Running your own kernel from the LIBPF user interface on OS X

During model development, you rapidly produce new versions of the calculation kernel (the command-line executable version of your models).

The easiest thing to do to try them out is to run them from the LIBPF user interface.

Here is a step-by-step howto for running your own kernel from the LIBPF user interface on OS X.

I assume you have received a pre-packaged OS X disk image (dmg) file:

screenshot_osx1

If you mount it (by double-clicking) you’ll see that it contains the UIPF application package (that acronym stands for User Interface for Process Flowsheeting, it’s really just the LIBPF user interface).

Rather than dragging and dropping that from the mounted volume to the Applications folder as described in the LIBPF™ OS X Installation manual, drag and drop it inside your development folder (I assume it’s LIBPF_SDK_osx_1.0.2346 on the Desktop):

aaa

We now have to issue some command-line magic so open a Terminal and cd to the location of your development folder (you may need to adapt this command if your development folder is somewhere else):
cd Desktop/LIBPF_SDK_osx_1.0.2346

Now check the kernel currently configured with the UIPF application:
ls -l UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel

this should return something similar to:
-rwxr-xr-x 1 paolog staff 6423572 24 Mar 23:19 UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel<br />

What we want to do is replace that with the kernel produced by Qt Creator, for example for debug mode:
ls -l bin/mcfcccs/debug/mcfcccs<br /> -rwxr-xr-x 1 paolog staff 23013068 15 Giu 12:01 bin/mcfcccs/debug/mcfcccs<br />

So now delete the currently configured kernel:
rm UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel<br />
and replace it with a symbolic link to the kernel produced by Qt Creator:
ln -s ../../../bin/mcfcccs/debug/mcfcccs UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel

If you check now what kernel is currently configured with the UIPF application:
ls -l UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel

it should return:
lrwxr-xr-x 1 paolog staff 34 15 Giu 12:04 UIPF.app/Contents/Resources/kernel -> ../../../bin/mcfcccs/debug/mcfcccs

So now it should be all set: when you open the LIBPF user interface double-clicking on the UIPF application package located in development folder, it will run your latest debug mode kernel !