Technical support

• Resources available
• Troubleshooting
• Contacting the authors

Resources available

Each of the codes in the SutraSuite package is accompanied by detailed documentation in the form of a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) report in Adobe PDF format. The documentation files can be obtained from the same web sites that serve the codes; see "Downloading the codes and documentation" on the "Getting started" page. (To view the documentation files, you must have Acrobat Reader^® software installed on your computer. The software can be downloaded free-of-charge from the Adobe web site^*.)

In addition, a number of resources are available on this web site to help you resolve problems and answer questions related to SUTRA and its utilities:

• Search -- Search this web site.
• News -- New developments related to SUTRA and its utilities (SutraSuite).
• Getting started -- How to get started using SutraSuite.
• Overview of SutraSuite -- A summary of the SutraSuite software package.
• Gallery of SUTRA simulations -- Graphical displays of SUTRA model results.
• Frequently asked questions -- Answers to frequently asked questions, grouped by topic.
• Glossary -- SUTRA terms and concepts defined.
• Special topics -- Detailed discussions of selected topics.
• Troubleshooting -- A repository of advice on resolving problems related to SutraSuite.

^* Links to non-Government web sites are provided for convenience only and do not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.

Troubleshooting

This section offers advice on how to resolve problems that may arise during or after installation of SUTRA, the SUTRA examples, SutraPrep, and SutraPlot. (For troubleshooting advice for SutraGUI, Model Viewer, GW_Chart, and CheckMatchBC, see the respective web sites for these codes or contact the authors.)

In the list below, find the name of the software with which you are experiencing a problem (e.g., "SUTRA Examples"). Then read the entries under "All versions" and under the version number you are using (e.g., "Version 2.0 (2D3D.1)") to see whether your particular problem is listed.

CLICK ON ENTRIES IN THE LIST BELOW TO EXPAND OR COLLAPSE THEIR CONTENTS.
(If the list appears fully expanded right from the start, your browser does not support collapsible outlines.)

• SUTRA
• All versions
• How do I run SUTRA?
The SUTRA executable file is located in the "bin" folder of the directory in which you installed SUTRA. It is typically run via a Windows shortcut located in the directory in which you are working, or using a batch file, such as the "RUNSUTRA.BAT" file created by SutraGUI. For details on how to start running SUTRA, see the SUTRA Release Notes; click on the Windows "Start" button, then select "Programs | SUTRA n.n | Release Notes", where n.n is the SUTRA version number you are using.
• Iterative matrix solver error.
  The most common causes of iterative matrix solver errors are discussed on the "FAQ" page; see "Q: My matrix solver iterations are not converging. What can I do?".
• Version 2.0 (2D3D.1)
• SUTRA icon not displayed.
Prior to the update of 10/16/03, the SUTRA installation program did not associate SUTRA file extensions (e.g., ".inp") with the SUTRA icon. This did not affect the functioning of the code in any way. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SUTRA 2D3D.1 installation file.
• Error running example using "RUNSUTRA.BAT".
Prior to the update of 10/27/03, paths in the "RUNSUTRA.BAT" files and SutraPlot ".spl" files supplied with the example problems were specified incorrectly, which prevented portions of the example problems that rely on these files from running properly. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SUTRA 2D3D.1 Examples installation file.
• Errors compiling SUTRA using Lahey compiler.
Please contact the authors at aprovost@usgs.gov.
• SUTRA Examples
• All versions
• The "examples" folder is empty.
Make sure you have installed both SUTRA-related installation files: one for the documentation, source code, and executable file; and one for the examples, which are packaged separately due to their large size.
• Version 2.0 (2D3D.1)
• Error running example using "RUNSUTRA.BAT".
Prior to the update of 10/27/03, paths in the "RUNSUTRA.BAT" files and SutraPlot ".spl" files supplied with the example problems were specified incorrectly, which prevented portions of the example problems that rely on these files from running properly. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SUTRA 2D3D.1 Examples installation file.
• Error opening ".spl" example file -- unknown path.
Prior to the update of 10/27/03, paths in the "RUNSUTRA.BAT" files and SutraPlot ".spl" files supplied with the example problems were specified incorrectly, which prevented portions of the example problems that rely on these files from running properly. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SUTRA 2D3D.1 Examples installation file.
• SutraPrep
• All versions
• How do I run SutraPrep?
The SutraPrep executable file is located in the "bin" folder of the directory in which you installed SutraPrep. It is typically run via a Windows shortcut located in the directory in which you are working. For details on how to start running SutraPrep, see the SutraPrep Release Notes; click on the Windows "Start" button, then select "Programs | SutraPrep n.n | Release Notes", where n.n is the SutraPrep version number you are using.
• Version 3D.1
• SutraPrep icon not displayed.
Prior to the update of 10/16/03, the SutraPrep installation program did not associate SutraPrep file extensions (".prp" and ".prl") with the SutraPrep icon. This did not affect the functioning of the code in any way. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SutraPrep 3D.1 installation file.
• SutraPlot
• All versions
• How do I run SutraPlot?
The SutraPlot executable file is located in the "bin" folder of the directory in which you installed SutraPlot. It is typically run either by double-clicking on the SutraPlot shortcut that was created on your Desktop during installation; via the shortcut in the "Programs" menu; by dragging the icon for a ".spl" setup file onto the icon for the SutraPlot executable (or a shortcut to it); or (on some systems) by double-clicking on a ".spl" setup file. For details on how to start running SutraPlot, see the SutraPlot Release Notes; click on the Windows "Start" button, then select "Programs | SutraPlot n.n | Release Notes", where n.n is the SutraPlot version number you are using.
• Error after double-clicking on ".spl" file -- GINO.
Double-clicking on a ".spl" should open the file in SutraPlot. On some systems, this results in an error related to a "GINO Configuration File." If this happens on your system, you can open a ".spl" file by dragging its icon onto the icon for the SutraPlot executable file (or a shortcut to it). Alternatively, open SutraPlot, select "File | Open plot setup...", and use the browser to locate the desired ".spl" file.
• Version 2D3D.1
• SutraPlot icon not displayed.
Prior to the update of 10/16/03, the SutraPlot installation program did not associate the SutraPlot file extension (".spl") with the SutraPlot icon. This did not affect the functioning of the code in any way. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SutraPlot 2D3D.1 installation file.
• Error opening a ".spl" example file -- unknown path.
Prior to the update of 10/27/03, paths in the "RUNSUTRA.BAT" files and SutraPlot ".spl" files supplied with the example problems were specified incorrectly, which prevented portions of the example problems that rely on these files from running properly. To correct this problem, install the latest update to the SUTRA 2D3D.1 Examples installation file.
• Other SutraSuite software
  • See the web pages for the code of interest, or contact the authors.

Contacting the authors

If you have a question or need to resolve a problem related to SUTRA or its utilities, we ask that you first consult the documentation for the code in question and the resources available on this web site. However, if you need additional help, or if you would like to report a bug or submit a suggestion, you are welcome to contact the authors:

• SUTRA  --  aprovost@usgs.gov
• SutraPrep  --  aprovost@usgs.gov
• SutraGUI  --  rbwinst@usgs.gov
• SutraPlot  --  ws@hawaii.rr.com
• Model Viewer  --  rbwinst@usgs.gov
• GW_Chart  --  rbwinst@usgs.gov
• CheckMatchBC  --  rbwinst@usgs.gov

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