System_and_hardware_requirements

System and hardware requirements

Phoenix is a software platform built on the Microsoft .NET framework. It uses MinGW (Minimalist GNU for Windows) compiler to create PML (Pharmacometrics Modeling Language) models. Phoenix also uses Microsoft MPI to allow usage of multiple CPUs and CPU cores. All software prerequisites needed to use basic Phoenix functions are included in the Phoenix installation file. Extended Phoenix functions have additional software requirements.

Phoenix NLME-specific information

GNU compilers are version 8.4.0 and the MPI version is 10.1.

NLME jobs can be executed on remote RHEL 8 or Ubuntu 22 hosts and Torque/SGE/LSF/SLURM grids from a Phoenix Windows installation.

Required software

Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.2 is required and either Chrome, Firefox, or Edge must be installed on the machine to access Certara Admin for license authorization. TLS 1.2 uses the standard ports 80 and 443. Phoenix listens on port 5005 but that happens locally, so it does not involve the network.

Windows® Installer 3.1 can be downloaded through Microsoft Update service or by downloading Windows Installer 3.1 redistributable from the Microsoft download page.

A PDF reader, such as Adobe® Reader®, must be installed to access PDF files of various software documents, such as the Validation Suite report.

Operating system versions

Compatible desktop operating system versions with the English (United States), Kanji (Japan), French (France), Spanish (Spain), German (Germany), or Simplified Chinese (China) language packs and with a Regional Options setting of English (United States) include:

Windows 10 (64-bit) version 1607 or greater, using a keyboard and mouse, Professional edition

Windows 11 version 23H2 build number 22631 or greater, using a keyboard and mouse, Professional edition

Compatible server operating system versions (for direct access or for access via a desktop with a terminal server application), with English (United States) operating system/language pack and Regional Options setting of English (United States) include Windows Server 2016, 2019, and 2022.

Note: Phoenix is a desktop application that requires isolated resources to perform optimally. To deploy this application in an enterprise type fashion, such as through Citrix, it must be done in a manner that will isolate the recommended amount of resources to each user, such as through a VDI (virtual desktop infrastructure). Publishing Phoenix from a shared resource server with multiple users is not recommended.

Certara Support does not cover configuring Phoenix on any cloud environments such as Azure, AWS, etc.

Third-party software

The following third-party software programs and file types exportable by Phoenix have been tested with the current Phoenix released version. These programs need to be installed separately, as they are not included in the Phoenix installation.

Microsoft Office file types: xls, xlsx, doc, docx, and rtf
Note: For Phoenix to work with Office 365, a local Office 365 installation is required.

SAS: up to and including version 9.4 (64-bit)
(Execution of SAS objects in Phoenix on Windows requires that the Regional Language settings be set to US English.)

NONMEM: 7.3, 7.4, and 7.5 (64-bit)

SigmaPlot: 11.1 through 12.5
(The SigmaPlot Shell object can be added, opened, modified, and saved but not executed since it was designed for SigmaPlot 32-bit and Phoenix is 64-bit.)

R for the R object: up to and including version 4.4.3
(4.0.1 or higher for running local NLME parallel jobs or on remote Grid nodes (should be the same along the nodes).)

PsN: up to and including version 5.5.0 (only with the operating system version(s) and NONMEM version(s) with which each PsN version is compatible).
Note: PsN 3.4.2 and 3.6.7 are not compatible with server operating system versions or with German, Spanish, or Chinese language operating system versions/language packs.

Other Certara software

Phoenix can be installed on the same computer with other current Certara software products. It is compatible with:

Integral 25.4.x repository, which utilizes the 25.4.x version of the Phoenix Integral Plugin

Certara R packages

Pirana

Trial Simulator 2.3.

It is not guaranteed that a project created with a newer version of Phoenix can successfully load on older versions of Phoenix. The system will warn the user if the project cannot be loaded. The opposite (backwards compatibility) is guaranteed, although, in some cases, settings or models are automatically updated to new options. Warnings are given when these automatic updates occur and the user should review the loaded settings and model.

Note: Newer versions of Phoenix NLME might fail when they are executed on a grid/remote system that has older versions of Certara.NLME8 installed. Check that the version of the R library package Certara.NLME8 on the remote host is the same as the package distributed with the Phoenix version you are installing and upgrade, if necessary (see the “Parallel and remote execution” section in the NLME documentation for instructions).

Hardware requirements

The Phoenix Desktop Application is designed to be installed on a user's desktop or laptop, and the best stability and performance results are achieved when this model is followed.

Processor

Minimum Requirement: Intel i5 processor 3 GHz

Recommended*: Intel i7 processor 4 GHz

RAM

Minimum Requirement: 8 GB of RAM

Recommended*: 16 GB of RAM

Internal Storage Device

Having a minimum of ~20% of the HD or ~15% of the SSD free ensures the OS can manage Phoenix’s calls to the OS.

Minimum Requirement: 64 GB 7200 RPM Magnetic HD

Recommended*: 64 GB SSD

*Especially for large datasets and large projects.