What is Installed with XSim?

Upon completing the installation process (described in XSim Installation Instructions), XSimComposer, the XSim Computation Engine, Python, and MPI will be installed on your computer. These are described in detail below.

XSimComposer

XSimComposer is a graphical user interface for

  • Creating and editing XSim input files

  • Executing XSim

  • Analyzing XSim generated data

  • Visualizing XSim generated data

  • Viewing the documentation.

The XSimComposer editor and validator have built-in functions and graphical components that help you to create input files. Example input files, ranging in complexity from beginning to advanced, are included with XSimComposer. New XSim users can use these examples as templates. Advanced XSim users can use XSimComposer to validate the syntax of their own input files, whether their files have been created using XSimComposer or by using a text editor.

The XSimComposer Run pane invokes the XSim engine with user definable settings for number of steps, number of data dumps, and restart file, if any. It also allows selection of serial versus parallel XSim.

XSimComposer now allows selection of analysis programs, either supplied with XSim or user written.

The visualization in XSimComposer is provided by the graphical analysis tool VisIt (see https://wci.llnl.gov/codes/visit/). VisIt is embedded within XSimComposer. Data generated by XSim or by analysis programs automatically appears in the Visualization pane.

All documentation can be seen from within XSimComposer, fully cross-referenced.

XSim Computational Engine

The XSim computational engine runs both as a serial (vorpalser) and parallel (vorpal) application for multi-processor / multi-core systems that support MPI. XSim now comes in the specialized XSim packages. The XSim computational engine is embedded within XSimComposer.

Python

Python is an open-source, interpreted scripting language managed by the Python Software Foundation. For more information about Python (See http://www.python.org/).

XSim uses Python to process input files, allowing users to set up simulations with math functions, variable substitutions, and macros.

XSim uses its own embedded version of the Python interpreter to pre-process input files and execute any Python code in an input file.

MPI

The Message Passing Interface (MPI) is an application programming interface (API) for communicating between processes that execute in parallel. There are many implementations. The Linux and Mac versions come with the OpenMPI (See http://www.open-mpi.org/) implementation of MPI. The Windows versions come with the Microsoft MPI implementation The appropriate MPI implementation is embedded within XSimComposer.

More Information

More information about XSim can be found at the XSim Product Website (https://www.txcorp.com/xsim). Send questions about installing or running XSim to Tech-X Customer Support at support@txcorp.com.

Extensive assistance in the use of XSim or simulation in general is available from Tech-X Professional Services. Please contact Tech-X directly for sales, consulting, and other questions at sales@txcorp.com.