Advantages of Using COMSOL Multiphysics in Client-Server Mode

Solving Larger Models

The COMSOL Multiphysics client-server configuration frees your desktop computer from lengthy computations, dispatching your jobs to a dedicated computer. Typically, the computer that runs the COMSOL Multiphysics server has more memory and a faster CPU than the desktop computer. Almost all data for the model is stored on the server. The only bigger chunks of data that the client maintains are the rendering data and table contents, which are produced on the server and sent to the client. Files are read and written on the client but streamed to and from the server.

Running the COMSOL Multiphysics server and COMSOL Multiphysics client separately on the same computer increases the total memory available to solve problems. The COMSOL Multiphysics server components do not use the memory required for the graphical user interface, freeing that memory for the actual computations on the server.

Cross-Platform Connections

The client and server need not run on the same platform. For example, you can run the COMSOL Desktop on Windows® as a client, connecting to a COMSOL Multiphysics server on a Linux or Mac server. In this way, you can interactively access a more powerful remote computer.

Multiple Connections

Only one graphical user interface can be connected to a COMSOL Multiphysics server at a given time. However, additional clients can be connected to the same server from LiveLink™ for MATLAB®and LiveLink™ for Excel® and also standalone clients using the COMSOL API. For example, the COMSOL Desktop can act as a COMSOL Multiphysics client when connected to a COMSOL Multiphysics server, and a MATLAB session can be connected to the same server using LiveLink™ for MATLAB®.