Command Line Execution

AltairSimSolid2026.exe -i silent -DUSER_INSTALL_DIR=<installation directory> 
-DACCEPT_EULA=YES

AltairSimSolid2026.exe -i silent -DUSER_INSTALL_DIR="C:\Program Files\Altair\2026_testing" -DACCEPT_EULA=YES

AltairSimSolid2026.exe

This is the self-extracting and executing installer binary. Generally, it is versioned (2026.exe), indicating a specific build or release, crucial for version control in large deployments.

-i silent

This argument instructs the installer to run in "silent" or "unattended" mode. In this mode, dialog boxes, prompts, and progress indicators (though some might still show a minimal progress bar) are suppressed. All necessary inputs (like installation directory, EULA acceptance) must be provided via command-line arguments.

-DUSER_INSTALL_DIR=<installation directory>

This is a Java-style system property syntax, typical for installers built with technologies like InstallAnywhere or similar cross-platform installers.

• -D: Denotes a definition of a system property.
• USER_INSTALL_DIR: This is a predefined internal variable within the installer script that holds the target installation path. By assigning it a value, you override the default or user-selected path. The path should be absolute and, if it contains spaces, must be enclosed in quotes.

-DACCEPT_EULA=YES

Similar to USER_INSTALL_DIR, this system property instructs the installer that the End User License Agreement has been programmatically accepted. This is a critical legal and operational requirement for silent installations, preventing the process from halting due to a license prompt. The value YES is a specific string literal expected by the installer.

Automation

This enables unattended deployment across multiple machines using scripting

Consistency

This guarantees identical installations across all target systems, reducing configuration drift and troubleshooting

Error handling

While silent, the installer typically returns an exit code (0 for success, non-zero for errors) that can be captured by the calling script for automated validation. Log files are often generated to record the installation process and any issues.

simsolid.exe

This is the main executable for the SimSolid application itself, not the installer. It resides within the installed program directory.

-f or --file <file_path>

This is a classic command-line argument for specifying input files.

• Short form (-f) and long form (--file) are common conventions, improving readability for scripts.
• Multiple uses: The parser is designed to handle multiple -f arguments, allowing for the import of several geometry files simultaneously in a single session. This implies an internal queue or list of files to be processed sequentially or in parallel during the initial loading phase.

Geometry Import Settings (-r, -a, -c, -m)

These parameters directly control the faceting and geometry tessellation process during import. SimSolid core strength lies in its meshless or "robust geometry" approach, and these parameters define how the CAD data is interpreted into the SimSolid analysis representation.

-r or --resolution <standard | enhanced | fine | custom>

This controls the "fidelity" of the tessellation process. Higher resolution implies more facets used to represent the geometry, leading to potentially higher accuracy but also larger internal data structures. "Custom" implies that the underlying angular and chordal deviation values will be used directly.

-a or --angle <angular_deviation_in_degrees>

This defines the maximum allowable angular deviation between adjacent facets and the true curved surface. Smaller angles lead to a finer approximation of curved surfaces.

-c or --chord <chordal_deviation_in_mm>

This defines the maximum allowable distance (chordal deviation) between the facet edge and the true curved surface. Smaller chordal deviations also lead to a finer approximation, particularly for large radii.

-m or --method <ct | parasolid>

This specifies the underlying geometry kernel or method used for importing and processing the CAD file. The ct refers to legacy reader.

• simsolid.exe -f C:\Models\example1.x_t
• simsolid.exe --file C:\Models\example1.x_t
• simsolid.exe -f C:\Models\example2.prt -r enhanced
• simsolid.exe --file C:\Models\example2.prt --resolution enhanced
• simsolid.exe -f C:\Models\example3.asm.1 -r custom -a 5 -c 0.1 -m ct
• simsolid.exe --file C:\Models\example.asm.1 --resolution custom --angle 5 --chord 0.1 --method ct

Batch geometry processing

This allows automated loading of CAD models without manual intervention, ideal for scenarios with many models or integration into larger PLM (Product Lifecycle Management) systems.

Reproducibility

This ensures that geometry import settings are consistent for all automated runs, crucial for validation and quality assurance.

Performance tuning

The resolution, angle, and chordal deviation parameters allow users to balance accuracy with computational overhead. A finer resolution results in more detailed representation, which can improve accuracy for small features or curved geometries but might increase memory usage and initial processing time.

Start /wait <Path to SimSolid installation folder>\simsolid.exe -s <JavaScript file path> -l <log file>

Start /wait

This is a Windows command.

• Start: Launches a new process.
• /wait: Instructs the calling command prompt to wait for the launched simsolid.exe process to complete before continuing.

-s <JavaScript file path>

This specifies the path to the JavaScript file (.js) containing the SimSolid automation script. This script interacts with SimSolid internal API (Application Programming Interface), which is exposed to the JavaScript environment.

-l <log file>

This directs SimSolid to output its execution log, including warnings, errors, and solver status, to the specified file. This is vital for debugging, monitoring progress in long-running analyses, and auditing results.

start /wait C:\Program Files\Altair\SimSolid\2026\simsolid.exe -s C:\Models\Batch\modal.js -l C:\Models\Batch\log.txt

Technical Capabilities via JavaScript

Modal and multi-loadcase analyses with regular connections is currently supported. Multi-loadcase analysis supports import of forces, remote loads and spot displacements.

Below are the operations we can do with batch mode (For command lines, refer SimSolid JavaScript Reference commands).

• Loading a project or creating a new one
• Defining material properties from a SimSolid material database
• Tweaking the solution settings
• Applying Inertia relief boundary condition for multi-loadcase analysis
• Defining loads (forces, remote loads, Spot displacements)
• Setting up connections (regular connections)
• Add/delete parts in the current design study
• Configuring analysis types (modal, multi-loadcase)
• Initiating the solver
• Import datum points and export the results (CSV, UNV) at those datum points

Advanced automation

This enables complex workflows beyond simple geometry import, such as setting up entire analyses (pre-processing, solving, post-processing steps).

Customization

This allows users to define custom logic, loops, and conditional statements within the JavaScript to handle varying model configurations or analysis requirements.

Integration with HPC/Cloud

The batch mode combined with /wait makes SimSolid acceptable to High-Performance Computing (HPC) clusters or cloud environments where jobs are queued and executed without human oversight. The log file is essential for remote monitoring.

Regression testing

Scripts can be used to set up and run a suite of analyses to ensure that software updates or model changes do not negatively impact results.

%#%

This syntax (%1%, %2%, for example) acts as a placeholder or variable within the JavaScript file. When SimSolid loads the script, it replaces %1% with the value of the first -p argument, %2% with the second, and so on.

-p <parameter #N>

Each -p argument provides a value for a corresponding placeholder in the JavaScript file. The order matters.

start /wait C:\"Program Files"\Altair\SimSolid\2026\simsolid.exe -s C:\Models\Batch\modal.js -l C:\Models\Batch\log.txt -p pullupbar-v2 -p global

Flexibility

A single JavaScript template can be reused for many different analysis scenarios by simply varying the command-line parameters. This avoids the need to create multiple, slightly different JavaScript files.

Data-driven automation

This allows parameters (for example, material properties, load magnitudes, file names, output paths) to be driven by external data sources.

Design of experiments (DoE) and optimization

This is critical for running design studies or optimization loops where many permutations of input parameters need to be analyzed systematically. An external script can generate parameter sets and then call SimSolid in a loop for each set.