Learning Forum

[cheolmae]

SpaceClaim is damn slow. Return Design Modeler, Workbench Mesh, and Fixed Cutcell.

I mainly do simulations for more than 10,000 volumes. Until 2022, I proceeded with the analysis with Ansys 17.0. Now, I have to use version 17.0 or higher, but SpaceClaim takes a year to Share Topology, and when I try to forcibly create a Cutcell with a Workbench Mesh of 2021R1, a Geometry Error explodes, and it takes more than 5 days to build. What kind of patches are there? Please support the 2023 R2 License Manager so that you can use Design Modeler in 17.0.

[Rob]

You can use DM in 2023, but you may need to talk to your account manager as I think the keys changed. However, cutcell is nonlonger supported, and I'm curious why you'd need 10k cell zones as that's going to give a very long list of Fluent boundary conditions. 

[cheolmae]

I do a fluid analysis of the factory interior. So many parts are reflected, and in fact, about 20,000 are drawn and more than 10,000 fluid volumes are used as cell zone. My main job is flow analysis for a factory with an area of about 35,000 square feet. There are many conditions involved. Return the Cutcell and Fixed size options. Of course, flow analysis results may be inaccurate. However, between what we can do within the period and what we can do within the period that takes a long time to produce late results, what we can do within the period is more important.
I don’t want anything else. Please make at least a patch for Ansys 17.0 to work with License Server 2023R1 or later.

Of course, I also want to use the latest version. However, Spaceclaim is too slow (in the case of Share Topology, which the DM finished in about 5 hours, it is now over 24 hours in SC), and setting boundary conditions for large volumes is too difficult. In particular, single/box selection of volume/face is unclear, making it difficult to select. Existing workbench meshing is good. Named selection is possible in Design Modeler, but it is too slow because the graphic is not optimized. In addition, since named selection has been performed alternately between hide body/face and suppress, there is a high possibility that the share topology will be solved by suppress. Based on Design Modeler, it takes about 1~2 hours or more for one share topology.

Therefore, it would be nice to have a link that allows you to set Named Selection and Size in Workbench Meshing, save the file as an export file, and then connect the actual Meshing to Fluent Meshing.

In addition, Fluent response speed has become very slow these days. Try Fluent 17.0 now, or at least 2019 R1 Fluent. It shows a very light response compared to the 2023 R1 Fluent. Also, change it again so that the contents of the middle window change with one click in the tree on the left. Why did you have to double-click to change? Since I set a lot of boundary conditions (I have done more than 200 named selections), when I double-click the cell condition/boundary condition, the contents stretch out and it takes a long time to display them.
Lastly, in the Surface Report... In the past, the values came out in the order selected from the list, but now they are sorted in ascending order regardless of the order selected. Please change this to existing or insert an option that can be changed.

Ha... There are so many things I want to say about UI/UX, but please temporarily save or... improve the DM/Cutcell part.

 

 

[Rob]

I'm fairly sure R17 does work with the 2023Rx licence manager, I only have back to R19.2 installed now. Given it's a commercial task you may find talking to the local team gets you a better response: we're limited in what we can explain/discuss in public. 

Not sure I've ever needed to include that many volumes/labels, even when modelling entire LNG plants. For the bc's I recommend reading up on the TUI commands and journals: we used to set 1500 or so in under an hour or so whilst eating lunch. 

[cheolmae]

Of course v17.0 works with 2023R1 License manager. Depends on the computer... some work and some even workbench gives a License Error. However, Design Modeler disappears from options, and only Spaceclaim is viable.
Even if you forcibly run Design Modeler with v17.0 that you worked on in the past, it is output that there is no License Server.

[Rob]

It should, but that may depend on your licence configuration. 

[cheolmae]

I just tried everything again. I ran 17.0 on my office computer, my colleague's computer, and my computing computer, and the results are as follows.
1. On my computer, an error occurs when running 17.0 workbench.
2. On other computers, 17.0 workbench runs successfully.
3. Drag and drop Geometry, and upon execution, an error requesting ansys (ansys mechanical license) occurs. (For reference, we have a Discovery 3 copy license.)
If you obtain a license with the permission of Mechanical User and run it, SpaceClaim, not Design Modeler, will run.
4. When a workbench file that was worked on in the past with v17.0 is loaded and Design Modeler is turned on, the phrase "start spaceclaim" is displayed at the bottom of the workbench, and ansys mechanical license is still requested.

I remember that this did not happen with the 2022R1 License Manager. It's not accurate though.

[Rob]

Which your local team can help with. The licence bundles change with releases as software is added to the suite. As I don't know where you are, or your organisation and can't discuss that information in public anyway I can't do much. Please contact the local support team. 

[cheolmae]

Sorry but I already tried it. They said they need support from head office, but they probably won’t support it because it’s too old.
And that’s right. I will post another post about Fluent usability issues. thank you

p.s.
For reference, Design Modeler does not work from v17.0 to 2020 R1. Design Modeler works from 2021 R1 onwards.
If you try to open Geometry in Workbench from v17.0 to 2020 R1, it will run as Spaceclaim without exception.

 

[Rob]

That sounds like the licence file issue: DM does work on those versions (I use it as needed). You may need a separate licence increment. 

[cheolmae]

My guess is that if you switch the existing Design Modeler License to Discovery, Design Modeler does not seem to work as agppi is deleted from the list of licenses.
Perhaps in the version after 2021 R1, the license required for Design Modeler is changed to be driven by disco_level1, so it is assumed that it works normally. However, in the previous version, agppi is requested to the License Server, but the Server replies that there is no such license, so Design Modeler operation seems to be forcibly suppressed.

Again, Design Modeler works fine in 2021R1 and later versions. Check out the following:
1. Make sure your License Manager is 2023R1.
2. Check if the license is Design Modeler or Discovery.
(Check the License File to see if agppi is present and disco_level1 is present. Probably not at the same time. If it is agppi, you are right. But my License File issued in April 2023 has no agppi and disco_level1 is 3 There are dogs.)
3. Check if the License File was issued this year.

[Rob]

Very likely. Staff licences are a little unusual in that we have about 10 seats of everything, so testing won't prove much. Discovery is fairly new so older versions of some codes may not use that licence. 

[cheolmae]

Finally!
Please check the relevant matters, and if possible, please reflect them in the license issuance system as well!

[Rob]

As I've mentioned, I can't do anything with your licence, only the local office can. I follow much the same process when I need "new" software (ie Ansys Rocky when it was first added to the Ansys suit) albeit with less paperwork as I'm staff. 

[cheolmae]

I know that the local team can't do anything because it's related to the License File anymore. Costumer directly downloads the license file from the Ansys License Portal. How can the local team provide technical support for this?
Also, the program agency said that only the head office could solve this problem.
Where should I inquire about this?

[Rob]

Local office can escalate inside/to Ansys - I know as I work with the equivalent on the fluids side of technical in Europe. If that's not what they're doing please contact us via support@ansys.com stating your site ID (on the licence file) and include this thread link with all relevent information.  

[cheolmae]

support also... answer same as you... I'm desperate.

[Rob]

Please email me at robert.woolhouse@ansys.com  I need site ID, and as many details as you can provide. Who you're talking to on our/Channel side too please. Do not post that on here. I will remove my email address as soon as I hear from you. Note, I'm in Europe so it may take time to find whoever I need to talk to.