2 OpenFOAM cases

This chapter deals with the file structure and organisation of OpenFOAM cases. Normally, a user would assign a name to a case, e.g. the tutorial case of flow in a cavity is simply named cavity. This name becomes the name of a directory in which all the case files and subdirectories are stored. The case directories themselves can be located anywhere but we recommend they are within a run subdirectory of the user’s project directory, i.e.$HOME/OpenFOAM/${USER}-v2006.

One advantage of this is that the $FOAM_RUN environment variable is set to the directory $HOME/OpenFOAM/${USER}-v2006/run by default; the user can quickly move to that directory by executing a preset alias, run, at the command line.

It is suggested that beginners in OpenFOAM start their journey with the tutorials. Each solver has at least one tutorial which shows its use. These are located in the $FOAM_TUTORIALS directory, reached quickly by executing the tut alias at the command line. The tutorials directory structure mimics the solvers structure for easier navigation. Selected tutorials are described in the Tutorial Guide, and further community-driven content available from http://wiki.openfoam.com.