Package Management

What are ModuleFiles?

Modulefiles are files that are used to setup the local environment to configure various software packages.

What is Spack?

The HPC facility provides users access to Spack, a package management tool designed to support multiple versions and configurations of a software on a wide variety of platforms and environments.

What is the difference between Modulefiles and Spack?

Modulefiles are either generated by the package or by the administrator. On the other hand, Spack is a superset of modulefiles and generates the appropriate modulefiles for the installed package. An advantage of Spack is that it offers dependency management for packages.

Between Modulefiles and Spack, which is more user friendly?

Spack is more user friendly and also offers bash auto-completion for its commands. It simplifies package management and version control for the system administrator.

Where to find more information about the command line syntax for Spack and Modulefiles?

You can type spack help to get information about the command line syntax for Spack. Similarly, type module help for information related to Modulefiles. For further details kindly visit the links for Spack and Modulefiles.