diff --git a/.gitmodules b/.gitmodules
index d5971f295..ec918022b 100644
--- a/.gitmodules
+++ b/.gitmodules
@@ -1,3 +1,6 @@
 [submodule "src/blt"]
 	path = src/blt
 	url = https://github.com/LLNL/blt.git
+[submodule "scripts/uberenv"]
+	path = scripts/uberenv
+	url = https://github.com/LLNL/uberenv.git
diff --git a/.travis.yml b/.travis.yml
index ddb7f44e5..8b695abac 100644
--- a/.travis.yml
+++ b/.travis.yml
@@ -194,7 +194,7 @@ script:
   - while sleep 540; do echo "=====[ $SECONDS seconds still running ]====="; done &
   # build deps using uberenv
   # use -k to avoid suprises related to certs
-  - python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/travis/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/ || travis_terminate 1;
+  - python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/travis/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/ || travis_terminate 1;
   # todo:
   #- export SPACK_PYTHON_BIN_DIR=`ls -d ${TRAVIS_BUILD_DIR}/uberenv_libs/spack/opt/spack/*/*/python*/bin`
   #- pip install cpp-coveralls
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/project.json b/.uberenv_config.json
similarity index 59%
rename from scripts/uberenv/project.json
rename to .uberenv_config.json
index ef7f81fda..7d51b546d 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/project.json
+++ b/.uberenv_config.json
@@ -1,8 +1,12 @@
 {
 "package_name" : "conduit",
-"uberenv_package_name" : "uberenv-conduit",
+"package_version" : "develop",
+"package_source_dir" : "../../",
+"spack_build_mode" : "uberenv-pkg",
+"spack_configs_path": "scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs",
+"spack_packages_path": "scripts/uberenv_configs/packages",
 "spack_url": "https://github.com/alpine-DAV/spack",
-"spack_branch": "task/2020_11_conduit_uberenv",
+"spack_branch": "conduit/develop",
 "mirror_url": "https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/",
 "spack_activate" : {"py-numpy" : ["+python"], 
                     "py-sphinx": ["+python","+doc"], 
diff --git a/azure-pipelines.yml b/azure-pipelines.yml
index 1217a458c..2c43f28ff 100644
--- a/azure-pipelines.yml
+++ b/azure-pipelines.yml
@@ -202,7 +202,7 @@ stages:
            # show final spec
            echo $SPACK_SPEC
            # run uber to build tpls
-           python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --pull --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/
+           python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --pull --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/
         displayName: 'Spack Build Tpls'
 
       - script: |
@@ -428,7 +428,7 @@ stages:
            # show final spec
            echo $SPACK_SPEC
            # run uber to build tpls
-           python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --pull --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/
+           python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py -k --pull --spec "${SPACK_SPEC}" --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/ --mirror=https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/
         displayName: 'Spack Build Tpls'
 
       - script: |
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv b/scripts/uberenv
new file mode 160000
index 000000000..4764d8935
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/uberenv
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+Subproject commit 4764d8935f08b2f86062aa8d5303927bb34f8aae
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py b/scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py
deleted file mode 100755
index 71ae2c1c8..000000000
--- a/scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py
+++ /dev/null
@@ -1,524 +0,0 @@
-#!/bin/sh
-"exec" "python" "-u" "-B" "$0" "$@"
-###############################################################################
-# Copyright (c) Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC and other Conduit
-# Project developers. See top-level LICENSE AND COPYRIGHT files for dates and
-# other details. No copyright assignment is required to contribute to Conduit.
-
-"""
- file: uberenv.py
-
- description: automates using spack to install a project.
-
-"""
-
-import os
-import sys
-import subprocess
-import shutil
-import socket
-import platform
-import json
-import datetime
-import glob
-
-from optparse import OptionParser
-
-from os import environ as env
-from os.path import join as pjoin
-
-
-def sexe(cmd,ret_output=False,echo = False):
-    """ Helper for executing shell commands. """
-    if echo:
-        print("[exe: {}]".format(cmd))
-    if ret_output:
-        p = subprocess.Popen(cmd,
-                             shell=True,
-                             stdout=subprocess.PIPE,
-                             stderr=subprocess.STDOUT)
-        res = p.communicate()[0]
-        res = res.decode('utf8')
-        return p.returncode,res
-    else:
-        return subprocess.call(cmd,shell=True)
-
-
-def parse_args():
-    "Parses args from command line"
-    parser = OptionParser()
-    parser.add_option("--install",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="install",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Install `package_name` instead of `uberenv_package_name`.")
-    # where to install
-    parser.add_option("--prefix",
-                      dest="prefix",
-                      default="uberenv_libs",
-                      help="destination directory")
-    # what compiler to use
-    parser.add_option("--spec",
-                      dest="spec",
-                      default=None,
-                      help="spack compiler spec")
-    # optional location of spack mirror
-    parser.add_option("--mirror",
-                      dest="mirror",
-                      default=None,
-                      help="spack mirror directory")
-    # flag to create mirror
-    parser.add_option("--create-mirror",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="create_mirror",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Create spack mirror")
-    # this option allows a user to explicitly to select a
-    # group of spack settings files (compilers.yaml , packages.yaml)
-    parser.add_option("--spack-config-dir",
-                      dest="spack_config_dir",
-                      default=None,
-                      help="dir with spack settings files (compilers.yaml, packages.yaml, etc)")
-
-    # a file that holds settings for a specific project
-    # using uberenv.py
-    parser.add_option("--project-json",
-                      dest="project_json",
-                      default=pjoin(uberenv_script_dir(),"project.json"),
-                      help="uberenv project settings json file")
-
-    # flag to use insecure curl + git
-    parser.add_option("-k",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="ignore_ssl_errors",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Ignore SSL Errors")
-
-    # option to force a spack pull
-    parser.add_option("--pull",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="spack_pull",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Pull if spack repo already exists")
-
-    # option to force for clean of packages specified to
-    # be cleaned in the project.json
-    parser.add_option("--clean",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="spack_clean",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Force uninstall of packages specified in project.json")
-
-    # option to tell spack to run tests
-    parser.add_option("--run_tests",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="run_tests",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Invoke build tests during spack install")
-
-    # option to init osx sdk env flags
-    parser.add_option("--macos-sdk-env-setup",
-                      action="store_true",
-                      dest="macos_sdk_env_setup",
-                      default=False,
-                      help="Set several env vars to select OSX SDK settings."
-                           "This was necessary for older versions of macOS "
-                           " but can cause issues with macOS versions >= 10.13. "
-                           " so it is disabled by default.")
-
-
-    ###############
-    # parse args
-    ###############
-    opts, extras = parser.parse_args()
-    # we want a dict b/c the values could
-    # be passed without using optparse
-    opts = vars(opts)
-    if not opts["spack_config_dir"] is None:
-        opts["spack_config_dir"] = os.path.abspath(opts["spack_config_dir"])
-        if not os.path.isdir(opts["spack_config_dir"]):
-            print("[ERROR: invalid spack config dir: {} ]".format(opts["spack_config_dir"]))
-            sys.exit(-1)
-    # if rel path is given for the mirror, we need to evaluate here -- before any
-    # chdirs to avoid confusion related to what it is relative to.
-    # (it should be relative to where uberenv is run from, so it matches what you expect
-    #  from shell completion, etc)
-    if not opts["mirror"] is None:
-        if not opts["mirror"].startswith("http") and not os.path.isabs(opts["mirror"]):
-            opts["mirror"] = os.path.abspath(opts["mirror"])
-    return opts, extras
-
-
-def uberenv_script_dir():
-    # returns the directory of the uberenv.py script
-    return os.path.dirname(os.path.abspath(__file__))
-
-def load_json_file(json_file):
-    # reads json file
-    return json.load(open(json_file))
-
-def uberenv_detect_platform():
-    # find supported sets of compilers.yaml, packages,yaml
-    res = None
-    if "darwin" in platform.system().lower():
-        res = "darwin"
-    elif "SYS_TYPE" in os.environ.keys():
-        sys_type = os.environ["SYS_TYPE"].lower()
-        res = sys_type
-    return res
-
-def uberenv_spack_config_dir(opts, uberenv_dir):
-    # path to compilers.yaml, which we will for compiler setup for spack
-    spack_config_dir = opts["spack_config_dir"]
-    if spack_config_dir is None:
-        uberenv_plat = uberenv_detect_platform()
-        if not uberenv_plat is None:
-            spack_config_dir = os.path.abspath(pjoin(uberenv_dir,"spack_configs",uberenv_plat))
-    return spack_config_dir
-
-
-def disable_spack_config_scopes(spack_dir):
-    # disables all config scopes except "default", which we will
-    # force our settings into
-    spack_lib_config = pjoin(spack_dir,"lib","spack","spack","config.py")
-    print("[disabling config scope (except default) in: {}]".format(spack_lib_config))
-    cfg_script = open(spack_lib_config).read()
-    for cfg_scope_stmt in ["('system', os.path.join(spack.paths.system_etc_path, 'spack')),",
-                           "('site', os.path.join(spack.paths.etc_path, 'spack')),",
-                           "('user', spack.paths.user_config_path)"]:
-        cfg_script = cfg_script.replace(cfg_scope_stmt,
-                                        "#DISABLED BY UBERENV: " + cfg_scope_stmt)
-    open(spack_lib_config,"w").write(cfg_script)
-
-
-
-def patch_spack(spack_dir,uberenv_dir,cfg_dir,pkgs):
-    # force spack to use only default config scope
-    disable_spack_config_scopes(spack_dir)
-    spack_etc_defaults_dir = pjoin(spack_dir,"etc","spack","defaults")
-    # copy in default config.yaml
-    config_yaml = os.path.abspath(pjoin(uberenv_dir,"spack_configs","config.yaml"))
-    sexe("cp {} {}/".format(config_yaml, spack_etc_defaults_dir ), echo=True)
-    # copy in other settings per platform
-    if not cfg_dir is None:
-        print("[copying uberenv compiler and packages settings from {0}]".format(cfg_dir))
-
-        config_yaml    = pjoin(cfg_dir,"config.yaml")
-        compilers_yaml = pjoin(cfg_dir,"compilers.yaml")
-        packages_yaml  = pjoin(cfg_dir,"packages.yaml")
-
-        if os.path.isfile(config_yaml):
-            sexe("cp {} {}/".format(config_yaml , spack_etc_defaults_dir ), echo=True)
-
-        if os.path.isfile(compilers_yaml):
-            sexe("cp {} {}/".format(compilers_yaml, spack_etc_defaults_dir ), echo=True)
-
-        if os.path.isfile(packages_yaml):
-            sexe("cp {} {}/".format(packages_yaml, spack_etc_defaults_dir ), echo=True)
-    else:
-        # let spack try to auto find compilers
-        sexe("spack/bin/spack compiler find", echo=True)
-    dest_spack_pkgs = pjoin(spack_dir,"var","spack","repos","builtin","packages")
-    # hot-copy our packages into spack
-    sexe("cp -Rf %s %s" % (pkgs,dest_spack_pkgs))
-
-
-def create_spack_mirror(mirror_path,pkg_name,ignore_ssl_errors=False):
-    """
-    Creates a spack mirror for pkg_name at mirror_path.
-    """
-    if not mirror_path:
-        print("[--create-mirror requires a mirror directory]")
-        sys.exit(-1)
-
-    mirror_cmd = "spack/bin/spack "
-    if ignore_ssl_errors:
-        mirror_cmd += "-k "
-    mirror_cmd += "mirror create -d {} --dependencies {}".format(mirror_path,
-                                                                 pkg_name)
-    return sexe(mirror_cmd, echo=True)
-
-def find_spack_mirror(spack_dir, mirror_name):
-    """
-    Returns the path of a site scoped spack mirror with the
-    given name, or None if no mirror exists.
-    """
-    rv, res = sexe("spack/bin/spack mirror list", ret_output=True)
-    mirror_path = None
-    for mirror in res.split('\n'):
-        if mirror:
-            parts = mirror.split()
-            if parts[0] == mirror_name:
-                mirror_path = parts[1]
-    return mirror_path
-
-
-def use_spack_mirror(spack_dir,
-                     mirror_name,
-                     mirror_path):
-    """
-    Configures spack to use mirror at a given path.
-    """
-    existing_mirror_path = find_spack_mirror(spack_dir, mirror_name)
-    if existing_mirror_path and mirror_path != existing_mirror_path:
-        # Existing mirror has different URL, error out
-        print("[removing existing spack mirror `{}` @ {}]".format(mirror_name,
-                                                                  existing_mirror_path))
-        #
-        # Note: In this case, spack says it removes the mirror, but we still
-        # get errors when we try to add a new one, sounds like a bug
-        #
-        sexe("spack/bin/spack mirror remove {} ".format(mirror_name),
-             echo=True)
-        existing_mirror_path = None
-    if not existing_mirror_path:
-        # Add if not already there
-        sexe("spack/bin/spack mirror add {} {}".format(
-                mirror_name, mirror_path), echo=True)
-        print("[using mirror {}]".format(mirror_path))
-
-
-def find_osx_sdks():
-    """
-    Finds installed osx sdks, returns dict mapping version to file system path
-    """
-    res = {}
-    sdks = glob.glob("/Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/MacOSX.platform/Developer/SDKs/MacOSX*.sdk")
-    for sdk in sdks:
-        sdk_base = os.path.split(sdk)[1]
-        ver = sdk_base[len("MacOSX"):sdk_base.rfind(".")]
-        res[ver] = sdk
-    return res
-
-def setup_osx_sdk_env_vars():
-    """
-    Finds installed osx sdks, returns dict mapping version to file system path
-    """
-    # find current osx version (10.11.6)
-    dep_tgt = platform.mac_ver()[0]
-    # sdk file names use short version (ex: 10.11)
-    dep_tgt_short = dep_tgt[:dep_tgt.rfind(".")]
-    # find installed sdks, ideally we want the sdk that matches the current os
-    sdk_root = None
-    sdks = find_osx_sdks()
-    if dep_tgt_short in sdks.keys():
-        # matches our osx, use this one
-        sdk_root = sdks[dep_tgt_short]
-    elif len(sdks) > 0:
-        # for now, choose first one:
-        dep_tgt  = sdks.keys()[0]
-        sdk_root = sdks[dep_tgt]
-    else:
-        # no valid sdks, error out
-        print("[ERROR: Could not find OSX SDK @ /Applications/Xcode.app/Contents/Developer/Platforms/MacOSX.platform/Developer/SDKs/]")
-        sys.exit(-1)
-
-    env["MACOSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET"] = dep_tgt
-    env["SDKROOT"] = sdk_root
-    print("[setting MACOSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET to {}]".format(env["MACOSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET"]))
-    print("[setting SDKROOT to {}]".format(env[ "SDKROOT"]))
-
-
-def find_spack_pkg_path(pkg_name):
-    r,rout = sexe("spack/bin/spack find -p " + pkg_name,ret_output = True)
-    for l in rout.split("\n"):
-        lstrip = l.strip()
-        if not lstrip == "" and \
-           not lstrip.startswith("==>") and  \
-           not lstrip.startswith("--"):
-            return {"name": pkg_name, "path": l.split()[-1]}
-    print("[ERROR: failed to find package named '{}']".format(pkg_name))
-    sys.exit(-1)
-
-def read_spack_full_spec(pkg_name,spec):
-    rv, res = sexe("spack/bin/spack spec " + pkg_name + " " + spec, ret_output=True)
-    for l in res.split("\n"):
-        if l.startswith(pkg_name) and l.count("@") > 0 and l.count("arch=") > 0:
-            return l.strip()
-def main():
-    """
-    clones and runs spack to setup our third_party libs and
-    creates a host-config.cmake file that can be used by
-    our project.
-    """
-    # parse args from command line
-    opts, extras = parse_args()
-
-    # load project settings
-    project_opts = load_json_file(opts["project_json"])
-    if opts["install"]:
-        uberenv_pkg_name = project_opts["package_name"]
-    else:
-        uberenv_pkg_name = project_opts["uberenv_package_name"]
-    if "mirror_url" in project_opts.keys() and not opts["create_mirror"]:
-        opts["mirror"] = project_opts["mirror_url"]
-    print("[uberenv project settings: {}]".format(str(project_opts)))
-    print("[uberenv options: {}]".format(str(opts)))
-    if "darwin" in platform.system().lower():
-        if opts["macos_sdk_env_setup"]:
-            # setup osx deployment target and sdk settings
-            setup_osx_sdk_env_vars()
-        else:
-            print("[skipping MACOSX env var setup]")
-    # setup default spec
-    if opts["spec"] is None:
-        if "darwin" in platform.system().lower():
-            opts["spec"] = "%clang"
-        else:
-            opts["spec"] = "%gcc"
-    print("[spack spec: {}]".format(opts["spec"]))
-    # get the current working path, and the glob used to identify the
-    # package files we want to hot-copy to spack
-    uberenv_path = os.path.split(os.path.abspath(__file__))[0]
-    pkgs = pjoin(uberenv_path, "packages","*")
-    # setup destination paths
-    dest_dir = os.path.abspath(opts["prefix"])
-    dest_spack = pjoin(dest_dir,"spack")
-    print("[installing to: {0}]".format(dest_dir))
-    # print a warning if the dest path already exists
-    if not os.path.isdir(dest_dir):
-        os.mkdir(dest_dir)
-    else:
-        print("[info: destination '{}' already exists]".format(dest_dir))
-    if os.path.isdir(dest_spack):
-        print("[info: destination '{}' already exists]".format(dest_spack))
-
-    if not os.path.isdir(dest_spack):
-        print("[info: cloning spack develop branch from github]")
-        os.chdir(dest_dir)
-        # clone spack into the dest path
-        clone_cmd ="git "
-        if opts["ignore_ssl_errors"]:
-            clone_cmd +="-c http.sslVerify=false "
-        spack_url = "https://github.com/spack/spack.git"
-        spack_branch = "develop"
-        if "spack_url" in project_opts:
-            spack_url = project_opts["spack_url"]
-        if "spack_branch" in project_opts:
-            spack_branch = project_opts["spack_branch"]
-        clone_cmd +=  "clone -b %s %s" % (spack_branch,spack_url)
-        sexe(clone_cmd, echo=True)
-        if "spack_commit" in project_opts:
-            sha1 = project_opts["spack_commit"]
-            print("[info: using spack commit {}]".format(sha1))
-            os.chdir(pjoin(dest_dir,"spack"))
-            sexe("git checkout %s" % sha1,echo=True)
-
-        # We should now have spack, but double check
-        # in case clone failed
-        if not os.path.isdir(dest_spack):
-            print("[ERROR: failed to clone spack to {}]".format(dest_spack))
-            return -1
-
-    if opts["spack_pull"]:
-        # do a pull to make sure we have the latest
-        os.chdir(dest_spack)
-        sexe("git stash", echo=True)
-        sexe("git pull", echo=True)
-
-    os.chdir(dest_dir)
-    # twist spack's arms
-    cfg_dir = uberenv_spack_config_dir(opts, uberenv_path)
-    patch_spack(dest_spack, uberenv_path, cfg_dir, pkgs)
-
-    # show the spec for what will be built
-    spec_cmd = "spack/bin/spack spec " + uberenv_pkg_name + opts["spec"]
-    res = sexe(spec_cmd, echo=True)
-
-    # clean out any temporary spack build stages
-    cln_cmd = "spack/bin/spack clean "
-    res = sexe(cln_cmd, echo=True)
-
-    # clean out any spack cached stuff
-    cln_cmd = "spack/bin/spack clean --all"
-    res = sexe(cln_cmd, echo=True)
-
-    # check if we need to force uninstall of selected packages
-    if opts["spack_clean"]:
-        if project_opts.has_key("spack_clean_packages"):
-            for cln_pkg in project_opts["spack_clean_packages"]:
-                if not find_spack_pkg_path(cln_pkg) is None:
-                    unist_cmd = "spack/bin/spack uninstall -f -y --all --dependents " + cln_pkg
-                    res = sexe(unist_cmd, echo=True)
-
-    ##########################################################
-    # we now have an instance of spack configured how we
-    # need it to build our tpls at this point there are two
-    # possible next steps:
-    #
-    # *) create a mirror of the packages
-    #   OR
-    # *) build
-    #
-    ##########################################################
-    if opts["create_mirror"]:
-        return create_spack_mirror(opts["mirror"],
-                                   uberenv_pkg_name + opts["spec"],
-                                   opts["ignore_ssl_errors"])
-    else:
-        if not opts["mirror"] is None:
-            use_spack_mirror(dest_spack,
-                             uberenv_pkg_name,
-                             opts["mirror"])
-        # use the uberenv package to trigger the right builds
-        # and build an host-config.cmake file
-        install_cmd = "spack/bin/spack "
-        if opts["ignore_ssl_errors"]:
-            install_cmd += "-k "
-        install_cmd += "install "
-        if opts["run_tests"]:
-            install_cmd += "--test=root "
-        install_cmd += uberenv_pkg_name + opts["spec"]
-        res = sexe(install_cmd, echo=True)
-        if res != 0:
-            return res
-        if "spack_activate" in project_opts:
-            print("[activating dependent packages]")
-            # get the full spack spec for our project
-            full_spec = read_spack_full_spec(uberenv_pkg_name,opts["spec"])
-            pkg_names = project_opts["spack_activate"].keys()
-            for pkg_name in pkg_names:
-                pkg_spec_requirements = project_opts["spack_activate"][pkg_name]
-                activate=True
-                for req in pkg_spec_requirements:
-                    if req not in full_spec:
-                        activate=False
-                        break
-                if activate:
-                    activate_cmd = "spack/bin/spack activate " + pkg_name
-                    sexe(activate_cmd, echo=True)
-        # note: this assumes package extends python when +python
-        # this may fail general cases
-        if opts["install"] and "+python" in full_spec:
-            activate_cmd = "spack/bin/spack activate " + uberenv_pkg_name
-            sexe(activate_cmd, echo=True)
-        # if user opt'd for an install, we want to symlink the final ascent
-        # install to an easy place:
-        if opts["install"]:
-            pkg_path = find_spack_pkg_path(uberenv_pkg_name)
-            if uberenv_pkg_name != pkg_path["name"]:
-                print("[ERROR: Could not find install of {}]".format(uberenv_pkg_name))
-                return -1
-            else:
-                pkg_lnk_dir = "{}-install".format(uberenv_pkg_name)
-                if os.path.islink(pkg_lnk_dir):
-                    os.unlink(pkg_lnk_dir)
-                print("")
-                print("[symlinking install to {}]".format(pjoin(dest_dir,pkg_lnk_dir)))
-                os.symlink(pkg_path["path"],os.path.abspath(pkg_lnk_dir))
-                hcfg_glob = glob.glob(pjoin(pkg_lnk_dir,"*.cmake"))
-                if len(hcfg_glob) > 0:
-                    hcfg_path  = hcfg_glob[0]
-                    hcfg_fname = os.path.split(hcfg_path)[1]
-                    if os.path.islink(hcfg_fname):
-                        os.unlink(hcfg_fname)
-                    print("[symlinking host config file to {}]".format(pjoin(dest_dir,hcfg_fname)))
-                    os.symlink(hcfg_path,hcfg_fname)
-                print("")
-                print("[install complete!]")
-        return res
-
-if __name__ == "__main__":
-    sys.exit(main())
-
-
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py b/scripts/uberenv_configs/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py
similarity index 59%
rename from scripts/uberenv/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py
index 0458eb31a..f898169dc 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/packages/uberenv-conduit/package.py
@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 ##############################################################################
-# Copyright (c) 2013-2017, Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC.
+# Copyright (c) 2013-2021, Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC.
 # Produced at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
 #
 # This file is part of Spack.
@@ -39,47 +39,29 @@ class UberenvConduit(Conduit):
     coupling between packages in-core, serialization, and I/O tasks."""
 
     version('0.0.0', 'c8b277080a00041cfc4f64619e31f6d6',preferred=True)
+
+    # These are default choices for development that differ
+    # from spacks default choices
+    # (for example, spack wants docs off, python off -- by default)
+
     # default to building docs when using uberenv
     variant("doc",
             default=True,
             description="Build deps needed to create Conduit's Docs")
-    variant("adios", default=False, description="Build Conduit ADIOS support")
 
+    variant("python",
+            default=True,
+            description="Build deps needed for Conduit python support")
 
-    depends_on("cmake@3.14.2:", when="+cmake")
-
-    # Try some basic ADIOS configurations. NOTE: these are more extensively
-    # covered in the Conduit Spack base class. These seem necessary here too.
-    # note: Conduit always depends on hdf5 by default. We have a problem with
-    # HDF5. The serial parts of Conduit *cannot* use a parallel version. We
-    # must therefore build ADIOS without HDF5 since it cannot use a serial
-    # version. This should make it possible for Conduit+ADIOS to have
-    # serial HDF5 for relay while still having a parallel ADIOS for relay::mpi::io.
-    depends_on("adios+mpi~hdf5", when="+adios+mpi")
-    depends_on("adios~mpi~hdf5", when="+adios~mpi")
+    depends_on("hdf5@1.8~mpi",when="+hdf5+hdf5_compat")
 
+    ###################################
     # build phases used by this package
-    phases = ["configure"]
-
-    def cmake_args(self):
-        args = super(UberenvConduit, self).cmake_args()
-        return []
+    ###################################
+    phases = ['hostconfig']
 
     def url_for_version(self, version):
         dummy_tar_path =  os.path.abspath(pjoin(os.path.split(__file__)[0]))
         dummy_tar_path = pjoin(dummy_tar_path,"uberenv-conduit.tar.gz")
         url      = "file://" + dummy_tar_path
         return url
-
-    def configure(self, spec, prefix):
-        """
-        Create a host config for use in conduit
-        """
-        print("UberenvConduit.configure")
-        with working_dir('spack-build', create=True):
-            host_cfg_fname = self.create_host_config(spec, prefix)
-            # place a copy in the spack install dir for the uberenv-conduit package 
-            mkdirp(prefix)
-            install(host_cfg_fname,prefix)
-            install(host_cfg_fname,env["SPACK_DEBUG_LOG_DIR"])
-
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/packages/uberenv-conduit/uberenv-conduit.tar.gz b/scripts/uberenv_configs/packages/uberenv-conduit/uberenv-conduit.tar.gz
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/packages/uberenv-conduit/uberenv-conduit.tar.gz
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/packages/uberenv-conduit/uberenv-conduit.tar.gz
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml
similarity index 95%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml
index 9e6ea06c5..d4eea7745 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/cooley/packages.yaml
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       jpeg: [libjpeg-turbo, libjpeg]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
 # Cooley Cuda
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/theta/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/theta/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/theta/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/theta/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml
similarity index 96%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml
index 6bab85803..c1f75f5de 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/alcf/theta/packages.yaml
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ packages:
       mpi: [mpich]
       blas: [intel-mkl]
       lapack: [intel-mkl]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
     compiler: [gcc@7.3.0]
     variants: +mpi~shared~python
   openssl:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml
similarity index 97%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml
index 70da50171..a5448fc73 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib/packages.yaml
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       jpeg: [libjpeg-turbo, libjpeg]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
 # LLNL blueos CUDA
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml
similarity index 97%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml
index ac3fc624f..04a4712c0 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/blueos_3_ppc64le_ib_p9/packages.yaml
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       jpeg: [libjpeg-turbo, libjpeg]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
   python:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/host_config_manual_edits.txt b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/host_config_manual_edits.txt
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/host_config_manual_edits.txt
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/host_config_manual_edits.txt
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
similarity index 96%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
index 4a897f66a..50046c8ed 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/chaos_5_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
@@ -20,6 +20,7 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       jpeg: [libjpeg-turbo, libjpeg]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
 # LLNL chaos5 CUDA 
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml
similarity index 96%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml
index 10d7133bf..5b3208424 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_16/packages.yaml
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ packages:
     providers:
       blas: [netlib-lapack]
       lapack: [netlib-lapack]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   netlib-lapack:
     buildable: false
     externals:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml
similarity index 96%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml
index 10d7133bf..5b3208424 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/ci/ubuntu_18/packages.yaml
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ packages:
     providers:
       blas: [netlib-lapack]
       lapack: [netlib-lapack]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   netlib-lapack:
     buildable: false
     externals:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/config.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/config.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/config.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/config.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/darwin/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/darwin/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/darwin/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/darwin/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml
similarity index 86%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml
index 8e3aafd76..2b9b5d3a2 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/darwin/packages.yaml
@@ -19,7 +19,7 @@ packages:
       mariadb-client: [mariadb-c-client, mariadb]
       mkl: [intel-mkl]
       mpe: [mpe2]
-      mpi: [openmpi, mpich]
+      mpi: [mpich, openmpi]
       mysql-client: [mysql, mariadb-c-client]
       opencl: [pocl]
       pil: [py-pillow]
@@ -28,15 +28,21 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       unwind: [libunwind]
+      uuid: [apple-libuuid]
     permissions:
       read: world
       write: user
     variants: ~openmp
-# custom variants
+  # custom variants
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
   python:
     variants: +shared~dbm
+  # mpich constraint
+  # mpich 3.4.1 failed, as did 3.3.x
+  mpich:
+    version: [3.2]
+    variants: device=ch3
   # python 2 constraints
   py-sphinx:
     version: [1.8.4]
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml
similarity index 81%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml
index 0616c47e9..272112ff1 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/packages.yaml
@@ -4,16 +4,13 @@ packages:
     providers:
       blas: [netlib-lapack]
       lapack: [netlib-lapack]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
+      mpi: [mpich]
   netlib-lapack:
     buildable: false
     externals:
     - prefix: /usr/
       spec: netlib-lapack
-  openmpi:
-    buildable: false
-    externals:
-    - prefix: /usr
-      spec: openmpi
   gdbm:
     buildable: false
     externals:
@@ -59,10 +56,8 @@ packages:
     externals:
     - prefix: /usr
       spec: tar
-  conduit:
-    version: [develop]
-  # python 2 constraints
-  py-sphinx:
-    version: [1.8.4]
-  py-numpy:
-    version: [1.16.5]
+  # # python 2 constraints
+  # py-sphinx:
+  #   version: [1.8.4]
+  # py-numpy:
+  #   version: [1.16.5]
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/mirrors.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/mirrors.yaml
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..fc781ce41
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/mirrors.yaml
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+mirrors:
+  main: https://www.ascent-dav.org/mirror/conduit/latest/
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/nersc/cori/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/nersc/cori/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/nersc/cori/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/nersc/cori/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml
similarity index 95%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml
index 374b4e196..254e3df15 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/nersc/cori/packages.yaml
@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ packages:
       mpi: [mpich]
       blas: [intel-mkl, openblas]
       lapack: [intel-mkl, openblas]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
     variants: +mpi
   mpich:
     version: [7.7.0]
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml
similarity index 91%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml
index 372d77ded..2ce26a3c6 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/tacc/stampede2/packages.yaml
@@ -9,6 +9,7 @@ packages:
       - intel-mkl
       lapack:
       - intel-mkl
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   mvapich2:
     buildable: false
     externals:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/compilers.yaml
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
similarity index 97%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
index 24cb661cb..337ae0258 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/toss_3_x86_64_ib/packages.yaml
@@ -21,6 +21,7 @@ packages:
       szip: [libszip, libaec]
       tbb: [intel-tbb]
       jpeg: [libjpeg-turbo, libjpeg]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   conduit:
     version: [develop]
   python:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml
similarity index 96%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml
index 325811b16..bb45f005e 100644
--- a/scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml
+++ b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/travis/packages.yaml
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ packages:
     providers:
       blas: [netlib-lapack]
       lapack: [netlib-lapack]
+      uuid: [util-linux-uuid, libuuid]
   netlib-lapack:
     buildable: false
     externals:
diff --git a/scripts/uberenv/spack_envs/llnl/quartz/spack.yaml b/scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_envs/llnl/quartz/spack.yaml
similarity index 100%
rename from scripts/uberenv/spack_envs/llnl/quartz/spack.yaml
rename to scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_envs/llnl/quartz/spack.yaml
diff --git a/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/Dockerfile b/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/Dockerfile
index c887577a4..d370560d3 100644
--- a/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/Dockerfile
+++ b/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/Dockerfile
@@ -2,8 +2,7 @@
 # Project developers. See top-level LICENSE AND COPYRIGHT files for dates and
 # other details. No copyright assignment is required to contribute to Conduit.
 
-FROM ubuntu:trusty
-MAINTAINER Cyrus Harrison <cyrush@llnl.gov>
+FROM ubuntu:18.04
 
 # fetch build env
 RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y \
@@ -18,8 +17,6 @@ RUN apt-get update && apt-get install -y \
     tar \
     unzip \
     perl \
-    openmpi-bin \
-    libopenmpi-dev \
     libncurses-dev \
     libssl-dev \
     libopenblas-dev \
@@ -55,7 +52,7 @@ RUN tar -xf conduit.docker.src.tar
 RUN cd conduit && python scripts/uberenv/uberenv.py \
     -k \
     --spec "%gcc+mpi~doc~silo ^mpich" \
-    --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/
+    --spack-config-dir=scripts/uberenv_configs/spack_configs/docker/ubuntu/
 
 # configure a debug build with cmake
 RUN cd conduit && mkdir build-debug
diff --git a/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/example_build.sh b/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/example_build.sh
index 301d83869..bacd68d5b 100755
--- a/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/example_build.sh
+++ b/src/examples/docker/ubuntu/example_build.sh
@@ -14,6 +14,7 @@ cd ../../../../ && python package.py src/examples/docker/ubuntu/conduit.docker.s
 echo "cd src/examples/docker/ubuntu/"
 cd src/examples/docker/ubuntu/
 
+
 # exec docker build to create image
 echo "docker build -t conduit-ubuntu:current ."
 docker build -t conduit-ubuntu:current .