Directories - 1

It mostly depends on your specific use case and environment:

1. Single-User, Personal Setup:

• ~/spack is perfectly fine if you’re the only one who will be using Spack. It keeps everything contained within your home directory, so you don’t need elevated permissions and it’s easier to back up or remove later.

2. Multi-User System or System-Wide Installation:

• /opt/spack (or another system-level path, e.g. /usr/local/spack) may be a better choice if multiple users on the system need access to Spack installations. This way, the software stack is shared, and each user can run Spack without having to keep their own separate instance. However, you typically need root or sudo access to install software into /opt (or other system-level directories).

 

In short:

• If it’s just you and you don’t need to share Spack, installing in ~/spack is simple and convenient.

• If you’re administering a machine or cluster where many users will rely on Spack, installing it in /opt/spack (or similar) with the proper permissions is more standard.