HDF4 ncdump and ncgen with and without --disable-netcdf

Hdf-forum archives
1

Hello,

I am trying to understand if there is any difference in the behavior and capabilities of the HDF4 version of the ncdump and ncgen utilities when HDF4 is built with and without --disable-netcdf.

A diff on the resulting binaries shows that they are different, but I've found, for example, that HDF4's ncdump can read both HDF4 files and NetCDF files whether HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf or not. This is with HDF-4.2.9.

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did search online and did not find a clear answer to this question.

Thanks,

Chris

···

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

2

Hello Chris,

The ncdump behavior should be the same whether or not -disable-netcdf was used to build HDF4.

All that the -disable-netcdf option does is rename the C netCDF APIs that are used within HDF4 from ncxxx to sd_ncxxx.
This enables users to compile applications with both netCDF C and HDF4 without getting name clashes. (The HDF4
SD interface was implemented using netCDF 2.3.2.)

If you are seeing an issue, let me know!

-Barbara

···

=================
Barbara Jones
The HDF Helpdesk

The HDF Group
help@hdfgroup.org

From: Hdf-forum [mailto:hdf-forum-bounces@lists.hdfgroup.org] On Behalf Of Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate
Sent: Friday, November 15, 2013 11:16 AM
To: hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
Subject: [Hdf-forum] HDF4 ncdump and ncgen with and without --disable-netcdf

Hello,

I am trying to understand if there is any difference in the behavior and capabilities of the HDF4 version of the ncdump and ncgen utilities when HDF4 is built with and without --disable-netcdf.

A diff on the resulting binaries shows that they are different, but I've found, for example, that HDF4's ncdump can read both HDF4 files and NetCDF files whether HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf or not. This is with HDF-4.2.9.

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did search online and did not find a clear answer to this question.

Thanks,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

3

Barbara,

Thank you very much for your clear answer. I am not seeing an issue. The reason for my query is that I am trying to figure out how best to install NetCDF-4.3.0 and HDF4 such that there are no conflict with libraries or with the ncdump and ncgen utilities.

What I plan to do is install HDF-4.2.9 using --disable-netcdf and then rename HDF4's ncdump and ncgen to h4dump and h4gen.

Then, I will install NetCDF-4.3.0 using --enable-hdf4 so that it can read HDF4 files and there won't be name clashes since HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf. And, since I renamed the HDF4 utilities there won't be confusion about which ncdump and ncgen is found in a user's path and causing problems.

Now that I know --disable-netcdf doesn't affect the ncdump and ncgen utilities, I think my plan should work.

Thanks for your help,

Chris

···

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

On Nov 15, 2013, at 10:44 AM, Barbara Jones wrote:

Hello Chris,

The ncdump behavior should be the same whether or not –disable-netcdf was used to build HDF4.

All that the –disable-netcdf option does is rename the C netCDF APIs that are used within HDF4 from ncxxx to sd_ncxxx.
This enables users to compile applications with both netCDF C and HDF4 without getting name clashes. (The HDF4
SD interface was implemented using netCDF 2.3.2.)

If you are seeing an issue, let me know!

-Barbara

=================
Barbara Jones
The HDF Helpdesk

The HDF Group
help@hdfgroup.org

From: Hdf-forum [mailto:hdf-forum-bounces@lists.hdfgroup.org] On Behalf Of Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate
Sent: Friday, November 15, 2013 11:16 AM
To: hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
Subject: [Hdf-forum] HDF4 ncdump and ncgen with and without --disable-netcdf

Hello,

I am trying to understand if there is any difference in the behavior and capabilities of the HDF4 version of the ncdump and ncgen utilities when HDF4 is built with and without --disable-netcdf.

A diff on the resulting binaries shows that they are different, but I've found, for example, that HDF4's ncdump can read both HDF4 files and NetCDF files whether HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf or not. This is with HDF-4.2.9.

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did search online and did not find a clear answer to this question.

Thanks,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org

4

Albert,

Thanks for the feedback. If there is a "best practice" renaming convention that is widely followed, I would definitely like to adhere to that.

Thanks,

Chris

···

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

On Nov 15, 2013, at 11:21 AM, Albert Cheng wrote:

Hi Chris,

I think your plan is sound. May I suggest that you rename the HDF4's ncdump and ncgen to h4ncdump and h4ncgen
respectively. In my personal opinion, they reflect the origin of the two tools closer. This does not affect the
functionalities of the two tools either way.

-Albert Cheng
THG staff

On Nov 15, 2013, at 12:00 PM, Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate <christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov> > wrote:

Barbara,

Thank you very much for your clear answer. I am not seeing an issue. The reason for my query is that I am trying to figure out how best to install NetCDF-4.3.0 and HDF4 such that there are no conflict with libraries or with the ncdump and ncgen utilities.

What I plan to do is install HDF-4.2.9 using --disable-netcdf and then rename HDF4's ncdump and ncgen to h4dump and h4gen.

Then, I will install NetCDF-4.3.0 using --enable-hdf4 so that it can read HDF4 files and there won't be name clashes since HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf. And, since I renamed the HDF4 utilities there won't be confusion about which ncdump and ncgen is found in a user's path and causing problems.

Now that I know --disable-netcdf doesn't affect the ncdump and ncgen utilities, I think my plan should work.

Thanks for your help,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

On Nov 15, 2013, at 10:44 AM, Barbara Jones wrote:

Hello Chris,

The ncdump behavior should be the same whether or not –disable-netcdf was used to build HDF4.

All that the –disable-netcdf option does is rename the C netCDF APIs that are used within HDF4 from ncxxx to sd_ncxxx.
This enables users to compile applications with both netCDF C and HDF4 without getting name clashes. (The HDF4
SD interface was implemented using netCDF 2.3.2.)

If you are seeing an issue, let me know!

-Barbara

=================
Barbara Jones
The HDF Helpdesk

The HDF Group
help@hdfgroup.org

From: Hdf-forum [mailto:hdf-forum-bounces@lists.hdfgroup.org] On Behalf Of Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate
Sent: Friday, November 15, 2013 11:16 AM
To: hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
Subject: [Hdf-forum] HDF4 ncdump and ncgen with and without --disable-netcdf

Hello,

I am trying to understand if there is any difference in the behavior and capabilities of the HDF4 version of the ncdump and ncgen utilities when HDF4 is built with and without --disable-netcdf.

A diff on the resulting binaries shows that they are different, but I've found, for example, that HDF4's ncdump can read both HDF4 files and NetCDF files whether HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf or not. This is with HDF-4.2.9.

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did search online and did not find a clear answer to this question.

Thanks,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org

5

Hi Chris,

No, there is no best practice yet. It is merely a name as in "a rose by any other name …" :slight_smile:
OTHO, I think what you plan to do is good and is something we may consider adding to our FAQ.

-Albert

···

On Nov 15, 2013, at 12:31 PM, Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate <christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>> wrote:

Albert,

Thanks for the feedback. If there is a "best practice" renaming convention that is widely followed, I would definitely like to adhere to that.

Thanks,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

On Nov 15, 2013, at 11:21 AM, Albert Cheng wrote:

Hi Chris,

I think your plan is sound. May I suggest that you rename the HDF4's ncdump and ncgen to h4ncdump and h4ncgen
respectively. In my personal opinion, they reflect the origin of the two tools closer. This does not affect the
functionalities of the two tools either way.

-Albert Cheng
THG staff

On Nov 15, 2013, at 12:00 PM, Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate <christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>> wrote:

Barbara,

Thank you very much for your clear answer. I am not seeing an issue. The reason for my query is that I am trying to figure out how best to install NetCDF-4.3.0 and HDF4 such that there are no conflict with libraries or with the ncdump and ncgen utilities.

What I plan to do is install HDF-4.2.9 using --disable-netcdf and then rename HDF4's ncdump and ncgen to h4dump and h4gen.

Then, I will install NetCDF-4.3.0 using --enable-hdf4 so that it can read HDF4 files and there won't be name clashes since HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf. And, since I renamed the HDF4 utilities there won't be confusion about which ncdump and ncgen is found in a user's path and causing problems.

Now that I know --disable-netcdf doesn't affect the ncdump and ncgen utilities, I think my plan should work.

Thanks for your help,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

On Nov 15, 2013, at 10:44 AM, Barbara Jones wrote:

Hello Chris,

The ncdump behavior should be the same whether or not –disable-netcdf was used to build HDF4.

All that the –disable-netcdf option does is rename the C netCDF APIs that are used within HDF4 from ncxxx to sd_ncxxx.
This enables users to compile applications with both netCDF C and HDF4 without getting name clashes. (The HDF4
SD interface was implemented using netCDF 2.3.2.)

If you are seeing an issue, let me know!

-Barbara

=================
Barbara Jones
The HDF Helpdesk

The HDF Group
help@hdfgroup.org<mailto:help@hdfgroup.org>

From: Hdf-forum [mailto:hdf-forum-bounces@lists.hdfgroup.org<mailto:forum-bounces@lists.hdfgroup.org>] On Behalf Of Christopher Harrop - NOAA Affiliate
Sent: Friday, November 15, 2013 11:16 AM
To: hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org<mailto:hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org>
Subject: [Hdf-forum] HDF4 ncdump and ncgen with and without --disable-netcdf

Hello,

I am trying to understand if there is any difference in the behavior and capabilities of the HDF4 version of the ncdump and ncgen utilities when HDF4 is built with and without --disable-netcdf.

A diff on the resulting binaries shows that they are different, but I've found, for example, that HDF4's ncdump can read both HDF4 files and NetCDF files whether HDF4 was built with --disable-netcdf or not. This is with HDF-4.2.9.

I apologize if this has been answered already. I did search online and did not find a clear answer to this question.

Thanks,

Chris
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Christopher W. Harrop email: christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov<mailto:christopher.w.harrop@noaa.gov>
Global Systems Division voice: (303) 497-6808
NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory fax: (303) 497-7259
325 Broadway R/GSD2
Boulder, CO 80303

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org<mailto:Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org>
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org<mailto:Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org>
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org

_______________________________________________
Hdf-forum is for HDF software users discussion.
Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org<mailto:Hdf-forum@lists.hdfgroup.org>
http://mail.lists.hdfgroup.org/mailman/listinfo/hdf-forum_lists.hdfgroup.org