Release notes
    • 22 Jan 2024
    • 19 Minutes to read
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    Release notes

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    Article Summary

    This article includes the release notes for all versions of Flood Modeller that are currently supported. Release notes for legacy versions can be found here.

    Flood Modeller 7.0.2

    Flood Modeller 7.0.1

    Flood Modeller 7.0

    Flood Modeller 6.2

    Flood Modeller 6.1

    Flood Modeller 6.0


    Version 7.0.2

    IT administration procedures/settings could cause end-users to experience issues connecting to their Hydrology+ database. Two changes have been made to mitigate this problem; the software no longer connects to the Hydrology+ database automatically on initial startup, and an additional utility is included within the installation.

    The TIN Creator bug (addressed temporarily in v7.0.1) has been permanently fixed.


    Version 7.0.1

    When trying to use the TIN creator, the tool would crash. This patch replaces the TIN creator standalone executable with the previous version to resolve this bug.


    Version 7.0

    Introducing Hydrology+

    In this release, we introduce Flood Modeller’s cutting-edge Hydrology+ tools, designed to enhance and simplify your hydrological analysis. These features within Flood Modeller v7 are available for all network licence users.

    The new Hydrology+ tab includes functionality to view gauge stations and FEH catchment descriptors, integrating information from EA and NRFA sources, to offer a comprehensive view of hydrological data.

    Using FEH catchment descriptors from your hydrology database

    For your downloaded FEH catchments, importing the data to your personal hydrology database is intuitive. Once imported, this data can be used in all future sessions. The catchments can be displayed on the Map view, creating a visual representation of your hydrological landscape. You can explore your catchments effortlessly; toggle their display, or opt for the FEH tabular view to populate all catchments in a horizontal table.

    Using real-time gauge station data in a model

    For gauge stations, accessing real-time data has never before been this straightforward. You can easily load the gauge stations of interest, and in just a few mouse clicks, access data sourced directly from the EA and NRFA. Flood Modeller also simplifies the process of using this data within your analysis. Use the range calendar drop-down to precisely define your timeframe, or simply click-and-drag over the plot to zoom in on intricate details, ensuring you capture the exact data you need. Effortlessly export this data to an event file or .csv file, for use within your 1D and 2D models.

    Exported data files automatically include additional Metadata allowing you to confirm who has exported the data, from where, and on which date. This ensures a seamless process when passing models between team members, eliminating any confusion or possible human error.

    Related articles

    Hydrology+

    The Hydrology+ tab

    Gauge Stations

    Enhanced diagnostics

    Additional information has been added to the 2D diagnostics to warn against a problematic setting of boundary or link elevation/depth cells that have only active neighbours. This enables the user to change the setting accordingly.

    Removed dependency on Access Database Engine

    Previously, a dependency on the Access Database Engine was causing errors as certain operating systems rejected this. The dependency has now been removed to resolve this issue.

    More accurate computation of velocity in the TVD solver

    Froude-based computation of the velocity at H-cells has been adopted for McCormackTVD (i.e. TVD). This results in increased accuracy for the computation of velocity in these specific scenarios.

    Enhanced 1D river unit editing

    The option in settings to keep both the plot and unit form on the screen together has been implemented. This improves the experience when editing 1D river units.

    Additional bug fixes

    • Drowning factor for flapped embedded structures may become NaN
    • Z-mod gives holes, and sets non-modded areas to constant value
    • Access violation in gdal.dll when running 2D simulations with z-mod
    • Loading XMDF results from project file or layer panel misses out "9999" step
    • RunOnly licences not picked up (by default/if forced)
    • 1D river timeseries plot showing 'Stage (mAD)' on the left axis instead of plotted variable's units
    • Z-Surface: appearance of triangles outside the polygon area
    • Missing timesteps from bed-shear CPU SMS outputs
    • Load z-mod check files not working
    • Embedded Structure .str files with comments cause solvers to fail
    • Fatal error caused by 2D embedded 1D structure interface, and on editing embedded structures
    • 2D Embedded 1D Structure Form not showing the structures shapefile attributes when Relative Paths are set
    • 2D GPU freezes on XMDF outputs of sediment properties and/or relative error
    • 2D GPU solver: elapsed, ETR and EFT timings reported to the LF2 are incorrect
    • Can't add new rows in 1D river data tables via arrow down/return, etc.
    • 1D River Network Table search tool not working


    Version 6.2

    Run Edition licences now available

    Run Edition licences allow you to seamlessly scale up the number of available concurrent simulations; a huge benefit for compute intensive projects. They also enable additional users to run simulations, leaving your full licence(s) free for those building, editing and reviewing models.

    You can effortlessly use a Run licence both within or outside of the Flood Modeller interface, e.g. via code developed using the Flood Modeller API. Please contact sales@floodmodeller.com for further details on adding these licences to your configuration on an annual basis.

    Related articles

    How to use a Run licence

    New z-mod tools

    In v6.2, the existing Z line topographic adjustment functionality is augmented by the new Z mod suite of tools. These enable areas (rather than lines) of elevation data within your 2D domain to be adjusted using a variable surface. The surface extent is defined by a polygon and the elevations within this surface are specified by a set of spot heights defined in one or multiple point shapefiles (the minimum requirement being to specify heights at each vertex of the polygon). In addition, one or multiple polylines can be used to specify break lines within the Z mod surface extent.

    Pre-processing within the 2D solvers will triangulate the input Z mod polygon to create a variable height surface, interpolating between the specified spot heights and ensuring any specified internal polylines are incorporated as break lines (i.e. not crossed by any triangles). The 2D solvers will utilise these interpolated surfaces in the same way as fixed height additional topographic features, i.e. values can replace or add to underlying DTM elevations.

    Specifying Z mod elevation data is made easy with the introduction of new Z mod tools. Functionality provided within the suite of tools allows you to quickly and efficiently:

    • Draw a Z mod area where you want to specify elevations. 
    • Draw lines or sets of points within a Z mod area as new Z mod shapefile elements.
    • Use the Z mod vertices tool to automatically extract the vertices from a polygon (or polyline) shapefile to create a new Z mod point shapefile. The tool will also populate the elevation attribute of the point shapefile with data from a grid, such as a DTM.
    • Edit Z mod points attributes - manually specify the solver adjustment method, e.g. “set” = provided values replace underlying DTM elevations (default method) and “add” = values are added to the underlying elevation. Edit mode also enables you to adjust the elevations at individual vertices.

    The Z mod functionality is useful for specifying more realistic (spatially varying) elevations for proposed defences, filling holes/areas of missing data in your underlying DTM, and much more.

    Related articles

    How to create a z-mod feature

    How to define a z-mod area

    How to use the z-mod vertices tool

    How to edit z-mod attributes

    How to add z-mod features to a simulation

    Improved 2D plotting

    The functionality provided in the user interface for the visualisation of 2D results has been significantly enhanced. It is now possible to easily compare like for like results from multiple simulations. Other plotting functionality now available when reviewing 2D results is as follows:

    • All 2D chart tools upgraded to deliver similar style to 1D chart tools
    • Existing chart options maintained: Time series plots, cross-section plots and flow line plots
    • New standalone tool for viewing embedded structure data
    • Separate charts (in the same view) for each selected variable
    • Comparison of results from same location in multiple models or different locations in the same model
    • Comparison of results from different locations in the same model
    • Enables plotting of results not loaded in map view – saving time accessing results
    • Customise charts effortlessly using the new Quick-Edit tool provided for each chart type.
    • Allows saving of plot locations for re-use in multiple charts

    Related articles

    How to produce a plot of 2D time series results

    How to produce a plot of cross-sectional data

    How to produce a flow line plot

    How to produce a plot with 1D embedded structures

    Additional 2D output of relative mass error

    The 2D solvers have been enhanced to include the option to output temporally and spatially varying mass balance data. Assessment of mass balance data is integral to the validation of hydraulic models (1D, 2D or linked models). Previously the 2D solvers have produced overall mass balance data for each modelled domain, which is data that can be used to assess the quality of a model. However, on its own, these data do not indicate the precise location of any stability problems within the model. 

    New models are now setup to include a relative mass error variable in the time series grid outputs. These data are an additional scalar output within the chosen time series output format, i.e. XMDF by default (or SMS or netCDF). In addition, the maximum relative mass error for each domain grid cell is output to either a GeoTIFF or ASCII raster grid. 

    These new outputs will enable any stability issues within your model setup to be isolated and addresses quicker and easier than before. They will also provide an additional dataset for validation of your model quality. This output is selected from the list of available output variables, when specifying your 2D simulation outputs in the 2D model setup interface. It is selected by default for time series and max grid outputs when creating a new simulation.

    Related articles

    How to select 2D simulation outputs

    Direct access to simulation diagnostics

    The 1D and 2D solvers in Flood Modeller automatically generate a wide range of diagnostics files. These can be utilised to assess the quality of a model, aid validation of results and provide insights into the location and cause of stability issues should they occur. To make it easier than ever to access diagnostic data from your simulations, functionality has been added to link directly to diagnostic files and load them into the Flood Modeller map view or send them to your chosen text editor. The right-click menu under simulations loaded into the Project Panel provides access to these functions. 

    In summary the diagnostic data now accessible from 2D simulations (including those already present in previous versions) is as follows:

    • Load cell status check grid – informs on the role of each cell in the 2D domain, e.g. active, inactive, inflow boundary, link, etc. (this also has a bespoke colour ramp defined for it)
    • View 2D log file – added to the default text editor on your system
    • Load all check grids – presents options to load any of the check grids produced by a 2D simulation, e.g. all grid elevations (zcen), modified grid cell elevations (zmod), etc.
    • Load spatial diagnostic data (sdd file) – adds sdd text file to map view as a point shapefile (each point highlights the location of a grid cell error or warning)
    • Load Z mod check files – loads shapefile diagnostics that show how the solver has interpreted the input Z mod data
    • View simulation summary spreadsheet – the live displays during a simulation are saved to a spreadsheet (if the option is ticked beforehand in General settings)
    • View 2D mass balance file(s) – overall mass balance data from a simulation are saved to a csv format which will be loaded into MS Excel
    • View 1D linked flow summary file(s) – overall link flow data (for 1D-2D linked simulations) are saved to a csv format which will be loaded into MS Excel

    This right-click menu also includes options to add 2D results or 2D input GIS datasets to the Flood Modeller map view. 

    For 1D river simulations, the option is now provided to access and view the 1D diagnostic log file, which will open in the text editor default to your machine.

    Related articles

    How to load 1D diagnostic files

    How to load 2D diagnostic files

    Infiltration rate and loss available as 2D outputs

    In pluvial flooding, the infiltration of the rainfall is of great interest and may want further investigation. For models setup to include dynamic infiltration (varying spatially and with time), you can now select to include infiltration rate and the infiltration loss as additional output datasets (scalar grid format). These are calculated if the relevant options are selected from the 2D simulation outputs list in your 2D model setup interface. 

    Related articles

    How to select 2D simulation outputs

    Enhanced logical rules

    Logical rules have been greatly enhanced adding increased functionality to enable closer representation of complex control structures and improved workflows to ensure ease of use. 

    Global rules variables can now be defined for a 1D river network. These can be utilised in the rules defined for multiple structures. Thus, they can provide a link between the logic controlling each structure and hence the behaviour of each structure. For example, create a timer to start when a certain condition is met, and then multiple gates, pumps, and/or abstraction units can be controlled by this global timer. The different types of global rules variables available are as follows:

    • Time triggers
    • Boolean / Ternary – variable set to +1, 0 or -1, e.g. to represent an on/off control
    • Numeric – variables can be real or integer values

    In addition, a new interface has been provided for the definition of global rules variables for the active river network in the map view. These data are saved in the river network file (.dat file).

    There are further additions to the options provided when defining individual logical rules for a structure. These are as follows:

    • A global “Else” to provide catch-all option within a set of rules (previously only “if…then” was available)
    • Multiple actions under same rule – “Also” (previously multiple separate rules would need to be defined to define each action)

    Finally, ensuring your rules are being applied as expected is crucial. This can be checked quickly and easily by using new functionality added for visualising rules taking effect within time series plots.

    Related articles

    How to use logical rules

    How to apply logical rules to a sluice or gated weir

    How to apply logical rules to a pump

    How to apply logical rules to an abstraction unit

    How to add global variables

    How to visualise rules affecting structures

    GPU solver improvements

    Increase your productivity by running simulations faster than ever before using the 2D GPU Solver. The enhanced GPU solver in v6.2 is configured for running larger models. Input data limits have been removed and so the only restriction now is the memory limits of your system for reading large input datasets or writing large output files. 

    Related articles

    How to use the 2D GPU Solver

    Requirements for the 2D GPU Solver

    How to select a solver

    Enhancements to Muskingum routing

    Until now, the variable parameter Muskingum-Cunge method, when derived from VPMC Cross Sections, has produced curves that can be very jagged. For v6.2, improvements have been implemented to smooth these curves, resulting in more stable solutions that are easier to both use and calibrate.

    The key features of the improvements are the removal of any rogue data points, fitting a smooth curve between the remaining points, and enabling these points to be scaled by calibration factors.

    Related articles

    Muskingum Routing

    Muskingum Method

    VPMC Cross Sections

    Additional bug fixes

    • Enabled trial licences in the licence module
    • Enhancements to 2D-urban linked modelling processes to improve stability and mass balance accuracy
    • Synchronise TVD CPU to align with 2D GPU implementation
    • Option added to enable clicking on a cross section plot to add 1D river panel marker (requires panel markers t be turned on in cross section chart legend)
    • Fixed issues with writing and loading netCDF format for 2D results, e.g. better handling of rotated grids - now added as additional 2D model output option
    • All Flood Modeller source code and installed files are now certified (for a smoother installation process, i.e. files should not be wrongly identified as potentially malicious)
    • 1D river linking has been reviewed and revised to ensure it works with the latest version of TUFLOW (as of v6.2 release date)
    • 1D river and 2D solver benchmarking has been successfully repeated for v6.2
    • Default output settings in 2D model interface changed to XMDF and GeoTIFF for new 2D simulations
    • Unit count functionality reinstated, accessed via the right click menu of the 1D River network table - select Model build > Unit count and data is automatically written to a csv file (in the same folder as the network)
    • Consolidated shapefile generation tools to ensure all are setting correct/current attributes required by solvers
    • 1D river bank markers tool now also applies to MUSK-XSEC units as well as RIVER SECTION units
    • Enhanced error reporting for ABS and PUMP units using Logical Rules (if rule definitions contain errors) - should enable better understanding and faster fixing of model issues
    • "Reset chart layouts" button added to layout options menu on Home tab - to bring chart location back to main screen of UI
    • 1D River diagnostics file (zzd) enhanced to report Urban file names for linked simulations
    • Levee calculations improved for cases where floodplain ground level is lower than adjacent channel bed level
    • Fixed issue with “I/O Error 66” on attempting to write to/open long 1D river filenames
    • Error fixed that caused TVD-GPU simulations with embedded structures to fail
    • Error fixed that caused Rainfall / Urban link models using 2D TVD (CPU or GPU) to fail
    • Informative error message now written to the log when infiltration loss output is selected but infiltration parameters have not been defined
    • Passing -pm as 2DOptions from ief causes "licence not taken" error – now fixed
    • Issue fixed that caused linked TUFLOW failures with "sqlite function not found" error (TUFLOW 2023-03-AA)
    • Flip Cross Section tool does not flip L & R Levee Markers – now fixed
    • Potential memory leak during 2D results writing addressed
    •  LEFT overtopping bank marker set on the same point as RIGHT marker causes failure – now fixed
    • Issue addressed with locations reported in the spatial diagnostics file (2D) being outside the domain
    • Issue fixed when importing cross sections from some HEC-RAS models
    • Issues when adding 1D river GERRBDY transformation models and baseflows in 1D unit properties window now all fixed
    • Changes made to calculation of spatially varying Green-Ampt infiltration in 2D models to improve accuracy


    Version 6.1

    GPU solver finalised 

    The 2D GPU solver, previously released as a beta version, has now been finalised. This is now more robust, and compatible with a wider range of modelling scenarios than the previous beta version. The benchmarking of the solver has highlighted the significant performance gains that can be realised compared to equivalent simulations run on the CPU.

    Improved 2D Diagnostics

    Various improvements have been made to 2D diagnostic messaging, to help with identifying issues and troubleshooting these if necessary. A Spatial diagnostics file is of particular value for 2D simulations as it can be used to locate potentially problematic areas within your domain. A limit (which is easily adjusted by the user) has now been imposed on the number of lines written to the spatial diagnostic file, to stop these becoming unmanageably large.

    Enhanced 2D Flood Map tool

    This post-processing tool is used to extract selected timesteps from a 2D results file and export these either as flood outlines or flood depth grids. The 2D flood map tool has been enhanced to now work with .xmdf and .netcdf format results and export to GeoTIFF format, in addition to previous options. The tool has also been redesigned and now can process multiple results at once. 

    Improved calibration file editor

    Calibration datasets are hugely important to reduce the uncertainty in model results. By comparing these known data values for specific events to results produced within Flood Modeller, a user can refine parameters to improve the accuracy of a model. The improved Calibration file editor tool enables you to quickly and easily create these dataset, following which users can Add calibration data to results for comparison.

    Optimal Storm Duration tool addition

    The Optimal Storm Duration tool can be used to find the storm duration required to achieve a maximum water level or discharge at a location of interest. Flood Modeller uses rainfall-runoff methodologies to quickly and easily find the OSD for a model containing one or more catchment inflow hydrograph units. This tool now has the additional option of running with double precision. 

    WFS layers now available

    Web Map Services (WMS) return the image of a map. Web Feature Services (WFS) can have attributes alongside geometry. Flood Modeller now provides selected WFS layers to assist with visualisation of models, in addition to the WMS layers previously available. Alongside the option to Add a WMS/WFS layer to a Project, for layers you use frequently, you can also Add a WMS/WFS layer to your favourites for even easier access.

    Enhanced 2D results options

    The interface for loading all 2D results has been redesigned with enhanced functionality, providing quick access to all 2D model results, including any linked river/urban elements. The newly available options include a more intuitive way to Load 2D results (also helpful if you choose to Animate 2D results), and quick and easy methods to Load 2D diagnostics (including log files and check grids) and to Load the 2D flood extent.

    Updated snowmelt rates

    An updated snowmelt rate calculation has been implemented in the 1D river FEH hydrological boundary unit. This revision aligns with the latest accepted UK methodology (as stipulated by the Environment Agency). Within the FEH unit, you can now Provide two snowmelt rates; the rate during the antecedent period, together with the (usually increased) rate during the storm event itself. Further, these rates can be calculated automatically within Flood Modeller using the catchment descriptors and other parameters defined within the unit.

    New outflow boundary

    As an alternative to the Normal Depth boundary, Flood Modeller now offers the Outflow boundary for use with your 2D GPU and TVD simulations. This can provide a more stable solution with improved mass balance compared to the Normal Depth boundary, particularly when creating boundary lines that extend over multiple grid cells.

    Full details on all new functionality and solver enhancements can be found in the v6.1 release notes available here:


    Version 6.0

    Viewing and editing networks

    The new urban Multi-Edit & View tool is designed to quickly and easily analyse the multiple components of your urban network. You can Visualise urban networks using the edit and view tool, and functionality is also provided to Edit urban networks using the edit and view tool. An alternative method for adjusting parameters within urban networks is via the urban group edit tool.

    Alongside the option to edit river networks within the properties of the individual nodes, Flood Modeller provides a range of tools to edit the properties for multiple nodes at once. Enhanced documentation is now provided explaining how it is possible to Globally edit river-bed elevation provided you have Defined special markers for each of the River Section nodes to be adjusted.

    Basemaps and WMS layers

    Web map services (WMS) layers are georeferenced map images to assist with visualisation of models. Flood Modeller v6.0 provides a new tool to Add a WMS layer to a project. For WMS layers you use frequently, you can also Add a WMS layer to your favourites for even easier access. Several additional Basemapping options are also available.

    Enhanced simulation outputs

    At simulation runtime, a variety of information is displayed, including several parameters and multiple graphs. It is now possible to Save and review simulation runtime summary data so it can be referred to after a simulation has completed. Many parameters can be output from simulations, including depths and velocities. Flood Modeller v6.0 provides functionality to calculate four additional outputs related to Calculating  shear stress within 2D simulations.

    New licensing structure

    To provide new and existing users with more functionality, greater flexibility and further cost savings, we have launched a new licensing structure as part of Flood Modeller 6.0. With four editions of the software now available on a monthly, annual or lifetime basis, each one provides you with everything you need to undertake fully integrated catchment modelling.

    The GPU solver

    In the latest  beta release stage, you can harness the power of modern GPU  hardware by Using the 2D GPU Solver for more model setups than ever before.  With the appropriate GPU Solver Requirements, increase productivity with significant speed increases of up to 94% compared to CPU simulation runs. 

    Full details on all new functionality and solver enhancements can be found in the v6.0 release notes available here:



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