ANSYS

Processor

ANSYS Mechanical + ANSYS Fluent

ANSYS Mechanical and ANSYS Fluent take full advantage of all available CPU cores. Therefore, the more cores the better. We recommend dual processor configurations for maximum performance.

Please note that ANSYS software is relegated to a specific number of cores, therefore you should choose a configuration that will maximize the performance of your core license.

Memory

In general, 3-6GB of RAM per CPU core is recommended. For example, if you select a single 12-core processor, 32GB will suffice for basic tasks or 64GB for more demanding workloads.

Storage

We recommend having two drives which provides the best performance:

1. Primary Drive: SSD for the operating system and software
2. Secondary Drive: another SSD, or for better performance, an NVMe Flash Storage Drive (the "HP Z Turbo Drive") for active project files

If you need additional storage for large, infrequently accessed files, we also recommend one or more 4TB, 6TB or 8TB+ hard drives. Hard drives also work well for storing export files as the export/rendering process is generally not write intensive.

Graphics

ANSYS takes advantage of GPU acceleration, however according to benchmarks, performance gains are more significant with more processor cores vs. using GPU acceleration. Therefore we recommend maximizing your core count instead of going with a high-end graphics cards. We recommend a Quadro M2000 in this situation.

If you're maximized your core count and want added performance, then we recommend high-end Quadro graphics card such as the M5000 or a Tesla accelerator.

Chassis

The HP Z8 G4 Workstation is recommended if you would like dual processors and/or multiple high performance graphics cards.

The HP Z6 G4 Workstation is recommended if you would like to start with a single high-end processor and single high-performance graphics card with the potential of upgrading in the future. With the Z6 G4, you can add a second matching processor and double the memory using the optional second processor riser. The power supply will also support two mid-range graphics cards.

The HP Z4 G4 Workstation is recommended for majority of workflows. Since Intel now produces single Core i9 and Xeon processors with up to 18-cores and high clock speed, there is no need for dual processors unless you will have heavy CPU rendering or intensive tasks demanding more than 18-cores. Also, the HP Z4 G4 has an optional 1000W power supply that will support the most powerful graphics cards inluding the GeForce RTX 2080Ti and Quadro RTX 6000.

Recommended Hardware References

• Oct 29, 2020 by Ansys - Blog
  Hardware Tips to Accelerate Simulation
• by Ansys - White Paper
  Intel Processor Selection for Ansys Mechanical and Fluent Workloads
• by Ansys
  Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Simulation