NetCDF-Fortran Version 4.2 Installation Notes

Building the netCDF-4.2 and later Fortran libraries

In versions before 4.2, the Fortran netCDF library source was bundled with the C library source in one distribution, and it was possible to combine the libraries in a single library file. With version 4.2, the Fortran netCDF library for Fortran77 and Fortran90 APIs has been separated into its own source distribution, and should now be built as a separate library, after the C library is built and installed. This separation simplifies the building and use of the C and Fortran netCDF libraries and allows them to evolve independently.

Please note that in the example commands below, we assume use of a POSIX-standard shell, such as sh, bash, ksh, or zsh. If you are using csh instead, you will have to use the

   setenv ENV_VARIABLE  value

syntax to set environment variables instead of the

   ENV_VARIABLE=value

syntax used in the examples that use a POSIX-standard shell. In either case, ${DIR1} is the value of the environment variable DIR1.

It will be easier to build the netCDF Fortran library if the C (and if needed, HDF5) libraries are built as shared libraries (the default), but you can also use static libraries, as described in a later section.

Using shared libraries

First make sure the netCDF C library has been built, tested, and installed under directory ${DIR1}, as specified by --prefix=${DIR1} to the C library configure script, or under directory /usr/local by default.
For the Fortran netCDF library, use the same C compiler as used to create the netCDF C library, specified with the CC environment variable, if necessary.
If the netCDF C library was installed as a shared library in a location that is not searched by default, you will need to set the LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable (or DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH on OSX) to specify that directory before running the configure script, for example:
```
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=${DIR1}/lib:${LD_LIBRARY_PATH}
```
If you set the LD_LIBRARY_PATH (or DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH) environment variable in the previous step, don't use the "sudo" command before the following "configure" or "make check" commands. Using "sudo" causes the LD_* environment variables to be ignored, as a security precaution. You can use "sudo make install" as the last step, but you shouldn't need to use "sudo" before that.
For the configure script, set CPPFLAGS and LDFLAGS variables to specify the include and lib directories for the netCDF C library. For example, to install the Fortran libraries in the same directory ${DIR1} where the C netCDF library is installed:
```
  CPPFLAGS=-I${DIR1}/include LDFLAGS=-L${DIR1}/lib ./configure --prefix=${DIR1}
```
If that succeeds, run "make check".
If that succeeds, run "make install" or "sudo make install".

Now you will only need to use something like

    -L${DIR1}/lib -lnetcdff

to link Fortran software with the installed netCDF Fortran and C libraries.

Using static libraries

If you can't build the C netCDF library as a shared library or if it has already been installed by someone else only as a static library (which means there are no libnetcdf.so files in the library directory where the netCDF C library was installed), then building and installing the Fortran netCDF libraries will be somewhat more complicated.

If you need to set the LD_LIBRARY_PATH (or DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH) environment variable, don't use the "sudo" command before the following "configure" or "make check" commands. Using "sudo" causes the LD_* environment variables to be ignored. You can use "sudo make install" as the last step, but you shouldn't need to use "sudo" before that.

Assume the static netCDF C library is installed under ${DIR1}, and the other needed shared libraries for HDF5, zlib, and curl are installed under ${DIR2} (which might be the same as ${DIR1}).
Use the same C compiler as used to create the netCDF C library, specified with the CC environment variable, if necessary.

Set the CPPFLAGS, LDFLAGS, and LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variables to specify where the netCDF C library is installed and where the other shared libraries may be found, before running the configure script. For example:

  CPPFLAGS="-I${DIR1}/include -I${DIR2}/include" \
  LD_LIBRARY_PATH=${DIR1}/lib:${DIR2}/lib \
  LDFLAGS="-L${DIR1}/lib -L${DIR2}/lib" \
  LIBS="-lnetcdf -lhdf5_hl -lhdf5 -lz -lcurl" \
  ./configure --disable-shared --prefix=${DIR1}

For parallel I/O: The configure script sets CFLAGS appropriately for standard compilers, but if you are building with parallel I/O using wrappers such as mpicc and mpif90, you sometimes have to set CFLAGS to indicate which Fortran compiler is wrapped by mpif90. For example, if "mpicc --show" and "mpif90 --show" indicate gcc and gfortran are being used, then set CFLAGS=-DgFortran, and similarly set CFLAGS=-DpgiFortran for Portland Group compilers.
If that succeeds, run "make check".
If that succeeds, run "make install" or "sudo make install".

If you use static libraries, you will need to use something like

    -L${DIR1}/lib -lnetcdff -lnetcdf -L${DIR2}/lib -lhdf5_hl -lhdf5 -lz -curl -lm

to link Fortran software with the installed Fortran library, You could also use the "nf-config" utility installed in ${DIR1}/bin.

Unidata

Building the netCDF-4.2 and later Fortran libraries

Using shared libraries

Using static libraries