14 Introduction

1 How to Use This Guide

This guide describes how to install and test the NONMEM system, which consists of NM-TRAN, NONMEM, and PREDPP Version 7.6. The NONMEM system is distributed as FORTRAN 95 source code. There is only one version of NONMEM 7.6; this guide tells how to modify the installation in order to customize it for your computer and your operating system.

The first chapter describes system and compiler requirements and discusses certain decisions that must be made before installation begins. Later chapters give step by step instructions for installing the major components of the system, testing them, and running them.

Please follow these steps when installing the NONMEM system:

Read this Users Guide III. It describes the various components of the NONMEM system and how they are used. Please familiarize yourself with the components of the NONMEM system and how they relate to each other.
Review decisions. The people who will use NONMEM should be consulted on these decisions.
Follow the instructions on installation.
If any questions or persistent problems arise regarding installation, please send electronic mail to: nmconsult@iconplc.com.
You may also ask questions of other NONMEM users by way of the NONMEM Users Network, described in Section 6.

Please do not make ANY changes to the source code other than the ones described in this guide without first talking to the NONMEM consultant. Unless such changes are approved, the NONMEM consultant cannot help you with problems which may arise. The NONMEM consultant is familiar with the problems you will encounter during the installation, and will be able to suggest the best fix for your situation.

2 System Requirements

2.1 Memory Requirements (RAM)

The size of a NONMEM executable (“load module”) varies considerably, depending on which optional routines are included. However, all modern computers can run NONMEM 7 easily.

2.2 Compiler Requirements

The compiler must implement the ANSI FORTRAN 95 standard. The Essential Lahey Fortran 90 Compiler does not support the complete Fortran 95 standard and is not suitable for use with NONMEM, although other Lahey Fortran compilers can be used. In addition the compiler must implement certain other features:

It must allow the default length of integer variables to be 4 bytes. All subroutines must be compiled with the default length of integer variables as 4 bytes.
It must allow variables of different types to share the same storage area using the EQUIVALENCE statement.
It is desirable that floating point underflow be permitted to occur silently, but only if the resulting value is set to zero; this is the default action specified by the IEEE 764 standard for floating point arithmetic.
It must allow the FORTRAN INCLUDE statement. It is part of the FORTRAN 95 language. If your system does not permit INCLUDE statements, please contact the NONMEM consultant.

NONMEM 7.6 has been successfully compiled using the following compilers:

Intel Fortran 8.0 and higher, for Windows, MAC OSX, or Linux
GNU gfortran version 4.6.0 for Windows, or version 4.4.0 20090219 Trunc version 144289 for Linux.
GNU gfortran version 4.6.3 for Windows for Linux.
GNU fortran version 4.8.5 for Linux or Windows
Catalina 10.15 MAC OS X, gfortran 9.2

2.3 Speed Requirements

NONMEM run times vary greatly, depending on the amount of data and the complexity of the model. Extensive use is made of floating point arithmetic, so it is necessary to have a floating point (math) processor. With most modern machines, simple problems with moderate size population data sets, such as are used in the various examples in the Users Guide, will run in a reasonable amount of time (no more than an hour, often much less). With more complicated problems, run times can be as much as 10 hours or more. Machines with speeds of 1 GHz or more are preferred.

Prior to installing NONMEM a test of your compiler is appropriate to assure that your compiler is properly configured. An example of such a test is given in the Installation Chapter IV.

2.4 Disk Space Requirements

The NONMEM system is read from the NONMEM distribution medium in the form of encrypted FORTRAN 95 source code. Chapter II describes the number of bytes of storage required for each file on the medium. On most systems, the compiled object code (binary code) occupies more disk space than does the original source code. In general, at least 400 MB of disk storage are desirable during the installation of NONMEM. Additional storage will be needed for the user files: input data files, output reports, etc.

3 Additional Documentation

All other volumes of the NONMEM Users Guide should be available for reference as needed during the installation process. In particular, examples of input and output to be used as test cases during the installation are found in NONMEM Users Guide, Parts I and VI. The inputs are recorded on the distribution medium. The results files can be found at https://nonmem.iconplc.com/nonmem760/STDResults/.

The additional documentation is listed in section 2.5.

Emails and Technical Newsletters

From time to time, emails and technical newsletters are sent to all current NONMEM licensees. These may give hints and suggestions on the installation and use of the system. Please be sure to review all emails and technical newsletters, if any, that accompany the NONMEM distribution medium. If you think you may be missing relevant newsletters, please call the NONMEM consultant.

See also Section 7 of this chapter for a list of internet sites from which bug memos and fixes may be obtained.

3.1 Installation and testing instructions

Detailed step-by-step instructions for installing and testing NONMEM are located in readme_760.pdf on the distribution medium (not transcribed on this site).

3.2 New features and bug fixes

New features and bug fixes from previous NONMEM versions through 7.6 are listed in intro7.pdf, transcribed on this site as the Intro to NONMEM v7 part (start with the changelog).

4 A Few Remarks about the Examples

In the following chapters, complete examples of operating system commands and features are given for two commonly used operating systems: UNIX (specifically, Ubuntu Linux), and MS-DOS (specifically, an MS-DOS window running under Microsoft Windows XP, using Intel Fortran 9.0 and higher). MS-DOS examples can also be used with Microsoft Windows 7 and Vista.

The UNIX examples all use commands for the Bourne shell.

Only UNIX and MS-DOS examples are included because these are the only operating systems with which we have first hand experience. NONMEM has been installed under a variety of other operating systems.

The examples, suitably modified for local differences, may suffice for many users. For other operating systems, they may be helpful as samples of what can be done. For example, NONMEM 7.6 has been installed on a MacBook Pro running OS X using the UNIX/Linux installation instructions.

People who are proficient in the use of their local operating system may well choose to do things differently.

5 The NONMEM Users Network

Browse the archive

A searchable archive of the NONMEM Users Network mailing list is available at https://nmusers.vrognas.com.

You and the NONMEM users at your site are invited to participate in the NONMEM Users Network. It is an electronic mailing list, not a news group. A user with a question, remark, or discussion which he believes might interest or help other NONMEM users sends the item to a single e-mail address. The item is automatically broadcast to every e-mail address on the network. The mail is not reviewed by anyone before it is broadcast. The NONMEM Users Network helps users worldwide communicate with each other, share information, and solve problems. In addition, technical newsletters describing bug fixes may be sent via e-mail to the network, as well as by ordinary (paper) mail to all licensees.

To be added to the mailing list (or to be removed from it), please send a request containing your e-mail address to: nmusers-request@iconplc.com.

Thereafter, to send an item to the network, send it to: nmusers@globomaxnm.com.

You may send questions to the network even if you are not actually on the mailing list, but be sure to include your e-mail address for replies.

6 Internet Sites

Bug lists may be found at the following sites: