SIONlib  1.7.5
Scalable I/O library for parallel access to task-local files
Installation, debugging and error messages

Installing SIONlib

In the package root directory, run "./configure [options]". The following options are available:

Option Description
[–prefix=DIR] Installation directory (default: ./install/<platform>)
[–compiler=(gnu|pgi|intel|path|ibm|sun)] Compiler (Linux only)
[–mpi=(mpich|mpich2|lam|openmpi|intel|intel2| MPI-Lib (Linux/Solaris only)
hp|scali|mpibull2|sun)]
[–msa=(hostname-regex|deep-est-sdv)] MSA aware collective operations for the given system
[–force-(basic|32|64|32-64|cross)] Force basic, 32-bit, 64-bit,
32-bit and 64-bit, or cross-compiling
installation
[–disable-(mpi|omp|ompi)] Disable MPI, OpenMP, or hybrid
[–disable-fortran] Disable Fortran support
[–disable-cxx] Disable C++ support
[–enable-python=(2|3)] Enable Python support
[–disable-mic] Disable compilation for MICs
[–disable-parutils] Disable compilation of parutils (used for benchmarking)
[–enable-debug] enable SIONlib debug
[–enable-cuda] enable CUDA aware interface
[–enable-cuda=/path/to/cuda] ditto and specify CUDA installation path
[–enable-sionfwd] enable I/O forwarding with SIONfwd
[–enable-sionfwd=/path/to/sionfwd] ditto and specify SIONfwd installation path
[–disable-pthreads] configure SIONlib not to use pthreads for locking

On systems where multiple MPI libraries and compilers might be available, it might be necessary to specify which of the MPI libraries or compilers to use. In this case, configure will tell you which versions it found and how to specify the desired choice: configure currently can only do this on Linux systems.

configure creates a "build configuration" for each unique platform and stores it in a subdirectory "build-###" where ### describes the attributes needed (e.g., operating system, MPI version, compiler) to define the platform. See the output of "configure" for the name of your build configuration.

If your system (IBM Blue Gene, etc.) is used through extra compilation front-end nodes and building executables is done by cross-compilation, you need to build and install a cross-instrumentation version of SIONlib. Under normal circumstances configure should recognize this automatically.

Next, change your current working directory to the build configuration subdirectory

% cd build-###

As all of the following text is referring to files and commands executed inside the build configuration subdirectory. Modify the Makefile Definition File (Makefile.defs) if necessary.

% make

Builds SIONlib.

% make test

performs serial and parallel tests of SIONlib. The parallel tests need an environment where MPI programs can be started. The command (e.g. mpiexec) can be changed in the Makefile Definition File.

% make install

Installs utilities, libraries, include files, documentation and examples in .

The installation of SIONlib builds a number of libraries. In order to simplify the correct choice of paths and libraries the utility sionconfig outputs the correct combination of options for compiling (–cflags) or linking (–libs):

Usage: sionconfig
Print compiler and linker flags SIONlib.
(--com|--ser|--omp|--mpi|--ompi|--gen) select SIONlib API
(--cflags|--libs|--path) select output of sionconfig
[--32|--64] Precision
[--be] [--fe] [--mic] Cross compile
[--gcc] for GCC Compiler
[--c|--f77|--f90|--cxx] Language selection
[-V|--version|-h] Version, Help

Example:

LDFLAGS += `../../bin/sionconfig --libs --mpi --be`
CFLAGS += `../../bin/sionconfig --cflags --mpi --be`

Debugging SIONlib I/O

If SIONlib is compiled with DSION_DEBUG the library supports debugging of SIONlib related I/O events. There are four environment variables steering SIONlib debugging:

  • SION_DEBUG= file
    • Enables debugging, debug messages will be written to file. stdout or stderr are also possible.
  • SION_DEBUG_MASK= mask
    • Sets binary mask for selecting debug messages. The mask works bitwise, following debugging messages levels can be selected, by adding levels to the mask:

      mask description
      1 sion user function entries and exits
      2 sion internal function entries and exits
      8 high frequently called sion user function entries and exits
      16 high frequently called sion internal function entries and exits
      32 internal steps of sion internal function
      64 internal steps of sion user function
      128 timings (top level)
      256 timings (low level)
      512 print filedesc structure contents
      2048 higher frequently called sion internal function (internal steps)

      Since it is used as bitmask the values have to be bitwise 'or'ed which for powers of 2 is identical to adding them.

      Examples:

      • 65 = 1 + 64 enables messages for enter and exit events of user functions and debugging of internal steps of SIONlib user functions
      • 1023 = 1 + 2 + ... + 512 shows all lower level debug messages including timings (since 4 is not used 1019 would do the same)
  • SION_DEBUG_RANK1= rank
    • Selects first rank of parallel program for printing debug messages. Rank number will be appended to filename specified in SION_DEBUG.
  • SION_DEBUG_RANK2= rank
    • Selects second rank of parallel program for printing debug messages. Rank number will be appended to filename specified in SION_DEBUG.

Error messages of SIONlib

There are different level of error message levels (SION_ERROR_RETURN, SION_ERROR_WARN, SION_ERROR_ABORT and SION_ERROR_UNKNOWN). Depending on the level a warning message will be printed, the corresponding call will be returned with 0 or negative return code, or the program will be aborted. To limit the messages to one rank of a parallel program following environment variable could be set:

  • SION_ERROR_MSG_RANK= rank
    • selects one rank of parallel program for printing warning/error messages.