CFD Direct From the Cloud (CFDDFC®) is our established platform for running OpenFOAM, ParaView and supporting software using cloud computing. CFDDFC is now available on AWS C6i and M6i instances of Elastic Cloud Compute (EC2). These instances use the 32-core 2.9 GHz (3.5 GHz with turbo-boost) Intel Xeon Platinum 8375C (Ice Lake) processor. With 2 processors per socket, the largest single instances, c6i.32xlarge and m6i.32xlarge, includes 64 cores. C6i and M6i instances run at up to 50 Gbps of network speed at the largest instance size, which also supports Elastic Fabric Adapter to provide high speed networking across a cluster of instances.
CFDDFC® v9 Released

CFD Direct is pleased to announce the release of version 9 of CFD Direct From the Cloud™ (CFDDFC®), available on Amazon Web Services (AWS) Marketplace as the standard CFDDFC product and CFDDFC (Arm). Standard CFDDFC v9 includes OpenFOAM v9, ParaView v5.6.0, OpenMPI v4.1.1 and FreeCAD v0.19.2, running on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. CFDDFC (Arm) is server-only including OpenFOAM v9 and OpenMPI v4.1.1, running on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. CFDDFC runs on single instances with up to 48 C5 Intel cores (c5.24xlarge) or 64 C6 Arm-based cores (c6g.16xlarge) and in clusters with with good parallel scaling on clusters of instances up to 1000 cores.
OpenFOAM v9 Training

In Autumn 2021 – Winter/Spring 2022, CFD Direct is running its OpenFOAM Training courses — Essential CFD, Applied CFD and Programming CFD — fully updated with the latest features of the new version 9 release of OpenFOAM. The training uses new features in OpenFOAM v9 for more productive and effective CFD. All courses are delivered as live virtual training. Essential and Applied CFD courses are available: 20 – 24 Sep, 18-22 Oct, 7-11 Feb (2022), 14-18 Mar. Programming CFD is available 28-30 Sep, 2-4 Nov, 23-25 Nov, 25-27 Jan (2022), 22-24 Feb, 29-31 Mar.
OpenFOAM Models & Constraints

In March 2021, CFD Direct replaced fvOptions with new fvModels and fvConstraints classes. fvModels provided a more complete framework for implementation of complex models which could be optionally selected during a simulation. New fvModels were implemented for heat transfer and sources, which are easier to configure than a general fvOption. Pressure limiting was implemented as an fvConstraint named limitPressure, consistent with limitVelocity and limitTemperature. With additional fvModels such as cloud and surfaceFilm, solvers such as reactingFoam replicate the functionality of several existing solvers which are deprecated.
Useful Tools in OpenFOAM

We design our OpenFOAM Training so that users can learn effective CFD, giving them the confidence to carry out CFD analysis, repeatedly, to a defined standard in a timely manner. We provide 4 courses that teach reliable procedures to configure, run and maintain CFD simulations. While creating and improving these courses, we have contributed useful tools to OpenFOAM for more productive CFD, so that users waste less time on routine tasks. They include the post-processing command line interface, template cases, and tools for case setup, monitoring simulations, quick documentation and code customisation.
CFD Direct Year 6: 2020-2021

In Year 6 of CFD Direct, our developments of OpenFOAM included new interface capturing methods and multicomponent transport models. We provided core maintenance, including redesign of fvOptions and transport modelling, and repaired issues, e.g. in meshing and conjugate heat transfer. We managed the OpenFOAM Foundation, releasing OpenFOAM v8, packaging OpenFOAM-dev and publishing websites and documentation. During the Covid restrictions, we delivered 67 days of Live Virtual OpenFOAM Training, and provided cloud CFD with CFDDFC® to over 700 subscribers.