Standard installation#

The PyAnsys ansys-mapdl-core package requires either a local or remote instance of MAPDL to communicate with it. This section covers launching and interfacing with MAPDL from a local instance by launching it from Python.

Install MAPDL#

MAPDL is installed by default from the Ansys standard installer. When installing Ansys, verify that the Mechanical Products checkbox is selected under the Structural Mechanics option. While the standard installer options can change, see the following figure for reference.

If you want to avoid having to install MAPDL locally, you can use Docker. This is especially convenient if you are using a non-supported platform such as MacOS. For more information, see PyMAPDL and MacOS.

You can also download and try the Ansys Student Versions. A Student Version is valid during a calendar year with limited capabilities. For example, there is a limit on the number of nodes and elements.

If you experience problems installing MAPDL on Linux, see Missing dependencies on Linux.

Launch MAPDL#

Launch MAPDL locally#

You can use the launch_mapdl() method to have Python start MAPDL and automatically connect to it:

>>> from ansys.mapdl.core import launch_mapdl
>>> mapdl = launch_mapdl()
>>> print(mapdl)

Product:             ANSYS Mechanical Enterprise
MAPDL Version:       RELEASE  2021 R1           BUILD 21.0
PyMAPDL Version:     Version: 0.57.0

This is the easiest and fastest way to get PyMAPDL up and running. But you need to have an ANSYS license server installed locally.

Launch a gRPC MAPDL session#

You can start MAPDL from the command line and then connect to it.

To launch MAPDL on Windows (assuming a C:/Program Files/ANSYS Inc/v211 installation), use:

C:/Program Files/ANSYS Inc/v211/ansys/bin/winx64/ANSYS211.exe -grpc

To launch MAPDL on Linux (assuming a /usr/ansys_inc installation), use:

/usr/ansys_inc/v211/ansys/bin/ansys211 -grpc

This starts up MAPDL in gRPC mode, and MAPDL should output:

Start GRPC Server

##############################
### START GRPC SERVER      ###
##############################

Server Executable   : MapdlGrpc Server
Server listening on : 0.0.0.0:50052

You can configure the port that MAPDL starts on with the -port argument. For example, you can start the server to listen for connections at port 50005 with:

/usr/ansys_inc/v211/ansys/bin/ansys211 -port 50005 -grpc

Connect to a gRPC MAPDL session#

A MAPDL gRPC server can be connected to from either the same host or an external host. For example, you can connect to a MAPDL service running locally with:

>>> from ansys.mapdl.core import Mapdl
>>> mapdl = Mapdl()

This assumes that your MAPDL service is running locally on the default IP address (127.0.0.1) and on the default port (50052).

If you want to connect to a remote instance of MAPDL and you know the IP address of that instance, you can connect to it. For example, if on your local network at IP address 192.168.0.1 there is a computer running MAPDL on the port 50052, you can connect to it with:

>>> mapdl = Mapdl("192.168.0.1", port=50052)

Alternatively you can use a hostname:

>>> mapdl = Mapdl("myremotemachine", port=50052)

Note that you must have started MAPDL in gRPC mode on the computer with the mentioned IP address/hostname for this to work.

If you have MAPDL installed on your local host, you can use the launch_mapdl() method to both start and connect to MAPDL.

If you have any problem launching PyMAPDL, see Launching issues.

If you are connecting to an MAPDL Docker image, the procedure is the same. Just make sure that you specify the mapped port instead of the internal Docker image port. For more information, see MAPDL and Docker.