GDBOF: A Debudding Tool for OpenFOAM

Abstract

OpenFOAM libraries are a great contribution to CFD community and a powerful way to create solvers and other tools. Nevertheless in this creative process a deep knowledge of classes structure, both for value storage in geometric fields and for matrices resulting from equation systems is needed, becoming a big challenge for beginners. To help in this process a new tool, called gdbOF, attachable at gdb (GNU Debugger) is presented. It allows to analyze class structures in debugging time. This application is implemented by gdb macros, these macros can access to code classes and its data transparently, giving so, the requested information. Tool is tested in different application cases, such as assembling and storage of matrices in a scalar advective-diffusive problem, non orthogonal correction methods in purely diffusive tests and multiphase solvers based on Volume of Fluid Method. In these tests several type of data are inspected, like internal and boundary vector and scalar values from solution fields, fluxes in cell faces, boundary patches and boundary conditions. As an additional feature data dumping to file is presented. All these capabilities give to gdbOF a wide range of use not only in academic tests but also in real problems.