## 1.1. Starting CFX-Pre

When starting CFX-Pre for the first time, the default system font is obtained and, if it is deemed inappropriate for CFX-Pre, a dialog box appears that enables you to choose a new font. When a new font is selected, it is stored for future sessions. For details, see Appearance.

CFX-Pre can be started in different ways:

- From within ANSYS Workbench choose Fluid Flow (CFX) from Toolbox > Analysis Systems or CFX from Toolbox > Component Systems. In the Project Schematic, right-click the Setup cell and select Edit.

- From the ANSYS CFX Launcher: set the working directory and then click CFX-Pre 18.2.

- From the command line. The basic command is:

      <CFXROOT>/bin/cfx5pre

  The command line options are described in Starting CFX-Pre from the Command Line.

### Starting CFX-Pre from the Command Line

To start CFX-Pre from a command line, you must either:

- Specify the full path to the executable (`<CFXROOT>/bin/cfx5pre`)

- Append the path to the ANSYS CFX executables (`<CFXROOT>/bin/`) to your PATH.

  - On Windows, right-click the My Computer icon and select Properties. Click the Advanced tab, then click Environment Variables. In the System variables section, edit `PATH` to include the path to the ANSYS CFX executables; typically this will be something like:

        C:\Program Files\ANSYS Inc\v182\CFX\bin;

  - On Linux, edit your .`window_manager`rc file to include the path to the ANSYS CFX executables.

  Once the PATH has been updated, the basic command is:

      cfx5pre

- Run the executable from the launcher Tools > Command Line (which has the path to the ANSYS CFX executables built-in).

There are a number of optional command line flags, some of which are summarized in the following table:

Argument | Alternative Form | Usage
--- | --- | ---
`-batch `filename`.pre` |  | Starts CFX-Pre in batch mode[a], running the session file you enter as an argument.
`-display `display`` | `-d` | Displays the graphical user interface on the X11 server ``display`` instead of using the X11 server defined by the DISPLAY environment variable.
`-gui` |  | Starts CFX-Pre in graphical user interface (GUI) mode. This is the default mode.
`-line` |  | Starts CFX-Pre in line interface mode.
`-graphics ogl` `-graphics mesa` | `-gr ogl` `-gr mesa` | For Linux only. Specify the graphics system: options are ogl (default) and mesa.
`-def `file`` |  | Loads the named CFX-Solver input file after starting.
`-session `file`` | `-s` | Plays the named session file after starting.
`-cfx `file`` |  | Loads the named case file after starting.
`-verbose` | `-v` | Specifying this option may result in additional output being sent to the standard output.
[a] When launching CFX-Pre on a remote UNIX or Linux machine (though X, Exceed, and so on), the `DISPLAY` variable must be set to a valid X display before running in batch mode. The display will typically be your local Windows, Linux, or UNIX machine. The remote machine must have permission to connect to the display (for example, by use of the `xhost` command if the X display is on a UNIX/Linux machine).

To view a full list of command-line flags, execute:

    cfx5pre -help

Release 18.2 - © ANSYS, Inc. All rights reserved.