Installation
The installer contains everything you need to install and run SolarFarmer on your machine.
You can download the latest SolarFarmer installer from the portal web site:
Request SolarFarmer Portal access by emailing solarfarmer@dnv.com.
Once they’ve replied, access the DNV Renewable Energy Software portal page.
Click on the SolarFarmer icon on the portal’s home page to take you to the SolarFarmer page.
Download the installer and double-click to install (Administrator permissions will be needed).
SolarFarmer Web Service
Starting with SolarFarmer 1.0.209.0, 2D simulations can be executed in the cloud when your SF_API_KEY
is set as an environment variable.
To set this up on your personal computer:
Acquire your key by visiting the SolarFarmer Web Service, logging in using your Veracity credentials, and copying the API access token by expanding the highlighted blue pulldown and clicking the copy button.
On your personal computer, open settings by clicking the Windows Start Menu and the Settings Gear, then typing "environment variables" in the search box and selecting Edit environment variables for your account.
The top half of the Environment Variables window is for User variables. Click the New button to enter a new user environment variable.
Type
SF_API_KEY
in the Variable name field, paste your API access token in the value field, and click OK to save the changes. Then click OK again to close the Environment Variables window.Once your
SF_API_KEY
is set as an environment variable you will see the Cloud option enabled in the Energy chapter of SolarFarmer. If theSF_API_KEY
is not set, then the cloud option is grayed out. A green check mark indicates that a connection is established with the SolarFarmer Web Service, and the versions of the API and core calculation engine are displayed. If you see a red X or the connection fails, check your API access token, and click Retry. If the trouble persists please contact solarfarmer@dnv.com.
Important
Your API access token is a secret. Never share it with anyone. If you believe your key has been compromised, contact support at solarfarmer@dnv.com to have it revoked and a new key generated.
Now you have the option to run simulations in the cloud or locally on your personal computer. The cloud calculation is now the default for 2D calculations. 3D calculations are not yet possible in the cloud but will be very soon (late 2021). We will eventually fully deprecate the local calculation so only running calculations in the cloud are possible. Check the Release Notes for the latest updates and announcements.
Warning
There may be some features that are not yet available in the cloud. We are working hard to bring you new features as fast as we can, but in the event that the SolarFarmer Web Service returns an error, please contact support at solarfarmer@dnv.com, retry the simulation locally, and we will resolve the issue as soon as we can.
System Requirements
SolarFarmer is designed to run on a PC with the following specifications:
Minimum System Requirements:
OS | Windows 10 |
Processor | 2GHz processor or above |
RAM | 8GB |
Graphics card | DirectX 9 or later (NOT on-board graphics) |
Resolution | 1280 x 1024 |
Mouse | Mouse with mouse wheel |
Recommended System Requirements:
Processor | 3GHz processor or above. The more cores the better. |
RAM | 16GB (or more) |
Graphics card | NVIDIA Quadro K600 equivalent or above |
Resolution | 1920 x 1200 |