Abaqus Solver Execution and Job Management Commands

1. Core Job Submission Commands

These commands launch analyses directly from the command line/terminal, bypassing CAE.

1.1. Standard Job Execution

abaqus job=BRACKET_ANALYSIS        # Basic job submission
abaqus job=IMPACT cpus=8           # Specify CPU cores
abaqus job=THERMAL_MAP memory="4 gb" # Allocate memory
abaqus job=ASSEMBLY double interactive # Double precision, interactive mode

1.2. Advanced Execution Controls

abaqus job=MODAL input=model.inp   # Specify custom input file
abaqus job=FRACTURE user=umat.f    # Include user subroutines
abaqus job=DYNAMIC oldjob=STATIC   # Continue from previous analysis
abaqus job=OPTIMIZE scratch="D:\temp" # Set scratch directory

2. Interactive and Debug Execution Modes

Critical for development and troubleshooting workflows.

2.1. Interactive Session Control

abaqus job=Job-1 interactive       # Launch with terminal interaction
abaqus job=TEST run_wait=NO        # Submit and return immediately
abaqus job=DEBUG interactive recover # Enter recovery mode
abaqus job=BENCHMARK ask_delete=NO # Suppress file deletion prompts

2.2. Debug and Diagnostic Execution

abaqus job=VERIFY datacheck        # Data check only (no analysis)
abaqus job=CONTACT info=verbose    # Verbose contact information
abaqus job=PROBLEM_MODEL debug     # Enable debug output
abaqus information=memory          # Check memory requirements

3. Multi-Processing and HPC Execution

Optimize for performance on workstations and clusters.

3.1. Parallel Processing Commands

abaqus job=SOLID parallel          # Enable parallel processing
abaqus job=LARGE_MODEL cpus=32 mp_mode=threads # Thread-based parallel
abaqus job=COMPLEX cpus=12 mp_mode=mpi # MPI-based parallel
abaqus job=DOMAIN cpus=24 domain=parallel explicit # Explicit domain parallel

3.2. Cluster and Queue System Commands

abaqus job=HPC_ANALYSIS queue      # Submit to default queue
abaqus job=OVERNIGHT after=22:00   # Schedule execution time
abaqus job=RESUME restart          # Restart from interruption
abaqus job=BATCH background         # Run in background

4. File Management and Utility Commands

Essential for workflow automation and file handling.

4.1. File Conversion and Extraction

abaqus odbreport job=RESULTS       # Generate report from ODB
abaqus python script=extract.py    # Execute Python script
abaqus cae noGUI=preprocess.py     # Run CAE without GUI
abaqus fetch job=REMOTE_JOB        # Retrieve results from remote

4.2. Database and Results Management

abaqus upgrade job=LEGACY_MODEL    # Upgrade old model database
abaqus append job=NEW phase=STRESS # Append results to existing ODB
abaqus delete job=TEMP keep=inp    # Clean up, keep input file
abaqus recover job=CRASHED         # Attempt recovery from crash

5. Common Execution Patterns and Scripting

5.1. Sequential Job Execution (Batch Script)

# Windows batch file example
abaqus job=STEP1 cpus=4
abaqus job=STEP2 oldjob=STEP1 cpus=4
abaqus job=STEP3 oldjob=STEP2 cpus=4

5.2. Parameter Study Automation

# Python-driven parameter sweep
import subprocess
thickness_values = [1.0, 1.5, 2.0, 2.5]
for i, t in enumerate(thickness_values):
    cmd = f'abaqus job=PARAM_{i} user=mat_prop.f thickness={t} cpus=6'
    subprocess.run(cmd, shell=True)

6. Error Handling and Job Monitoring

6.1. Status Checking Commands

abaqus job=ANALYSIS information=status # Check job status
abaqus where job=PROCESSING           # Locate running job
abaqus suspend job=LONG_RUN           # Temporarily suspend
abaqus resume job=SUSPENDED           # Resume suspended job

6.2. Output and Log Management

abaqus job=JOB redirect=log.txt       # Redirect output to file
abaqus job=SIMULATION terminal=log.msg # Terminal output to file
abaqus job=ANALYSIS echo=NO           # Suppress command echo

7. Best Practices for Production Workflows

7.1. Recommended Execution Patterns

# 1. Always test with datacheck first
abaqus job=TEST_MODEL datacheck user=umat.f

# 2. Production run with full resources
abaqus job=FINAL_ANALYSIS cpus=16 memory="32 gb" mp_mode=mpi

# 3. Monitor and manage output
abaqus job=PRODUCTION interactive redirect=run.log

7.2. Environment and Configuration Commands

abaqus environment              # Display environment settings
abaqus licensing=info           # Check license status
abaqus site="C:\abaqus_files"   # Set site-specific location
abaqus standard_parallel=4      # Set default parallel processes

8. Conclusion: Building Efficient Execution Workflows

Mastering command-line execution transforms sporadic analysis into automated, reproducible workflows. The most effective simulation engineers combine these commands with scripting to create:

1. Validation pipelines that automatically test model changes
2. Parameter optimization loops that iterate designs
3. Results extraction routines that generate reports automatically
4. Error recovery systems that handle failures gracefully

The advanced frontier involves integrating these commands with cloud HPC systems using SLURM or PBS pro job schedulers, containerizing Abaqus with Docker for consistent environments, and building full CI/CD pipelines for simulation validation.

Remember: Always include interactive during development for immediate feedback, but remove it for production runs to ensure clean batch execution. Document your execution parameters alongside your model assumptions for complete reproducibility.