WRF Compilation Guide (Gadi)

This guide describes how to configure and compile WRF on Gadi using PBS.

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0. Clone the repo

git clone git@github.com:nci/WRF.git

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1. Load Environment

cd WRF
source build.env

Optional:

Enable NetCDF4

export NETCDF4=1

Enable WRF-Chem

export WRF_CHEM=1

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2. Clean Previous Build (Optional but Recommended)

./clean -a

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3. Configure WRF

Run:

./configure

When prompted, enter:

• Architecture option (e.g. 79)
• Nest option (e.g. 1)

Common Architecture Options (Gadi)

Option	Parallel Mode	Optimisation
76	serial	-O2
77	smpar	-O2
78	dmpar	-O2
79	sm+dm	-O2
72	serial	-O3
73	smpar	-O3
74	dmpar	-O3
75	sm+dm	-O3

Recommended (most users) and Verified:

79
1

It will create a file named "configure.wrf".

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4. Submit Compilation Job

Revise the PBS job file compile.pbs:

nano compile.pbs

Change the YOUR_PROEJCT to your own NCI project with SU allocations:

#!/bin/bash
#PBS -l walltime=3:30:00
#PBS -l mem=28GB
#PBS -l ncpus=7
#PBS -j oe
#PBS -q normalsr
#PBS -l wd
#PBS -W umask=0022
#PBS -l software=intel-compiler
#PBS -l storage=gdata/YOUR_PORJECT

source build.env

# Use half available CPUs for make
export J="-j $(( PBS_NCPUS / 2 ))"

echo "Starting WRF compilation..."
./compile em_real

Submit the job:

qsub compile.pbs

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5. Monitor Compilation

qstat

After completion, check for:

WRF/main/wrf.exe
WRF/main/real.exe
WRF/main/tc.exe
WRF/main/ndown.exe

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7. Quick Workflow (Minimal Commands)

source build.env
./clean -a
./configure
qsub compile.pbs

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Notes

• Do not compile on login nodes.
• Use normalsr or an appropriate queue.
• Typical compile time: 30–40 minutes.
• Use -O3 options for maximum performance builds.
• Ensure your project storage is correctly declared in the PBS #PBS -l storage= line if required.