PyTables:Installing hdf5

[Maarten van Reeuwijk]

Ajith Prasad wrote:

> I am trying to install the WinXP version of PyTables which requires
> hdf5 (from http://hdf.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HDF5/) as a pre-requisite.
> However, I am at a loss as to how to install hdf5 - I have downloaded
> the zipped version of hdf5 and unzipped it using WinZip but get a mass
> of .exe and other files and have no clue as to how to proceed further.
> Thanks in advance for any help.

I assume you downloaded the pre-compiled binary from
ftp://ftp.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HDF/HDF5/current/bin/windows/

Unpack the zip to a temp-dir and copy all the data inside the
5-163-winxp-net directory to say c:\hdf5. Then look in COMPILE.TXT in the
DLL section to find the following instruction for compiling HDF-enabled
programs:

DLLs:
----
   Copy the hdf5dll.dll, hdf5_cppdll.dll, zlib.dll, and szlibdll.dll files 
   from the location in the HDF5, szip, zlib binary distributions to the 
   WINNT\SYSTEM directory.

   Bring up MSVC++ .NET.

   Select File->New->Projects->"Visual C++ Projects".  Then select 
    "Managed C++ Empty Project" and enter a name.
  
   Select Project->Properties->Linker->Input
   Enter "hdf5dll.lib hdf5_cppdll.lib zlib.lib szlibdll.lib" at the 
     beginning of the "Additional Dependencies" line.

   Select Project->Properties->C/C++->Preprocessor
   Under Preprocessor Definitions, add:  _HDF5USEDLL_
   For C++ DLLs, add: HDF5CPP_USEDLL

   Select Project->Properties->C/C++->Code Generation->Runtime Library, 
    and choose "multi-threaded DLL"

   Select Tools->Options->Projects->VC++ Directories.
   Select "Include Files" under "Show directories for".
   Enter the paths for the HDF5, szlib and zlib include files.
   Then select "Library Files" under "Show directories for".
   Enter the paths for the HDF5, szlib and zlib DLL exported libraries.

   Select Build->Compile <program>. (C or C++ program)
   Select Build->Build <xxx.exe>.  
   Select Build->Execute <xxx.exe>.


Copying the dll's is essential for installing PyTables, but I don't know how
the PyTables installer works under Windows.

HTH, Maarten
-- 
===================================================================
Maarten van Reeuwijk                    Thermal and Fluids Sciences
Phd student                             dept. of Multiscale Physics
www.ws.tn.tudelft.nl                 Delft University of Technology