HDFGroup/hdf5

What is HDF5?

This repository contains a high-performance library's source code and a file format
specification that implements the HDF5® data model. The model has been adopted across
many industries, and this implementation has become a de facto data management standard
in science, engineering, and research communities worldwide.

The HDF Group is the developer, maintainer, and steward of HDF5 software. Find more
information about The HDF Group, the HDF5 Community, and other HDF5 software projects,
tools, and services at The HDF Group's website.

Quick Start

New to HDF5? Start with the INSTALL.md guide for compilation and installation instructions.
Ready to build? See INSTALL_CMake.md for CMake-based builds.
Running on HPC? Check out README_HPC.md for parallel HDF5 configuration.

What is HDF5?
Quick Start
Documentation
Help and Support
Forum and News
Release Schedule
Downloads and Source Code
Java Maven Artifacts
Contributing
How to Cite HDF5
Build Status

Documentation

Documentation for all HDF software is available at:

All HDF Documentation: https://support.hdfgroup.org/documentation/index.html
Latest HDF5 Library: https://support.hdfgroup.org/documentation/hdf5/latest

See the CHANGELOG.md file in the release_docs/ directory for information specific
to the features and updates included in this release of the library.

Platform-Specific Guides

Several files in the release_docs/ directory provide platform-specific details:

File	Description
INSTALL	General compilation and installation instructions (start here)
INSTALL_CMake.md	Building with CMake
README_HPC.md	Building and configuring Parallel HDF5 on HPC systems
INSTALL_Windows.md	Windows installation
INSTALL_Cygwin.md	Cygwin installation
USING_HDF5_CMake.md	Building HDF5 applications with CMake
USING_CMake_Examples.md	Building and testing HDF5 examples with CMake

Help and Support

The HDF Group staffs a free Help Desk accessible at https://help.hdfgroup.org and also monitors the Forum. Our free support service is community-based and handled as time allows. We'll do our best to respond to your question as soon as possible, but please note that response times may vary depending on the complexity of the issue and staff availability.

If you're interested in guaranteed response and resolution times, a dedicated technical account manager, and more benefits (all while supporting the open-source work of The HDF Group), please check out Priority Support.

Forum and News

The HDF Forum is provided for public announcements, technical questions, and discussions
of interest to the general HDF5 Community.

These forums are provided as an open and public service for searching and reading.
Posting requires completing a simple registration and allows one to join in the
conversation. Please read the quickstart guide for more information on how to get started.

Release Schedule

HDF5 does not follow a regular release schedule. Instead, updates are based on the
introduction of new features and the resolution of bugs. However, we aim to have at
least one annual release for each maintenance branch.

Release Progress

The badges above show the current progress of critical and high priority issues with colors that reflect completion status:

🟢 Green (90%+): Readying for Deployment - most issues completed
🟡 Yellow (60-89%): Nearing Completion - on track for release
🟠 Orange (40-59%): In Development - attention needed
🔴 Red (<40%): Initial Phase - significant issues remain

Click the badges to view the detailed project board with current release items.

Downloads and Source Code

Snapshots and Releases

Development Snapshots: https://github.com/HDFGroup/hdf5/releases/tag/snapshot
Latest Release: https://github.com/HDFGroup/hdf5/releases
Previous Releases: https://support.hdfgroup.org/archive/support/ftp/HDF5/releases/index.html
Development Code: https://github.com/HDFGroup/hdf5.git

HPC Testing Results

View HPC configure/build/test results on CDash

Java Maven Artifacts

HDF5 Java bindings and examples are available as Maven artifacts. For detailed usage instructions including dependency configuration, repository setup, and platform-specific builds, see HDF5Examples/JAVA/README-MAVEN.md.

Contributing

We welcome contributions to HDF5! Whether you're fixing bugs, adding features, or improving documentation, your help is appreciated.

How to Contribute

Report Issues: Use our GitHub Issues to report bugs or request features
Submit Pull Requests: Fork the repository, make your changes, and submit a PR
Join Discussions: Participate in the HDF Forum

For detailed contribution guidelines, please contact us through the Help Desk.