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@shetsdp shetsdp released this 31 Jul 05:14
v0.1-beta
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OpenMC Windows Installation Guide (v0.1-beta)

  • This is beta version; hence number of particles is restricted to 10000, and batches to 200.
  • Get the stable full version at: OpenMC Windows Page
  • Fill this form to know future updates: Google Form

Author:
Sachin Shet
LinkedIn
Profile

System Requirements

  • Windows 10 or Windows 11 (64-bit)
  • Python 3.10 or newer
  • pip installed and available in the system PATH
  • ENDF/B HDF5 cross section library (cross_sections.xml)

Step 1 – Install Python

Download Python from: https://www.python.org/downloads/windows/

Link: https://www.python.org/ftp/python/3.14.6/python-3.14.6-amd64.exe

During installation enable:

  • Add Python to PATH

Verify:

python --version
python -m pip --version

Step 2 – Prepare Nuclear Data

Download Nuclear data from OpenMC Website https://openmc.org/data/

Link: https://anl.box.com/shared/static/9igk353zpy8fn9ttvtrqgzvw1vtejoz6.xz

Create a folder OpenMC in a drive, where you have write permission, and extract the cross sections data in it.

Example:

D:\OpenMC\endf-b-vii.1-hdf5\

Step 3 – Install OpenMC Windows

Download openmc-windows-v0.1-beta-installer.exe from the release page and execute the installer.

The installer will:

  • Install the native OpenMC executable
  • Install required runtime libraries
  • Add OpenMC to the Windows PATH
  • Configure the OPENMC_CROSS_SECTIONS environment variable
  • Install the OpenMC Python module (if pip is available)

When prompted, select the folder containing: cross_sections.xml

Select D:\OpenMC\endf-b-vii.1-hdf5\

The installer automatically configures:
OPENMC_CROSS_SECTIONS=D:\OpenMC\endf-b-vii.1-hdf5\cross_sections.xml

Step 4 – Verify Installation

Signout and Signin back to your windows account. This will add new directory to the system PATH variable.

Open a new Command Prompt (Win+R, type cmd, Enter):

openmc --version

Expected output:

OpenMC version 0.15.3
Commit hash: 27e38e894697bb32a1dac7848d2618818b6b8daf
Copyright (c) 2011-2025 MIT, UChicago Argonne LLC, and contributors
MIT/X license at <https://docs.openmc.org/en/latest/license.html>
Build type:            Release
Compiler ID:           GNU 15.2.0
MPI enabled:           no
Parallel HDF5 enabled: no
PNG support:           yes
DAGMC support:         no
libMesh support:       no
MCPL support:          no
Coverage testing:      no
Profiling flags:       no
UWUW support:          no

Python API:

python
import openmc
print(openmc.__version__)

Expected output:
0.15.3

Running a Simulation

Copy OpenMC examples to your OpenMC directory

Copy C:\Program Files (x86)\OpenMC\examples to D:\OpenMC directory.

cd D:\OpenMC\examples\jezbel\
python jezbel.py

OpenMC Should be running at this point. Congratulations.

Important Notes

  • Native Windows build (WSL or DOCKER is not required to run).
  • Compatible with the OpenMC Python API.
  • Uses the official OpenMC HDF5 nuclear data library.
  • Work in progress to build stable OpenMC GUI

Troubleshooting

  1. 'openmc' is not recognized
    • Restart Command Prompt.
    • Verify OpenMC installation directory is in PATH.
  2. Python module installation failed
    • Run: python -m pip install openmc
  3. OPENMC_CROSS_SECTIONS is not set
    • Check: echo %OPENMC_CROSS_SECTIONS%
    • If empty, create the environment variable manually.
  4. Missing DLL errors
    • Ensure all DLLs remain in the same directory as openmc.exe.
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