed below. You can save disk space by
removing the example subsets that you do not need.
Table 4 Contents of the Marc installation
Basic set: Contents: required as minimum
bin executable Marc programs
tools shell scripts to run and maintain the Marc programs
AF_flowmat material data for database
doc Installation Guide, Release Guide and Volumes A-E
installed from the documentation package
installed in this directory if Mentat is not installed
Extended set: Contents: only for use with user subroutines
common insert files containing Marc common blocks
lib binary libraries with the compiled Marc routines
lib_shared system dependent shared libaries.
user templates for all available Marc user subroutines
Examples: Contents: example files
demo input files and user subroutines for the Marc Volume E: Demonstration Problems
demo_ddm input files and user subroutines for the single parallel machine as well as the network parallel
version of Marc
demo_table input files and user subroutines for the Marc Volume E: Demonstration Problems based upon
Table driven input format.
test_ddm one, two, and four processor test examples for installation testing of the single parallel machine
as well as the network parallel version
Utilities: Contents:
pldump13 source routines for the post-file conversion program pldump
pldump2000 source routines for the post-file conversion program pldump2000
hpmpi, MPI libraries for network parallel version
intelmpi
Appendix C: Marc/Mentat Files and Subdirectories 32

The Mentat version you have received contains a full set of subdirectories listed below. You can save disk space by
removing the example subset.
Table 5 Contents of the Mentat directory unloaded from installation package
Basic set: Contents: required as minimum
bin shell scripts and programs for Mentat
help Mentat online help files
materials Mentat material files
materials_pre2010 Old Mentat material files
menus Mentat menu files
doc Installation Guide, Release Guide and Marc Volumes A-E
shlib Shared libraries
Extended set: Contents: example Mentat procedure files
examples sample Mentat procedure files
Marc Parallel Network for
Linux Installation and
Operations Guide
34
Table of Contents

Table of Contents
Part 1 General Information

Part 2 Installation Notes

Part 3 User Notes

Introduction
The current document is divided into three parts:
Part I Provides the general description about the hardware and software requirements and
definitions.
Part II Provides a step-by-step approach to installation of the network version.
Part III Provides miscellaneous information about executing a parallel job over a network and use
of user subroutines.
The list of supported capabilities in parallel can be found in Chapter 13 of Marc Volume A, Theory and User
Information.
35 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Part 1 General Information


Hardware and Software Requirements
If your cluster requires a password to perform ssh or rsh between nodes, you may need to enter your password every
time you are running a parallel job. You can disable the password requirement in the use of ssh or rsh. Please consult
your system administrator. Although no specific hardware requirements exist for Marc to run in network mode, it is
preferable to have fast network connections between the machines. It is recommended that the network should have a
speed of at least 1 GBit per second. If only two machines are to be used, a hub or a cross-over cable can be used to
connect them. If more than two machines are to be used, a switch is preferable. TCP/IP is used for communications.

Compatibility
All machines used in a network run must be compatible. That is, they must use the same Marc version.

Definitions
1. Root machine:
The machine on which the Marc job is started.
2. Remote machine:
Any machine other than the root machine which is part of a distributed Marc run on the network.
3. Shared installation:
Marc is installed in an NFS shared directory on one machine only. Other machines can access the Marc
executable since the directory is shared.
4. Distributed installation:
Marc is installed on all machines. Each machine accesses its own Marc executable.
5. Distributed execution:
Marc is run on multiple machines which are connected with a network. Each machine loads the Marc
executable either from a shared or a local directory and then executes the executable.
6. Shared I/O:
Marc reads and writes data in an NFS shared directory. Each Marc executable running on the network
reads/writes to the same directory.
7. Distributed I/O:
Marc reads and writes data in a directory located on each machine. The user must make the input available in
each directory and collect the results files after the analysis.
8. NFS – Network File System.
36
Network Configuration

Network Configuration
Marc only needs to be installed on the root machine where the installation directory is shared via NFS (shared
installation). Please note that if HPMPI or Intel MPI is used the installation directory must be available with the same
path for every machine. Marc can also be installed on the remote machines which then use their own executable
(distributed installation), but the name of the path must be the same. The root machine is the one on which the Marc
job is started, typically from within Mentat. The remote machines can be located anywhere as long as they are
connected to the network. The working directory on each machine can be a shared directory on any machine on the
network (shared I/O) or it can be a local directory on the hard disk of each machine in the analysis (distributed I/O).
The User Notes describes how to specify what working directory to use.
root machine remote machines

network

Figure 1 Network Configuration


37 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Part 2 Installation Notes


This part describes the specific steps needed to install and set up a network version of Marc. For general information
on Marc installation, see Marc and Mentat for Linux Installation and Operations Guide.
Install Marc on the root machine and, if needed, on the remote machines. Marc only needs to be installed on the root
machine. However, if Marc is to be used on the remote machines as well, it can also be installed there. There is nothing
special that needs to be done related to the installation itself for the network version. For HPMPI and Intel MPI the
installation directory must be available with the same path on every machine, regardless of if the installation is local
or if it uses a shared directory.
In order to run parallel jobs on machines connected over the network, it has to be set up properly. If any of the remote
hosts does not have Marc installed, the installation directory on the root machine needs to be shared using NFS or some
other mechanism so that the Marc version is available from the remote machines. Users need to be able to connect
between the machines using rlogin or ssh without having to provide a password. It is possible to define if rsh/rcp
or ssh/rsh or similar command is to be used. This is done by modifying the variables RCP and RSH in the include file
for the platform used.
Assume the following, there are two machines with hostnames host1 and host2 that are to be used in a parallel job over
the network. Marc has been installed on host1 and the job is to be started from this machine. A hypothetical naming
convention is used for shared directories where a directory name on any machine starts with /nfs/hostname, where
hostname is the name of the machine on which the directory is located.
First, test the installation for single processor execution. Change directory to the test_ddm subdirectory of the Marc
installation directory on host1. Then do
cd exmpl2/exmpl2_1
marc -j cyl2 -b no -v no
and Marc should exit in about three minutes if it is a successful run. Here we assume that the command “marc” points
to the current Marc version.
Then test the Marc installation for multi-processor execution. Do
cd ../exmpl2_2
and edit the file hostfile in this directory by replacing workdir with
/nfs/host1/marcinstall/test_ddm/examp2/exmpl2_2
and installdir with
/nfs/host1/marcinstall.
For HPMPI and Intel MPI delete installdir (so only use three columns in the host file).
The host names and directory names should, of course, be replaced with the names on the current system. Finally, type:
marc -j cyl2 -b no -v no -nprocd 2 -host hostfile
and Marc should exit in about two minutes if it is a successful, parallel run on host1 and host2 using one processor on
each.
38
How to run a network job

Part 3 User Notes


This section assumes that the network version of Marc has been successfully installed on at least one of two machines
that are to be used in a distributed analysis and that the appropriate Marc licenses are in order. Assume that host1 is
the host name of the machine on which Mentat is running and from which the job is to be started (the root machine).
The host name of the other machine (the remote machine) is host2.

How to run a network job


First, make sure that the two machines are properly connected. From host1, access host2 with
rlogin host2
or
ssh host2
If a password needs to be provided to do the remote login, this has to be taken care of. If the rlogin or ssh is not
possible without providing a password, a network run will not be possible. See Troubleshooting in this case.
In order to perform an analysis over a network, a specific file called host file needs to be created by the user. This file
defines which machines are to be used, how many processes are to run on each, what working directory should be
used, and where the Marc executable can be found on each machine. The host file can be selected and edited in Mentat
and the Marc job started as usual from within Mentat (see the example below). If Marc is run from the command line,
it is done as for a serial run using an additional command line option. For example:
marc -v no -b no -jid test -nprocd 2 -host hostfile1
will run the two-processor job test.dat using the specification in the file hostfile1. No specific name or extension
is used for the host file except that the name jobid.host (in this example test.host) must be avoided since it is used
internally by Marc.

Specification of the host file


The host file has the following general format:
host1 n1
host2 n2 workdir2 installdir2
host3 n3 workdir3 installdir3
Each line must start at column 1 (no initial blanks). Blank lines and lines beginning with a # (number symbol) are
ignored. The fourth column with installdir should not be used with HPMPI or Intel MPI.
The first entry is the host name of a machine to be used in the analysis. The root machine must be listed first and each
machine must only occur once.
The second entry specifies the number of processes to run on the machine specified in the first entry. The sum of the
number of processes given in the host file must equal the number of domains used. In a five-domain job, it is required
that n1+n2+n3=5.
The third entry specifies the working directory to use on this host. This is where the I/O for this host takes place. The
Marc input files for this machine must be in this directory and the results files for this machine are created in this
directory.
39 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

The fourth entry specifies where the Marc installation directory that this host should use is located. This entry can be
omitted if the name of the Marc installation directory is the same on all machines (which could be a shared directory
on host1 with the same name from host2 and host3). This is a requirement for HPMPI and Intel MPI so this entry
should here be omitted.
The directories in the third and fourth entries will be used from the respective host. To check the correctness of the
host file specification, log in to the respective machine and list the directories as specified in the host file. For the host
file given above, do:
ssh host2
ls workdir2
ls installdir2
The second line should show the working directory to use on host2 and the third line the installation directory which
will be used by host2.
The different domains of the Marc job are associated with the different machines as follows. Suppose a five-domain
job test is run using a host file defined as
host1 2
host2 1 workdir2 installdir2
host3 2 workdir3 installdir3
with appropriate definitions of the third and fourth entries, see below. There will be six Marc input files associated
with this job: test.dat, 1test.dat, ..., 5test.dat. Domains 1 and 2 will be associated with host1, domain3
with host2 and domains 4 and 5 with host3.

Shared I/O
Suppose a job is to be run on host1 and host2. A shared directory on host1 is to be used for I/O and from host2 its name
is /nfs/host1/marc/workdir (assuming a hypothetical naming convention for shared directories which starts with
/nfs/hostname). The installation directory is assumed to have the same name on both machines. The host file for a two-
processor job would simply be
host1 1
host2 1 /nfs/host1/marc/workdir
To verify the workdir given, do rlogin host2 ; ls /nfs/host1/marc/workdir. The directory seen should be
the same one as the working directory on host1.

Distributed I/O
If the user wants to have the I/O to be local on host2, specify the host file as
host1 1
host2 1 /usr/people/marcuser
The I/O on host2 will now take place in the directory /usr/people/marcuser on the hard disk of host2. For this case, the
Marc input files are transferred to /usr/people/marcuser on host2 before the job is started, and the results files are
transferred back after the analysis for postprocessing. This transfer of files is done by Marc automatically.
It is also possible to use only two entries in the host file. This requires that both the working directory and the
installation directory have the same names on all machines.
40
Example

Example
The definitions for a network run with Mentat is demonstrated with a simple example. We assume the simplest case
where both the working directory and installation directories are shared.

Step 1
Enter the menu Help  Run a Demo... and select the example Contact With DDM. Select and confirm your two
domains as shown below.
.

Identify User Domains


41 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Step 2
Check the Use DDM option and enter the Network submenu.

Select Use DDM

Select Network

Run Marc using Submit (1)

Select the file my_host_file with the Host File button. Edit it by clicking the Edit button. The my_host_file places
one domains on host1 and one domain on host2 with the contents:
host1 1
host2 1 workdir installdir
Replace workdir and installdir with the full paths to the working and Marc installation directories, respectively.
Run Marc from within Mentat using the Submit (1) button. Upon completion of the analysis, the following should
appear on your screen:
42
Example

Step 3
Check your results. This can easily be done by clicking the Open Post File (Results Menu) button. A plot of the Total
Equivalent Plastic Strain in the final deformed configuration is shown below:
43 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide

Marc created a post file associated with each domain as well as a root post file associated with the job id. For the
previous model, 1model1_job1.t16 and 2model1_job1.t16 are the processor files, while model1_job1.t16
is the root file.
If the model is very large, it can be convenient to view only a portion of the model by selecting any one of the processor
post files, such as 2model1_job1.t16. This file contains only data associated with domain 2 as selected in the
domain decomposition menu under Step 1. As described in Step 2, this file was created by host2.

Shared vs. Distributed I/O


For jobs with very large post or restart files, it is usually more efficient to use distributed I/O. With distributed I/O, the
input files and the post files are located on the host’s local disks. Marc by default automatically transfers the input files
and the post files to and from the remote host if needed. It is possible to suppress this transferring with two buttons in
the Network settings in the JOBS menu in Mentat.
To run a job using distributed I/O, specify a local directory in the host file:
host1 2
host2 1 /usr/people/marcuser

Jobs with User Subroutine


User subroutines are fully supported in the network version.
The Fortran file with the subroutine is located in the working directory on the root machine. Marc automatically
creates the executable and makes it available on all remote hosts. There is no need to modify the host file if it is correct
for a job without a user subroutine.
If the working directory is shared for all remote hosts, the user subroutine is compiled on the root machine and the
executable is available in the shared working directory.
If a remote host is using a local working directory, the executable will be automatically copied over to the remote
machine using remote copy (rcp or scp). Marc automatically knows if a directory is shared or local.

Troubleshooting
Check that:
1. The network connection between the hosts is working by using the command ping host.
2. A remote login using the command rlogin can be done between the hosts without providing a password. If
not, contact your system administrator or check the man pages for rlogin and look for .rhosts.
3. The host names used in the hostfile are correct. It should be the same as the output from the command
hostname on the respective host.
4. The working and installation directories on the host file are correct. Log onto the remote host, change directory
to these directories to verify the host file content. The installation directory given should, among others, contain
the executable in the bin directory.
5. The input files for each host are available in the respective working directory. An error message is printed out
from Marc if they are not.
44
Troubleshooting

Error messages:
6. The error message “semget failed...” at job start-up means that the communication environment is not
clean. This can be checked with the Linux command ipcs. If entries belonging to specific users except root
show up, they may need to be removed. Run the script tools/mpiclean located in the Marc installation
directory.

Note: This will kill all parallel jobs currently running under the current user.
Only entries belonging to the current user are deleted.
45 Marc Parallel Network for Linux Installation and Operations Guide
Marc and Mentat for
Microsoft Windows
Installation and Operations
Guide
47 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Preface
This document describes the installation and usage of the Marc and Mentat programs on Microsoft Windows platforms
configured as shown in Table 6. The instructions given here require a basic knowledge of the machine on which you
are loading the Marc products, no attempt is made to teach the use of Microsoft Windows commands.
This document contains a section containing details about the installation procedure, a section concerning the usage
of the Marc and Mentat programs and a section about the license management utility.
Appendices include hints about troubleshooting.
If you encounter a problem during the installation, please contact the customer support staff at the nearest MSC
Software office.
Table 6 Requirements of Marc & Mentat Running on Microsoft Windows
Operating System Windows 7 or Windows 2012 Server.
CPU X86-64
Graphics Card SVGA or better running in at least 16 bit (64k) color mode
Hard Drive Minimum:
1500 MB Marc
1000 MB Mentat
800 MB documentation
DVD Drive Required for media based installation. Not required for electronic download installation.
Ethernet Card An ethernet card is required. Also, Microsoft TCP/IP Service must be installed.
Mouse Three button mouse is recommended
Memory Minimum 512 MB
Recommended 2 GB
Fortran Compiler A Fortran compiler is necessary if user subroutines are to be used. For other cases, no
compiler is needed. The compiler needs to be compatible with the one used in the Marc
build, see the Marc and Mentat Release Guide for a list of supported compilers.
Chapter 1: Read me first: Installation Prerequisites 48

Chapter 1: Read me first: Installation Prerequisites


Before installing the The product is available for download at the MSC Solutions Download Center available at
software https://mscsoftware.subscribenet.com
Select the product Marc & Marc Mentat and select the 2015 version on the next level.
Download the installer for your platform.
The FLEXlm security is installed separately. Select the product MSC Licensing FLEXlm
and the version 11.9 on the next level. Download the installer for your platform.
Decide where you want the product to be installed and where to perform the installation.
Marc requires approximately 1000 Mbytes of permanent disk storage capacity.
Mentat requires approximately 900 Mbytes of permanent disk storage capacity.
Documentation, stored in the separate documentation directories doc and examples,
contains approximately 800 Mbytes of data.
It is preferred to first install security, then Marc and/or Mentat and finally the documentation.
Password The Marc and Mentat version you have received is protected against illegal usage by means
protection of Flexera Software’s FLEXlm licensing software. You cannot run the program directly after
you have installed the product from the installation media until you obtain a license file from
MSC Software Corporation.
Should I be Normally, there is no need to be logged in as Administrator. However, you will need
Administrator ? administrator privileges since the system registry will be updated. Also, check that you have
read and write permissions to the installation directory.
Fortran compiler A Fortran compiler is necessary if user subroutines are to be used. For other cases, no
compiler is needed.

Note:
After you install the Fortran compiler, make sure that all users have their PATH and LIB
environment variable include the path to the Fortran compiler. Otherwise, using user
subroutines will not work properly.
See Appendix C: Troubleshooting for important information regarding requirements for the
Intel Fortran compiler.

Computer Name Your machine must have a computer name (host name). If no computer name is known,
supply one by using the Control Panel\Network applet to set the “Computer Name”. You
should also make sure the “Host Name” specified in the DNS tab of
Network\Protocols\TCP/IP Protocol is the same as the “Computer Name”.
Previous Versions If you have previous versions of Marc and/or Mentat installed, you may want to adjust your
PATH environment variable to remove the reference to the previous version.
49 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

NVIDIA driver An NVIDIA driver is necessary if the GPGPU capability is to be used on Windows 64-bit
machines. For other cases, no special driver is needed. The driver needs to be compatible
with the one used in the Marc build; see Marc Volume A: Theory and User Information,
Chapter 13 for the minimum driver version supported.
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure 50

Chapter 2: Installation Procedure


Step 1: Download FLEXlm from the Solutions Download
Security Center. Select the product MSC Licensing FLEXlm,
version 11.9.
Run the installation executable and follow the
installation instructions.
Default installation directory is
C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing\
11.9
Obtain a license file from MSC Software. If a
nodelocked license is to be used, then obtain
FLEXlm hostid with
c:\MSC.Software\MSC.licensing\11.9\lm
tools
Select the System Settings tab and click on Save
HOSTID Info to a File.
Copy the license file to the proper location. The
standard location is
C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing\11.9\li
censes\license.dat
Set the environmental variable
MSC_LICENSE_FILE to point to the license file.
The license server must be running in order to run
Marc and Mentat.
Previous versions of Marc and Mentat will run with
the latest FLEXlm version, so it is safe to upgrade
previous installations of FLEXlm.
Step 2: Start the installation from the product media The first screen will prompt you to set the location
Install Marc and obtained from the Solutions Download where you want the products installed. This path is
Mentat Center. the “parent” directory. It defaults to
Choose Destination Location: C:\MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0
Destination Folder: The directories marc2015 and mentat2015 will
be created in the directory that you specify.
C:\MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0 The default destination folder for Mentat is
C:\MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0
51 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Setup type You will then be presented with which Select the Complete option to install both Marc and
product options to install. Mentat.
Complete Select the Solver option to only install Marc, or
Solver select the Modeler option to only install Mentat.
Modeler
Program folder Select Program Folder: Select the folder that you wish to place the shortcut
Program Folder: to the Mentat startup script.
The default program folder name is
MSC.Software MSC.Software.
Specify license License: When you perform the Marc installation, it will ask
file for the location of a valid Marc license file.
C:\MSC Software\MSC.Licensing\11.6\license.dat
C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing\11.9\licenses\license.dat
Specify the location of your license file.

The last screen is the Setup Complete screen. It will


I would like to view the present you with an option to view the readme.txt
README file. file.
Click on the Finish button to leave Setup. Then
click on the X button in the lower left hand corner
of the main installation menu window or press the
escape button.
Step 3: Start the FLEXlm license manager. Select Start-> Programs-> MSC.Software->
Start the License You may also want to enable the license MSC.License 11.9-> FLEXlm Configuration Utility
Manager manager to run as a service and to start the to configure FLEXlm.
server at power-up by enabling these options Select the Config Services tab and verify that the
in the Config Services section. settings are correct; i.e., the “License File” is set
correctly. Then start the license manager from the
Start/Stop/Reread tab by pressing the Start Server
button.
Chapter 2: Installation Procedure 52

Step 4: Run Mentat by either selecting the Mentat Check the installation by running Mentat. You have
checking item in the program folder that you chose, or three methods you can use to run Mentat. You may
run it from the MS-DOS Command Prompt. use either the Mentat icon which is created on the
First check that the variable desktop, the link in the
MSC_LICENSE_FILE is set properly. MSC.Software\Marc 2015.0.0 program group, or
Use an MS-DOS Command Pompt window run it from an MS-DOS Command Prompt
and type: window.
set msc_license_file You must first check that the environment variable
If it is not correct, change it using the System MSC_LICENSE_FILE is set properly to the full
applet in the Control Panel. pathname of your valid license file. If it is not, the
product will fail due to licensing.
Then run the program using:
To run from the command prompt, cd to the
cd C:\MSC.Software\marc
cd 2015.0.0\mentat2015 \parent\mentat2015 directory, and enter the
bin\mentat command bin\mentat to start Mentat.
Check the Mentat program by running one of the
standard Marc demonstration examples as proof of
Run a Demo problem by selecting the menu
a successful installation. From the Help menu,
buttons:
select Run A Demo..., and then select the
Help
Thermal/Structural Contact demo. It will run for 50
Run A Demo... increments.
Thermal/Structural Contact
To check that user subroutines are working If you have a Fortran compiler, run a user
by running one of the standard user subroutine example using:
subroutine demo problems: run_marc -j e2x4 -user u2x4
cd C:\MSC.Software\marc
Marc should give a Marc Exit number 3004.
cd 2015.0.0\marc2015\demo
run_marc -j e2x4 -u u2x4
Step 5: If you will be using the Marc Parallel Network
for Network feature, you will need to setup MPI. This service is
Version only optionally installed on the system when you
installed Marc, however you will need to install it
on the remote machines. Follow the Marc Parallel
Network for Microsoft Windows Installation and
Operations Guide (Parts 1 and 2) for important
information on installing and running jobs with the
network version.
53 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Step 6: Start the installation from the product media To make optimal use of the documentation, it
Installing the obtained from the Solutions Download should be installed on a computer where also Marc
documentation Center. and Mentat are available. This way, documents can
Choose Destination Location: be accessed interactively from within Mentat, and
Marc example problems can be run.
Destination Folder:
One can install the documentation either before or
C:\MSC.Software\Marc_Documentation\2015.0 after installing Marc and Mentat. The
documentation installer will check if there is a
corresponding Marc and Mentat version installed,
where the Marc and Mentat installer will check if
there is a corresponding documentation version
installed, so that they can be linked together.
The installer will prompt the user to set the location
where the documentation needs to be installed.
This defaults to:
C:\MSC.Software\Marc_Documentation\
2015.0
The user now has the option of installing the
documentation to any other location. The
directories doc and examples will be created in
the directory specified by the user.
Chapter 3: Installation Procedure Information 54

Chapter 3: Installation Procedure Information


License file Two lines of the file license.dat need to be modified
“SERVER” line which specifies the system hostname
“DAEMON” line which specifies the daemon name and the path to the daemon program
The content is typically something like
SERVER this_host 0022192361f 1700
DAEMON MSC /your_path/msc
The string “this_host” should be replaced by the hostname of the machine where the license server
is running.
The string “your_path” should be replaced by the full path to the program “msc”. If the default
location is used for the security installation it should be
DAEMON MSC C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing11.9\msc

Start the program


c:\MSC.Software\msc.licensing\11.9\lmtools
Select the System Settings tab and click on Save HOSTID Info to a File.
The system identifier may also be found by running:
lmutil lmhostid
in the directory c:\MSC.Software\msc.licensing\11.9
hostid For a nodelocked license it is necessary to obtain a FLEXlm hostid for the machine running Marc
and Mentat. This is done as follows
Start the program
c:\MSC.Software\msc.licensing\11.9\lmtools
Select the System Settings tab and click on Save HOSTID Info to a File.
The system identifier may also be found by running:
lmutil lmhostid
in the directory c:\MSC.Software\msc.licensing\11.9.
Specify license You will be prompted to specify the path to your license file. It will default to the current setting
file of MSC_LICENSE_FILE. If it is not set, then it will attempt to use the license file specified for
FLEXlm License Manager version 11.9. If you do not already have your license file, you may
leave it blank, however you must set the MSC_LICENSE_FILE variable before attempting to run
any of the Marc products.

Note: This is an important step. The installation will set the variable MSC_LICENSE_FILE to
the setting that you enter. Failing to set it to a valid license file will result in a licensing
failure and you will have to edit the environment variable setting by using the System
applet in the Control Panel.
55 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

File types The installation will associate the file types .mfd, .mud, t16, .t19 and .proc to Mentat if they are
not already associated. If they are, as it would be in the case that you have a previous Mentat
installation, you will be asked if you wish to overwrite them.
If you answer YES, then they are set to the current version and the PATH environment variable is
updated with the current version specified first.
If you answer NO, then they are not modified and the PATH environment variable is updated with
the current version specified last.
Complete the Select the Finish button in Setup.
installation You may want to check the contents against the list supplied in Appendix A of this document.
Should any subdirectory be missing, please contact MSC Software customer support for further
details.
Starting the You must start the FLEXlm License Manager before attempting to run Marc or Mentat on the
License system that is assigned the license. To start the license manager, use the Start menu and select
Manager Programs->MSC.Software->MSC.Licensing 11.9->FLEXlm Configuration Utility.
Select the Config Services tab and verify that the settings are correct; i.e. the “License File” is set
to the proper license file. Then start the license manager from the Start/Stop/Reread tab by
pressing the Start Server button.

Note: If you already had the FLEXlm License Manager 11.9 installed, you should not need to
perform these steps.
You should specify the options “Use NT Services” and “Start Server at Power-Up” under
the Config Services tab. This will enable the license manager to start automatically at
boot time.
Chapter 4: Running Marc 56

Chapter 4: Running Marc


This section describes the Marc usage on Microsoft Windows based machines. The Marc programs are mainly
controlled by a batch script program called run_marc.bat which is stored in the parent subdirectory
marc2015\tools.
The batch script will submit a job and must be executed in the directory where all relevant input and output files
concerning the job are available. To use the batch script, each Marc job should have a unique name qualifier and all
Marc output files connected to that job will use this same qualifier.
Marc input files should always be named job_name.dat, whereby the prefix job_name is the name qualifier which
you are free to choose. The suffix .dat is obligatory.
To actually submit a Marc job from an MS-DOS Command Prompt window, the following command should be used.
The single input line is split over multiple lines for clarity:
run_marc -jid job_name (required as minimum)
-rid restart file name
-pid post file name
-sid substructure file name
-prog name of a previously saved user executable
-user user subroutine name
-save save user executable
-back run in background
-vf view factor file name
-def defaults file name
-nprocd number of domains
-nprocds number of domains in Single Input File mode
-nts number of threads for parallel matrix solver (same as
-nthread_solver or -nthread or -nt)
-nte number of threads for element assembly and stress recovery
(same as -nthread_elem)
-nsolver number of matrix solver tasks
-mo integer mode
-mpi mpi version
-dir directory where job I/O takes place
-sdir directory where the scratch files are located
-host host file name; used for distributed execution in a network
-ci copy input files to remote machines in a network
-cr copy post files back from remote machines in a network
-ml memory limit in Megabytes
-gpuid GPU card ID or auto keyword
Table 7 describes the meaning of these input options and Table 8 gives examples.
57 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Table 7 run_marc Input Options


Keyword Options Description
-jid (-j) job_name Input file ( job) name identification.
-prog (-pr) progname Run saved executable progname.marc from a previous job
(see -user and -save).
-user (-u) user_name User subroutine user_name.f is used to generate a new executable
program called user_name.marc (see -save and -prog).
-save (-sa) no Do not save the new executable program user_name.marc.
yes Save the executable program user_name.marc for a future time (see -
prog and -user).
-rid -(r) restart_name Identification of previous job that created RESTART file.
-pid (-pi) post_name Identification of previous job that created the post file.
-sid (-si) substructure Identify the job that contains the solution to the external nodes of the
superelement.
-back (-b) yes Run Marc in the background.
no Run Marc in the foreground.
-ver (-v) yes Ask for confirmation of these input options before starting the job.
no Start the job immediately.
-def (-de) default_file File name containing user defined default data.
-nprocd (-np) number Number of domains for parallel processing.
-nprocds (-nps) number Number of domains for parallel processing using a Single Input File.
-nts (-nthread) number Number of threads per parallel matrix solver (8, 9, and 11).
-nte number Number of threads used for parallel matrix assembly and stress recovery.
-nsolver number Number of processes to use for the MUMPS parallel matrix solver (solver
12).
-dir directory_name Pathname to directory where the job I/O should take place.
Defaults to current directory.
-sdir directory_name Directory where scratch files are placed. Defaults to -dir.
-host (-ho) hostfile Specify the name of the host file for running over a network (default is
execution on one machine only in which case this option is not needed).
-ci yes Copy input files automatically to remote hosts for a network run,
if necessary.
no
-cr yes Copy post files automatically from remote hosts used for a network run,
if necessary.
no
*Default options are shown in bold.
Chapter 4: Running Marc 58

Table 7 run_marc Input Options (continued)


Keyword Options Description
-vf viewfactor_name Name of file containing viewfactors for radiation from previous analysis
or from Mentat using either the Monte Carlo or Hemicube method.
-mpi intelmpi Select which version of mpi will be used for Domain Decomposition or
msmpi the MUMPS solver. If not specified, the appropriate default shown below
hpmpi
hardware will be used:
Platform Default MPI Alternative MPI
Windows 64 intelmpi msmpi
Linux 64 hpmpi intelmpi
-ml memlimit Memory limit for deciding if the solver should go out-of-core. Specified
in Mbyte. Defaults to the physical amount of memory on the machine.
-gpuid <id:id:id> or auto GPU card number or auto for automatic selection by program. For
parallel (DDM) jobs, multiple card IDs can be specified if available.
*Default options are shown in bold.
59 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Table 8 Examples of Running Marc Jobs


Examples of running Marc jobs Description:
run_marc -jid e2x1 Runs the job e2x1, the input file e2x1.dat resides in the current
working directory.
run_marc -jid e2x14 -user u2x14 Runs the job e2x14, using the user subroutine u2x14.f and the input
-save yes file e2x14.dat. An executable program named u2x14.dat will be
saved after completion of the job.
run_marc -jid e2x14a -prog u2x14 Runs the job e2x14a using the executable produced by job e2x14.
run_marc -jid e3x2a Runs the job e3x2a.
run_marc -jid e3x2b -rid e3x2a Performs a restart job using the results of the previous job e3x2a.
run_marc -jid e2x1 -nprocd 2 Runs a two processor job on a single parallel machine.
run_marc -jid e2x1 -nprocd 2 -host Runs a two-processor job over a network. The hosts are specified in
hostfile the file hostfile (refer to the Marc Parallel Network for Microsoft
Windows Installation and Operations Guide for runs on a network of
machines.
Chapter 5: Running Mentat 60

Chapter 5: Running Mentat


This section describes the Mentat usage on Microsoft Windows machines. The Mentat program is started by a batch
script called mentat.bat which is stored in the parent\mentat2015\bin directory. It may also be started by using
the Marc Mentat 2015.0 menu item in the START menu in the MSC.Software folder or by selecting the Marc Mentat
2015.0 icon that the Setup program created on your desktop.
You do not need to start the batch script from a specific directory.
The Mentat program creates the default files in your current working directory; i.e. where you are located at the time
of starting the Mentat program (if run from the command line), or the “Start in” directory specified for the shortcut if
started from the Marc Mentat 2015.0 icon.
The batch script mentat.bat contains a number of arguments which are passed on to the Mentat program. Table 9 gives
the meaning of these input options. You are free to alter these commands to suit your preference.

Table 9 Mentat Input Options


Keyword Option Description
-bg This option will run Mentat in the background.
-bp DIR\bin Directory path name where the external Mentat programs and shell
scripts are located.
-compile binary_menu_filename This is used to compile ASCII menu files into a binary menu file.
The -mf option would be used to specify the new binary file.
To recompile the default binary menu file main.msb, compile as:
bin\mentat -compile menus\win64\main.msb
-dr True/False Enable/disable direct rendering. Enabling this option will make
OpenGL bypass the underlying window system and render directly
from hardware to the screen, if this is supported by the system. The
default is True.
-fn font Default font type.
-fngr font Font used by the graphics windows (overrules the font selected via
the -fn option).
-fnme font Font used by the menus (overrules the font selected via the -fn
option).
-gradient This option switches on a gradient background when displaying the
various windows (Model, Table, History Plot, etc.).
-help All of the options.
-hide_dialog Hide the dialog window at startup.
-hide_dynamic_menu Hide the dynamic window at startup.
-hide_main_menu Hide the main window at startup.
-hp DIR\help Directory path name where the help files are located.
-lf filename Specify the Mentat log file name.
61 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Table 9 Mentat Input Options (continued)


Keyword Option Description
-mf main.ms The name of the startup menu file.
-ml DIR\material Directory path name where the material files are located.
-mp DIR\menus Directory path name where the menu files are located.
-nosolidmodeling Utilize the Mentat_Parasolid_CAD which allows geometric
models to be imported but does not allow solid geometry editing.
-path directory_name Provides a directory in which Mentat searches when opening an
existing input file. Multiple directories can be specified as follows:
-path directory_1 -path directory_2 etc.
-pr filename Any additional set-up commands you wish to add. Store these in a
procedure file containing the Mentat commands.
-ra This reads all of the ASCII Menu files.
-rf filename Record the Mentat commands in the procedure file filename.
-szgr width height Set the size (width and height in pixels) of the graphics area.
-ti title Append title to the name of the window.
Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs 62
Modifying the MPI Setting: selecting MPI version

Chapter 6: Making Changes to the Marc Programs


Modifying the MPI Setting: selecting MPI version
The MPI version used by default is defined in the table below. It also lists an alternative MPI version to use for the
respective platform. The default MPI version to use can be set by creating a run_marc_defaults file (see next
section) and enter:
MARC_MPI alternative_mpi
for setting a new default. Use the exact word as given in then Alterative MPI colum. The MPI version can also be set
with the command line option -mpi to run_marc. The command line option overrides the value set in
run_marc_defaults.

Platform Default MPI Alternative MPI


Windows 64 intelmpi msmpi

Setting defaults with the run_marc_defaults file


A file called run_marc_defaults located in the user’s home directory (as given by the combined environment
variables %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPATH%) or the tools directory of the Marc installation can be used for setting
program defaults. If both are present, then the setting in the user’s home directory will be used.
The following setting is currently available:

MARC_MPI as given in the table above


This selects the MPI version to use.
63 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces


Mentat External Programs
Mentat supports a number of CAD interfaces: IGES, Patran, Ideas, VDA. These interfaces are programmed in external
programs which are called from within Mentat. The interface programs are run from scripts stored in the parent
subdirectory mentat2015\bin. These programs read the data files in their native format and translate the contents
into a Mentat model file. This file is subsequently read by Mentat. The external programs are called from within
Mentat by means of the FILE submenu.

Jobs
The subdirectory bin contains batch script files to start a Marc job using the following batch scripts:
submit1.bat, submit2.bat, submit3.bat
These batch scripts are called by means of the buttons in the job menu. You may alter these files to suit your
environment.

Plotter Interface
Because of the many variations in plotting environments, we have created plotting interfaces in the form of batch
scripts that operate from within Mentat. Currently, Mentat recognizes the following plotting formats:
• PostScript
• WinDump (translated into Windows bitmap (.BMP) format)
This section describes a template batch script for each of the formats mentioned above. They are located in the
mentat2015\bin directory and are named as follows:
pscolor1.bat, pscolor2.bat, pscolor3.bat
psgray1.bat, psgray2.bat, psgray3.bat
xdump1.bat, xdump2.bat, xdump3.bat

PostScript
The PostScript function is activated by pressing the Gray or Color Print button from the UTILS menu on the
POSTSCRIPT panel. The program captures the graphics portion of the screen into a file and sends this file to a
PostScript printer using the psgray or pscolor batch scripts located in the mentat2015\bin directory. In the example
listed below, the file is sent to the printer LPT1. This can be a printer attached locally, or located somewhere on the
network. After the file is sent, it is removed from disk automatically.
print /D:LPT1: %1
del %1
The argument %1 is the filename handed to the batch script by Mentat. If there is more than one printer on-line, the
pscolor2.bat and pcolor3.bat batch scripts may be used to address these other printers.
You can use the setup_printer program to configure a network printer. Run setup_printer for more details.
Chapter 7: Mentat Interfaces 64
Edit

Edit
The edit_window.bat batch script is used to control the editor associated with the EDIT commands. It is possible to
change the type of editor, for example, from notepad to emacs.

System Shell
The system_window.bat batch script is used to control the type of window opened with the system_shell command.

AVI Playback
The avi_window.bat batch script is used to control the program opened with the play_avi command.

MPEG Playback
The mpeg_window.bat batch script is used to control the program opened with the play_mpeg command.
65 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm


FLEXlm License File
The license file, license.dat, should normally be placed in the
C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing\11.9\licenses directory once you receive your licenses from MSC
Software. The file can be located elsewhere as long as the environmental variable MSC_LICENSE_FILE points
to it.
Two lines of the license file contains installation specific information:
SERVER this_host 0022192361f 1700
DAEMON MSC /your_path/msc
Here “this_host” should be set to the hostname of the machine where the license server is running. “your_path” should
be set to the full path to the msc program, by default located in C:\MSC.Software\MSC.Licensing\11.9

FLEXlm License Manager


When you install Marc or Mentat, the FLEXlm License Manager is installed in the msc.licensing\11.9 directory. Once
lmgrd.exe is running, it will read the license file license.dat which is located in the msc.licensing\11.9 directory. The
license file contains the Marc and Mentat license (and other MSC Software product licenses, if necessary). In addition,
lmgrd.exe will also start the MSC Software vendor daemon MSC.exe. The path to MSC.exe is specified in the license
file on the DAEMON line. These processes must be running on the license server for the MSC Software security
system to obtain a license. The only exception to this is for a “zero count” license. If the number of licenses for a
feature (the number following the expiration date) is 0, then neither lmgrd.exe or MSC.exe are used. The license
manager is only used to keep track of licenses that are checked in/out.
Marc contacts these daemons at regular intervals. If no contact is made after a specified time period, Marc
terminates execution.
For the 2015 version, the FLEXlm License Manager must be at version 11.9 or higher.
You must start the FLEXlm License Manager before attempting to run Marc or Mentat on the system that is assigned
the license. To start the license manager, use the Start menu and select Programs->MSC.Software->MSC.Licensing
11.9->FLEXlm Configuration Utility.
Select the Config Services tab and verify that the settings are correct; i.e. the “License File” is set to the proper license
file. Then start the license manager from the Start/Stop/Reread tab by pressing the Start Server button.

Environment Variables
The environment variable MSC_LICENSE_FILE is used to specify the license.dat file. This environment variable
can be set using the System applet in the Control Panel, and is a semicolon separated list of file pathnames or hosts.
The default setting will be c:\MSC.Software\msc.licensing\11.9\license.dat. When Marc executes, it checks
the list of license files specified by this environment variable. You may have it point to a license server using the syntax
port@host, as follows:
Variable: MSC_LICENSE_FILE
Value: 10620@myserver
Chapter 8: Managing FLEXlm 66
Client/Server Licensing

If you have other products that use FLEXlm and they are required to be available when Marc is running (such as a
Fortran compiler license), then you should modify the MSC_LICENSE_FILE setting to point to the proper license file
for that product.
You may instead want to combine the licenses into one file.
The environment variable MSC_AUTHQUE is used to specify the number of minutes a program will wait for a license
after it has been requested. If the license request cannot immediately be honored, the request will be queued and the
variable defines how long it should wait in this queue. The variable must be set in your environment before Marc and
Mentat are started. The default value is 5 minutes. It may be set as follows:
set MSC_AUTHQUE=20

Client/Server Licensing
The default installation assumes that the system in which Marc is installed will function as the license server. The term
license server only refers to the fact that lmgrd and MSC will be running on that system, and will maintain the state of
available licenses. Even if you have purchased a nodelocked license, the nodelocked system will function as the
license server for that license. A nodelocked license can be distinguished from a floating license by the string
HOSTID=xxx specified in the feature line.
67 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Chapter 9: Configuring the Marc DCOM Server


Specifying the Logon User
The Marc DCOM Server allows you to run jobs on a remote Microsoft Windows machine without actually being
logged into it. Unlike Marc Parallel, it will only run a single CPU job.
When you install Marc, the installation will initially setup the Marc DCOM Server. The server must be setup on both
the client and the server machine. The user must specify a login user for the Marc DCOM Server using dcomcnfg
before attempting to run a job remotely.
To run dcomcnfg, open up a console window and type dcomcnfg at the prompt, or select the Start  Run... menu
(this can also be entered by pressing the Windows logo key + r), enter dcomcnfg and press OK. A Window similar to
that shown in Figure 2 will appear.

Figure 2 Component Services window

Select the Component Services/Computers/My Computer/DCOM Config option, and scroll down to the Marc DCOM
Server item. Right click it and select Properties.
Select the Properties button for the Marc DCOM Server. A new window will appear showing the various properties.
This is illustrated in Figure 3. The Local Path depends on the destination folder chosen during the installation
procedure.
The only property that needs adjusting is the Identity property. Select the Identity tab. Dcomcnfg will then display the
identity view as shown in Figure 4.
Chapter 9: Configuring the Marc DCOM Server 68
Specifying the Logon User

Figure 3 Dcomcnfg Displaying the Properties of the Marc DCOM Server

In the Identity tab, select This user, and specify a user that has access rights to this machine. Select Apply, and then
OK to close the window. Then select OK in the main view.

Figure 4 Dcomcnfg Displaying the Identity Properties of the Marc DCOM Server
69 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

The data files must be located in a shared directory. This is required so that the two machines can access the files. If
the file is not located in a shared directory, Marc will issue an error message specifying that the file is not located in a
shared directory. To share a disk or a directory, select My Computer from the desktop and select the disk or browse to
the directory. Then select the disk or the directory by using the right mouse button, and select Sharing. In the Sharing
view, select the Share this folder button and enter a name for the share.

Testing the installation


You should first test the Marc DCOM Server on the server machine, and then test it on a client machine. First, copy a
Marc data file to a shared directory. The file must be in a shared directory even if the job is to be run locally using the
Marc DCOM Server. The data file <parent>\marc2015\demo\e2x1.dat will suffice. Run the job from any
command prompt window using the -pc option:
<parent>\marc2015\tools\run_marc -pc <servername> -j e2x1
If it succeeds, then perform the same test on a client machine. If a failure occurs, see the section on the following page
on Troubleshooting. Again, make sure the data file resides in a shared directory. When running the job, you may also
use the UNC name in the path. If it is not specified, Marc will determine the UNC path and send it to the server.

Mentat Support
Running the job remotely may also be done within Mentat, however the menu is not displayed by default. You must
first rebuild the menu file using:
cd <parent>\mentat2015
bin\mentat -compile menus\win64\main.msb -df DCOM
In the Jobs  Run  Advanced Job Submission menu, there now is an option named DCOM as shown in Figure 5.
Select this DCOM option and in the adjacent text area specify the name of the remote machine.

Figure 5 Advanced Job Submission Menu Displaying the DCOM Option


Chapter 9: Configuring the Marc DCOM Server 70
Troubleshooting

Troubleshooting
In the case of an error, try some of the following suggestions:
• Check that your user ID is valid on both the server and the client machines.
• Check that the user ID has read and write access to the directory where the job is to be run.
• Check that the directory that the data file resides in is a shared directory. Note that for Windows Server, you
must also specify the user permissions using the /GRANT option for the net share command or by clicking the
Permissions button under the Sharing tab in Explorer.
• Run the run_marc script using the -it option to print out debugging information. This will print out exactly
what is being sent to the server:
<parent>\marc2015\tools\run_marc -pc <servername> -j e2x1 -it 0
The path name displayed in the debug output should be displayed as a proper UNC name. If not, verify that the
directory is shared.
71 Marc and Marc Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Appendix A: Marc Subdirectories


The Marc version you have received contains a full set of subdirectories listed below. You can save disk space by
removing the example subsets that you do not need.

Table 10 Contents of the Marc installation


Basic set: Contents: required as minimum
bin executable Marc programs
tools batch scripts to run and maintain the Marc programs
AF_flowmat material data for database
doc Installation Guide, Release Guide, and Marc Volumes A-E installed in this directory if Mentat
is not installed
xdr_lib machine dependent libraries
lib_shared machine dependent libraries
Extended set: Contents: only for use with user subroutines
lib binary libraries with the compiled Marc routines
common insert files containing Marc common blocks
user templates for all available Marc user subroutines
Examples: Contents: example files
demo input files and user subroutines for the Marc Volume E: Demonstration Problems
demo_ddm input files and user subroutines for the single parallel machine as well as the network parallel
version of Marc
demo_table input files and user subroutines for Marc Volume E: Demonstration Problems based upon Table
driven input format
test_ddm one, two, and four processor test examples for installation testing of the single parallel machine
as well as the network parallel version
Utilities: Contents:
pldump13 source routines for the post-file conversion program pldump
pldump2000 source routines for the post-file conversion program pldump2000
intelmpi, msmpi MPI libraries for network parallel version
intelmkl Intel MKL libraries
Appendix B: Mentat Files and Subdirectories 72

Appendix B: Mentat Files and Subdirectories


The Mentat version you have received contains a full set of subdirectories listed below. You can save disk space by
removing the subsets that you do not need.

Table 11 Contents of the Mentat Directory


Basic set: Contents: required as minimum
bin batch scripts and programs for Mentat
help Mentat online help files
materials Mentat material files
materials_pre2010 old format Mentat material files
menus Mentat menu files
doc Installation Guide, Release Guide, Menu Guide and Marc Volumes A-E
shlib Shared libraries
Extended set: Contents: example Mentat procedure files
examples sample Mentat procedure files
73 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Appendix C: Troubleshooting
Access is denied This type of problem is caused by not having write permissions to the file or directories to which
you are installing.
To correct this problem, open up an MS-DOS Command Prompt window, cd to the directory in
which you are installing Marc, and run the attrib program to remove the read-only attributes
(with the -R option).
You may also use the File Manager’s Security menu to change Ownership of files and
directories, and to change Permissions on them.
Error during This problem is caused by having an application or a file open during the installation process
move process that the installation is trying to overwrite. Exit all applications and documents during
installation and restart the installation.
Security failed • The environment settings are not set properly. If you have not already logged out and logged
or Marc exit 67 back in again, do so now and try again. Check that the environment variable
MSC_LICENSE_FILE is set to a valid license file. If you have not installed your passwords
yet, then you must do so before security will succeed.
• Check that the FLEXlm license manager has been started from the FLEXlm Configuration
Utility applet in the Start menu under MSC.Software-> MSC.Licensing 11.9. This must be
done AFTER you have saved your license.dat file in the
MSC.Software\MSC.licensing\11.9 directory. Test that it is working by pressing the
Status button in the Control menu.
• You are attempting to run on a machine that according to the Marc password(s) you are not
allowed to use.
• Your license period has expired. Check the date on your machine.
• Cannot access or read the file license.dat in the MSC.Software\MSC.licensing\11.9
subdirectory.
• Every Marc user should have read and write rights for the parent subdirectory 11.9.
License Manager • If the license manager won’t start, check that the hostname on the SERVER line is correct.
will not start Also check that the DAEMON line contains the correct path to the license daemon
MSC.exe.
• If you had an older version of the FLEXlm license manager installed, the new installation
may replace it. If the Use NT Services button was previously checked, you should uncheck
this button, start the license manager, and then select the Use NT Services button.
Link failed • Your user subroutine causes compiler errors.
• You have no Fortran compiler or Fortran libraries not available.
• Your PATH or LIB environment variables settings do not point to the proper location for
your Fortran compiler.
Appendix C: Troubleshooting 74

Fortran files are • The Fortran compiler is not in your search path, or the INCLUDE and LIB environment
not being variables are not set. You can verify that your settings are correct with the set command.
compiled Run the following scripts to set it up:

"C:\Program Files (x86)"\Intel\ComposerXE-2013\bin\compilervars intel64 vs2012


(or substitute your installation directory).
• The Intel Fortran compiler requires that the Microsoft .NET 2012 framework is installed and
the LIB environment variable setting includes the required dependency libraries. Running
the compilervars script mentioned above will make sure that the environment is correctly set
up.
User subroutines • With Fortran, the argument list for subroutines must match exactly. If the argument does not
are not being match exactly, your subroutine will not replace the existing subroutine in the Marc Library.
called The linker will continue to use the subroutine that is defined in the Marc Library, and since
your routine will not be linked in, it will never be called.
75 Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide
Marc Parallel Network for
Microsoft Windows Installation
and Operations Guide
77 Marc Parallel Network for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Table of Contents
Part 1 General Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 78

Part 2 Installation Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 81

Part 3 User Notes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . page 83

Introduction
The current document is divided into three parts:
Part I provides the general description about the hardware and software requirements and
definitions.
Part II provides a step-by-step approach to installation of the network version.
Part III provides miscellaneous information about executing a parallel job over a network and use
of user subroutines.
The list of supported capabilities in parallel can be found in Chapter 13 of Marc Volume A, Theory and User
Information.
78
Hardware and Software Requirements

Part 1 General Information


Hardware and Software Requirements
To use Intel MPI, please observe the following:
From a Command Prompt window, go into the intel_mpi\bin directory and type
wmpiregister.exe

Note: When opening a Command Prompt window, always start the Command Prompt window by right clicking
the icon and selecting ‘Run as Administrator’.

Enter your account (use a network account if you intend to run DMP jobs) and password in the popup dialog box
and press the “Register” button.
The message “Password encrypted into the Registry” will show in at the bottom of the dialog box.
If you change your account and password, you will need to repeat this step.
Next, type:
ismpd -install
If ismpd could not be installed, you nay need to shut down an existing MPI (e.g., MPICH2) and reboot your system.
To shutdown MPICH2, go to the mpich2\bin directory and type:
smpd -stop
To run DMP (network parallel jobs) using Intel MPI, create a host file using the following format:
host1 n1 workdir1
host2 n2 workdir2
host3 n3 workdir3
Use the directory name (UNC) as echoed by typing net share on your system for workdir.
For example:
sv-x861 2
sv-x862 2 \\sv-x862\test2
The DMP job will run using two processors on node sv-x861 in the directory where the job is started and two
processors on node sv-x862 in the shared directory test2.
Please note that the test1 and test2 directories in nodes sv-x861 and sv-x862 as well as the marc2015 directory in
node sv-x861 will need to be shared with a general permission to all users.
The default MPI is also the Intel MPI 3.1 for Windows. The other MPI option for the 64-bit Windows platform is MS-
MPI using the Microsoft CCS utilities.
To use MS-MPI, all the required components as listed in the include_win64.bat file in the marc tools directory
need to be installed. Microsoft CCS SPI (676 build) or above is required to run DMP.
79 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

In particular, as shown in the include_win64.bat file, the following is needed to run parallel jobs:
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Compute Cluster Pack\bin\mpiexec.exe
The mpiexec.exe and msmpi.dll are included in the Microsoft Compute Cluster Pack or CCP, a separate CD from
the operating system. If the files do not exist on your system, go to http://www.microsoft.com/hpc/ and get information
on how to download or order CDs (use the “How to Buy” link).
Please turn off the Windows firewall in your cluster and share the marc directory with a general permission to all users.
Please note that no host files are needed to used the MS MPI option. All nodes and cores allocation for any parallel
job is controlled directly by the Microsoft Job Scheduler. You do have to change the name of the head node and the
name of your working directory (created by you) in the include_win64.bat file in the marc tools directory.
The existing include_win64.bat file contains the following:
rem for MS MPI, set the following variables
rem all I/O will be done in the CCS_WORKDIR
SET CCS_HEADNODE=Roxar01
SET CCS_WORKDIR=\\Roxar01\marc_data
You will need to change Roxar01 to the actual name of your head node. The marc_data directory as shown should be
changed to the name of the directory you want to use for all I/O of the Marc data file for the run. Be sure to share both
the marc2015 directory and the working directory with full permission to all users. Also, start all parallel jobs from
the working directory. For example, you are in the \\Roxar01\marc_data directory with the data files for the job
test_16, then type:
\\Roxar01\marc2015\tools\run_marc -v n -b n -j test_16 -np 16
to run the 16 core job.
Although no specific hardware requirements exist to run a job in parallel, it is preferable that for distributed parallel
processing to have fast network connections between the machines. It is recommended that the network should have
a speed of at least 100 MBit per second. If only two machines are to be used, a hub or a cross-over cable can be used
to connect them. If more than two machines are to be used, a switch is preferable. TCP/IP is used for communications.
Refer to the include_win64.bat file in the tools directory for requirements on O/S, compilers, etc. for more details
regarding running on Microsoft Windows.

Definitions
1. Root machine:
The machine on which the Marc job is started.
2. Remote machine:
Any machine other than the root machine which is part of a distributed Marc run on the network.
3. Shared installation:
Marc is installed in a UNC shared directory on one machine only. Other machines can access the Marc
executable since the directory is shared.
80
Network Configuration

4. Distributed installation:
Marc is installed on all machines. Each machine accesses its own Marc executable.
5. Distributed execution:
Marc is run on multiple machines which are connected with a network. Each machine loads the Marc
executable either from a shared or a local directory and then executes the executable.
6. Shared I/O:
Marc reads and writes data in a UNC shared directory. Each Marc executable running on the network
reads/writes to the same directory.
7. Distributed I/O:
Marc reads and writes data in a directory located on each machine. Transfer of data files and post files between
the root machine and remote machines is done automatically by Marc.
8. UNC – Uniform Naming Convention.

Network Configuration
Marc only needs to be installed on the root machine where the installation directory is UNC shared (shared
installation). Marc can also be installed on the remote machines which then use their own executable (distributed
installation). For this case the same path name must be used on all machines. The root machine is the one on which
the Marc job is started, typically from within Mentat. The remote machines can be located anywhere as long as they
are connected to the network. The working directory on each machine can be a shared directory on any machine on
the network (shared I/O) or it can be a local directory on the hard disk of each machine in the analysis (distributed I/O).
The User Notes describes how to specify what working directory to use.

root machine remote machines

network

Figure 6 Network Configuration


81 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Part 2 Installation Notes


This part describes the specific steps needed to install and set up a network version of Marc. For general information
on Marc installation, see Marc and Mentat for Microsoft Windows Installation and Operations Guide.
Steps 1–6: Must be performed as Administrator.
Step 1: Install Marc on the root machine.
Step 2: Make sure that the installation directory on the root machine is properly shared, so that the remote machines
can access it. Assuming that Marc is installed under C:\MSC.Software, share this directory by associating
a UNC share name with it as follows. Use My Computer and locate the directory to be shared. Right click on
the directory and choose Sharing, Choose Share As and give it a Share Name (this is the UNC name) and
click OK.
Please note that Marc restricts the UNC name to have a maximum of 10 characters and the name of the shared
directory to have a maximum of 30 characters. If necessary, a directory higher up in the path can be shared
(for instance, C:\ instead of C:\MSC.Software). It is sufficient that either C:\ or C:\MSC.Software is
shared.
Step 3: On the remote machines you can perform a full Marc installation or an installation of the Intel MPI Library
Process Manager service only. In the latter case, the remote machine will be using the Marc installation of
the root machine via the UNC share name.
The Process Manager service must be installed and running on all hosts involved a distributed job across the
network. To install the Process Manager on a machine without a full Marc installation, copy the ismpd.exe
program from the intel_mpi\bin directory (on the root machine) to a local directory on the remote
machine. Open a Command Prompt window on the remote machine, go into that directory and execute:
.\ismpd -install
Step 4: Create a Marc file with the shared naming information. From the Command Prompt, change directory to the
tools directory in the Marc installation directory (here assumed to be C:\MSC Software).
c:
cd \MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0\marc2015\tools
net share > marc.net
This file has to be recreated each time the shared name of the installation directory is changed. The file
marc.net contains the connection between the path names on the root machine and the UNC names, and
can be created only by the Administrator. If this file does not exist or contains outdated information, the
remote machines will not be able to find the executable on the root machine.
Step 5: Test the Marc installation for single processor execution by typing from the root machine:
c:
cd \MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0\marc2015\test_ddm\exmpl2\exmpl2_1
run_marc -j cyl2
and Marc should exit in about three minutes if it is a successful run.
82
Network Configuration

Step 6: Test the Marc installation for multi-processor, distributed execution. Assume the host name of the root
machine is host1 and one of the remote machine is host2. Type from host1:
c:
cd \MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0\marc2015\test_ddm\exmpl2\exmpl2_2
and edit the file hostfile in this directory by replacing workdir with
c:\MSC.Software\Marc\2015.0\marc2015\test_ddm\exmpl2\exmpl2_2
The host names and directory names should be replaced with the names on the current system. Finally, type:
run_marc -j cyl2 -nprocd 2 -host hostfile
and Marc should exit in about two minutes if it is a successful parallel run on host1 and host2 using one
processor on each. If the job stalls or hangs at start-up time, exit it by typing control-C in the window in
which is was started. See Part 3 User Notes in this section.
83 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Part 3 User Notes


This section assumes that the network version of Marc has been successfully installed on two machines that are to be
used in a distributed analysis and that the appropriate Marc licenses are in order. Assume that host1 is the host name
of the machine on which Mentat is running and from which the job is to be started (the root machine). The host name
of the other machine (the remote machine) is host2.

How to run a network job


First make sure that the two machines are properly connected. From host1, access host2 using Internet Explorer. If this
is not possible, a network run will not be possible.
See Part 3 User Notes in this case.
In order to perform an analysis over a network, a special file called a host file needs to be created by the user. This file
defines which machines are to be used, how many processes are to run on each, what working directory should be
used, and where the Marc executable can be found on each machine. The host file can be selected and edited in Mentat
and the Marc job started as usual from within Mentat (see the example below). If Marc is run from the command line,
it is done as for a normal run using an additional command line option. For example:
run_marc -b no -jid test -nprocd 2 -host hostfile1
will run the two-processor job test.dat using the specification in the file hostfile1. No specific name or extension
is used for the host file except that the name jobid.host (in this example test.host) must be avoided since it is used
internally by Marc.

Specification of the host file


The host file has the following general format:
host1 n1
host2 n2 workdir2
host3 n3 workdir3
Each line must start at column 1 (no initial blanks). Blank lines and lines beginning with a # (number symbol) are
ignored.
The first entry is the host name of a machine to be used in the analysis. The root machine must be listed first and each
machine must only occur once.
The second entry specifies the number of processes to run on the machine specified in the first entry. The sum of the
number of processes given in the host file must equal the number of domains used. In a five-domain job, it is required
that n1+n2+n3=5.
The third entry specifies the working directory to use on this host. This is where the I/O for this host takes place. The
Marc input files for this machine must be in this directory and the results files for this machine are created in this
directory.
84
Shared I/O

The different domains of the Marc job are associated with the different machines as follows. Suppose a five-domain
job test is run using a host file defined as
host1 2
host2 1 workdir2
host3 2 workdir3
with appropriate definitions of the third entry, see below. There will be six Marc input files associated with this job:
test.dat, 1test.dat, …, 5test.dat. Domains 1 and 2 will be associated with host1, domain3 with host2 and
domains 4 and 5 with host3.

Shared I/O
Suppose a job is to be run on host1 and host2. A shared directory on host1 is to be used for I/O. The UNC sharename
for this directory is assumed to be dir7. The host file for a two-processor job would simply be
host1 1
host2 1 \\host1\dir7
To verify that the work directory is accessible, use Internet Explorer on host2 and browse to host1->dir7. The
directory seen should be the same one as the working directory on host1.
It is also possible to use only two entries for each host in the host file (host name and number of processes). This
requires that the working directory is shared and that the sharing information is up to date in the file tools\marc.net
in the Marc installation directory.

Distributed I/O
If the user wants to have the I/O to be local on host2, specify the host file as
host1 1
host2 1 D:\users\dir5
The I/O on host2 will now take place in the directory D:\users\dir5 on the hard disk of host2. For this case, the
Marc input files are transferred to D:\users\dir5 on host2 before the job is started, and the results files are
transferred back after the analysis for postprocessing. This transfer of files is done by Marc automatically.
85 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Example
The definitions for a network run with Mentat is demonstrated with a simple example. We assume the simplest case
where both the working directory and installation directories are shared.

Step 1
Enter the menu Help  Run a Demo... and select the example Contact With DDM. Select and confirm your two
domains as shown below.
.

Identify User Domains


86
Example

Step 2
Check the Use DDM option and enter the Network submenu.

Select Use DDM

Select Network

Run Marc using Submit (1)

Click on the Host File button and select the file called my_host_file and modify it to contain:
host1 1
host2 1 \\host1\...
Set the working directory according to the share names on the current system. The host file places one domain on host1
and one domain on host2.
Run Marc from within Mentat using the Submit 1 button. Upon completion of the analysis, the following should appear
on your screen:
87 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

Step 3
Check your results. This can easily be done by clicking the Open Post File (Results Menu) button. A plot of the Total
Equivalent Plastic Strain in the final deformed configuration is shown below:
88
Shared vs. Distributed I/O

Marc creates a post file associated with each domain as well as a root post file associated with the job id. For the
previous model, 1model1_job1.t16 and 2model1_job1.t16 are the processor files, while model1_job1.t16 is
the root file.
To post process the entire model, select model1_job1.t16 as the post process file. If the model is very large, it may
be convenient to view only a portion of the model by selecting any one of the processor post files, such as
2model1_job1.t16. This file contains only data associated with domain 2as selected in the Domain Decomposition
menu. As specified in the host file, this file was created by host2.

Shared vs. Distributed I/O


For jobs with very large post or restart files, it is usually more efficient to use distributed I/O. With distributed I/O, the
input files, and the post files are located on the host’s local disks. Marc, by default, automatically transfers the input
files and the post files to and from the remote host if needed. It is possible to suppress this transferring with two buttons
in the Network settings in the JOBS menu in Mentat.
To run a job using distributed I/O, specify a local directory in the host file:
host1 2
host2 1 d:\workdir

Jobs with User Subroutine


User subroutines can be used as usual. If local directories are used on remote hosts (distributed I/O), then the working
directory on the first host must be shared so the other hosts can find the executable.

Troubleshooting
General
Make sure that:
1. The user ID that was registered using the wmpiregister.exe utility exists on the root machine and all remote
machines (see Part 1 General Information). Also check that the password you entered is the same on all
machines.
Note that if you change your login password, you must register it again using wmpiregister.exe.
2. The remote machines have permission to read from the Marc installation on the root machine via the UNC
sharename. For shared I/O, the remote machines also must have permission to read from and write to the shared
(working) directory on the root host.
3. Your Marc and Marc Parallel licenses are valid.
4. The host names are valid.
5. The Intel Process Manager service is installed and running on all hosts involved in the distributed job across
the network. Select Start/Control Panel/Administrative Tools/Services and look for Intel MPI® Library Process
Manager, Intel. Make sure that it isas Status:Started.
The typical error message that appears if the Process Manager service is not running on or more hosts is:
abort: Unable to connect to 'hostname:8676'
89 Marc Parallel Network for Windows Installation and Operations Guide

sock error: generic socket failure, error stack:


...
Please refer to Step 3 of the installation instructions (Part 2 Installation Notes) on how to install the Process
Manager on machines without a full Marc installation.

Running a Parallel Job when not connected to the Network


If you disconnect your system from the network and want to run a parallel job on that system, you will have to install
the Microsoft Loopback Adapter. Follow these steps:
Go to Control Panel, Add/Remove Hardware.
Select the hardware task you want to perform:
Add/Troubleshoot a device
Choose a Hardware Device:
Add a new device
Do you want Microsoft Windows to search for your new hardware?
No, I want to select the hardware from a list
Select the type of hardware you want to install:
Network adapters
Select Network Adapter:
Manufacturers: Microsoft
Network Adapter: Microsoft Loopback Adapter
It will now install the loopback adapter. You will have to enable/disable the loopback adapter as you remove/connect
your machine to the network.

Running a Parallel job on a Windows 7 System when not a member of a Domain


If you will be running a parallel job on a Windows system that is not a member of a domain, you will have to modify
a registry entry.
Using regedt32, look for the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Lsa
"forceguest" : REG_DWORD : 00000001
If you find this key, change the REG_DWORD value to 0. The name may also appear as ForceGuest.
If you do not have this registry entry, your system will function properly.

Running a Parallel Job on Windows 7


The RPC protocol does not permit anonymous requests to the RPC Endpoint Mapper but requires client requests be
authenticated using Windows XP SP2 or later. This will cause an "Access is Denied" error when you attempt to run a
Marc Parallel job.
90
Troubleshooting

Note: These settings are important to enable Microsoft Windows to run a parallel job. If they are not set properly,
the error message "Host is unreachable (5)" or "Access is Denied (5)" will be issued.

To work around this problem, do the following:


From a command prompt, run gpedit.msc.
Select Computer Configuration,
expand Administrative Templates,
expand System,
click Remote Procedure Call,
double click RPC Endpoint Mapper Client Authentication.
Change the value to Enabled.
You will also need to check the Data Execution Prevention settings.
Right click My Computer
Go to Properties
Select the Advanced tab
Select the Performance Settings button
Select the Data Execution Prevention tab
Select the button for Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and
services only

Required Privileges
Running a parallel job either locally or over a network requires certain user privileges. If the privileges are not
sufficient, MPI will print an error code of 1314.
You will need to check the following settings from the Control Panel:
Select Administrative Tools
Select Local Security Policy
Check the following items under Local Policies->User Rights Assignment.
Windows 7
"Adjust memory quotas for a process"
"Replace a process level token"
You can add usernames to these if needed by right clicking them and going
to Properties.
Note that if they log in through a domain controller, the setting on the domain controller will also need to provide
access to these settings for each username.

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