Fluent-ROCKY Coupling in HPC Batch Mode – Possible Without GUI?

[Rui.Li]

Hi everyone,

I'm currently working on coupling ANSYS Fluent with ROCKY DEM on an HPC cluster. I would like to know whether it's possible to run the Fluent-ROCKY coupling purely through a batch script (e.g., using sbatch or qsub), without launching an interactive interface or GUI.

This question comes up because, on our university's HPC system, the GUI-based (interactive) environment does not recognize or locate Fluent correctly when trying to set up the coupling. At the moment, this issue can't be resolved easily on our end, so we're exploring whether batch-based execution is a feasible alternative.

Specifically:

Is there a recommended way to set up and execute the Fluent-ROCKY coupling entirely in batch mode?

Are there any limitations, special environment variables, or configuration steps required?

If possible, could you share a sample batch script or point to any official documentation for headless (non-GUI) coupling?

Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

[Lucas Bertollo Baggio]

Hello,

Yes, you can run a CFD-DEM coupled simulation in batch mode. I recommend you writing a python script for Workbench and running it in batch mode. Check Workbench manuals to learn more about it. 

You will also need to learn how to write a script for Fluent and Rocky. You might Record it using the UI to see how it is written and use it later in a python code.

 

best, Lucas

 

 

 

[Rui.Li]

I’ve already created and configured a Rocky simulation model. I’m wondering if there’s a way to export a corresponding script directly from this setup, rather than building one from scratch manually.