TransModeler System Recommendations

We recommend Windows 11 for new machines. Windows 10 is acceptable, but Microsoft in October 2025 will stop general support. We do not recommend 32-bit versions given their limited memory capacity. Server versions of Windows 2016/2019/2022 are supported only with a special TransCAD Remote Desktop license. At Caliper, we use the 64-bit Professional or Workstation version of Windows 11. 

TransCAD/TransModeler benefit from the fastest processors, and we recommend the latest multicore machines for running large models. TransCAD and TransModeler have key multi-threaded procedures that automatically sense and take advantage of multiple cores and multiple CPUs. In particular, the default (n-conjugate) user equilibrium (UE) traffic assignment in TransCAD will scale almost linearly with the number of cores. Microsimulation and mesoscopic simulation will also run faster by utilizing all the cores. The matrix engine in TransCAD is also multi-threaded and benefits greatly from multi-core hardware although there may be decreasing returns from using more than 8 cores. There are also computations whose performance scales with the clock speed of the CPU, so higher clock speeds are always desirable. The boost speed is an important aspect of the latest processors, and boost speeds for a single core or multiple cores above 5GHz are very attractive.

Many chips support hyperthreading in which certain cores each run two threads. We have found hyperthreading to be underwhelming for TransCAD procedures but marginally useful for TransModeler DTA runs. It can also slow things down as can also occur if too many threads are used for computations that don’t warrant it. Consequently, we recommend turning off hyperthreading unless you can establish that it is beneficial through your own testing on specific problems.

Not every process is computationally demanding enough to benefit from using all the available cores for multi-threading. For example, some gravity models run in only a few seconds. For procedures that take only a few seconds to run, multi-threading can actually increase the run times since there is always some overhead that is associated with it. Also, for heavier calculations, due to Amdahl’s law, there will be diminishing returns to using an increasing number of threads above a certain point. One reason is that some operations like reading and writing data to disk may take a constant amount of time, and so overall computing time will level off after the numerical calculations are efficiently threaded. If there are spare cores not needed for some procedures, they can be used for parallel processing with TransCAD computing engines. For example, one could run AM and PM peak traffic assignments simultaneously. Parallel processing makes it highly attractive to have many cores as long as there is no great reduction in clock speed (dropping below 3GHz). 

In the past we recommended diverse machines, but we have been so pleased with the 13th and 14th generation Intel Core i9 desktop machines, that they are now our default best choice for most applications.

These machines have two types of CPU cores inside. The P or performance cores that are more powerful and can be hyperthreaded and the E or efficiency cores that cannot but use less power for simpler tasks. The recent i9s come with 8P cores and 16E cores and thus can run 32 threads simultaneously.

Part of our enthusiasm for these machines is that when configured with fast memory and fast SSD drives, they outperform most prior machines on our transportation model computing tasks. Fully configured, these machines cost between $2200 and $3200 each, making them extremely cost effective.

For this class of machine, it is necessary to run Windows 11. Windows 11 has been evolved to manage the use of the P and E cores efficiently and thus is critical to receiving the best performance.

During the past several years, AMD has released competitive high-end workstation processors that are worth considering, particularly the latest based on the Zen 4 architecture. The Ryzen™ Threadripper™ are available with up to 96 cores on a single chip. We have not tested one of these machines yet, and we will continue to evaluate competitive new alternatives as they are introduced.

For routine TransCAD use, we are now purchasing Dell Precision 3680 workstations with a 3.2GHz i9-14900K 24-core (8 performance cores and 16 efficiency cores) processor, 64GB of DDR5 memory, a 1 or 2TB NVMe SSD, nVidia RTX 4060 graphics card with 8GB and 64-bit Windows 11 Professional. With the boost architecture, this chip can sustain 5GHZ speeds on many cores and certainly is potent on single-threaded computations.

For notebooks, we recommend the fastest Intel (13th and 14th generation) Core i7/i9 and Core Ultra 7/9 processors, since they have significantly longer battery life and can be nearly as fast as a desktop. Like the desktops, they have both performance and efficiency cores.

Both TransCAD and TransModeler are highly efficient with respect to memory utilization, a legacy of the past when only limited amounts of memory were useable by DOS and earlier versions of Windows. As TransCAD is a fully 64-bit application, however, we recommend a minimum of 16-32GB of RAM and 64-bit Windows 11. If you have a machine with many cores, please be aware that some procedures will require more memory to run more threads. For example, 64GB or more is recommended when running assignments or transit skimming with more than 5,000 zones or on large networks, when running path-based assignments, or when saving paths from the regular conjugate assignment. All bets on memory needs are off when TransCAD is used with certain third party ABMs, some of which might require 200+GB for large models. 

For most TransModeler simulations, 8GB will be sufficient, but we would recommend the same amount of memory as for TransCAD since the two products are often used together. 

We do not recommend 32-bit machines. We have phased out 32-bit versions of our products.

500GB or more of storage space is recommended. If you will be working with many large data sets, you will want more storage. It is always wise to backup your important data frequently.

The biggest performance improvement of the past few years has been the widespread availability of SSDs, especially the latest M.2 NVMe SSDs, that can be ten or more times faster than the older 7200rpm mechanical drives. We no longer bother with RAID for our workstations. The new PCIe 4.0 and 5.0 based SSDs (e.g., Samsung 980 Pro and 990 Pro) are even faster but require a motherboard with PCIe 4.0/5.0 support. We recommend at least a SATA-based SSD and strongly suggest a NVMe SSD in any new machine. 

For replacement SATA SSDs, we like the Samsung 870 EVO and 860 Pros. We have had great success with the Samsung Data Migration Software to clone existing boot drives to a new Samsung SSD.

A DVD drive is no longer required, since with the COVID pandemic, TransCAD and TransModeler are supplied via download.

For TransModeler, a good graphics card is critical for the animation of the simulation. TransModeler has full 3D animation that requires hardware-based graphics acceleration. For the best 3D performance we recommend the latest nVidia gaming cards that fit your budget. A minimum of 128MB of video memory is required, but 1+GB is recommended. 

For good 3D animation with TransModeler on a notebook, we recommend a high-end nVidia graphics card. Many older laptops cannot animate complex 3D simulations.

For TransCAD, any of video adapters mentioned in the preceding paragraph will provide good 2D performance and limited 3D visualization. 

This is very dependent on user preferences. A 20” or larger monitor that can display at least 1280x1024 is recommended. We like the 23 or 24” wide-screen panels that can display 1920x1080. We mostly purchase Dell UltraSharp LCD monitors. Dual monitors can be very useful for heavy interactive use. For the higher 4K resolution, we liked the Dell 27” U2723QE. Windows 10 or 11 is required for 4K.

This is site dependent. Gigabit Ethernet is a good choice for new installations. Faster connections could be useful if distributed processing is to be used.

TransCAD should work with any printers that work well with Microsoft Windows. Caliper produces large format maps and exhibit graphics using a Hewlett Packard DesignJet Z9. We also use HP Color Laserjets for smaller maps.

Many of our above suggestions also apply to notebook computers. We recommend Intel’s 13th generation 14-core Mobile Core i7/i9 and 14th generation Core Ultra 7/9 processors with a fast NVMe SSD. It is also important to have a good video processor with nVidia graphics (for TransModeler or TransCAD).

We are currently purchasing Dell Precision Mobile 5690 notebooks with CoreUltra 9 185H 16-core processors, 64GB of memory, a 1TB NVMe SSD, and 64-bit Windows 11 Professional. These are very similar to the Dell XPS 16” models.

We do not recommend running large TransCAD models or TransModeler simulations in a virtual computing environment (Citrix, VMWare, Windows Terminal Server, etc). Our compute-intensive engineering applications will at times make use of all the resources available to them. This is especially true of CPU, and for TransModeler GPU, resources. While key components are multi-threaded, other portions are not and benefit from the fastest clock speeds available. Typical virtualized servers have no more CPU capacity than high-end engineering workstations, so it is not feasible to replace multiple workstations with a single server, and it makes little financial sense to do so.

We use a UPS with all of our workstations. This helps protect against power spikes as well as providing backup power for 15-30 minutes, which is very important for long model runs. We mostly use APC units with a 1500VA rating, such as the BX1500M ($200).