Solver Tutorial - How to Use the Excel Solver or Solver SDK

What Must I Do to Use a Solver?

To use a solver, you must build a model that specifies:

• The resources to be used, using decision variables,
• The limits on resource usage, called constraints, and
• The measure to optimize, called the objective.

The solver will find values for the decision variables that satisfy the constraints while optimizing (maximizing or minimizing) the objective.

Using Spreadsheets.  Spreadsheets such as Microsoft Excel provide a convenient way to build such a model.  Anyone who has used a spreadsheet is already familiar with the process:  Cells on a worksheet can hold numbers, labels, or formulas that calculate new values -- such as the objective of an optimization.  Constraints are simply limits (specified with <=, = or >= relations) on formula cells.  And the decision variables are simply input cells containing numbers.  Frontline's Premium Solver products provide powerful tools for solving, or optimizing, such models.

Using Custom Programs.  Another way to build an optimization model is to write code in a programming language such as Visual Basic, C#, Java or C/C++.  Instead of spreadsheet cells, variables or arrays in the program hold the decision variables and computed values.  Code using assignment statements and array indexing calculates values for the constraints and objective.  Frontline's Solver SDK products provide equally powerful tools for solving, or optimizing, models in this form.

The choice of approach is yours.  Spreadsheets offer a quick way to build a model, and you can easily explain the model and its results to other users who are usually spreadsheet-literate.  Application programs written in a programming language may offer higher performance and may be easier to distribute widely, within a company or to commercial users.

No matter which approach you choose, Frontline Systems' Solver products provide the key optimization technology in an easy-to-use, reliable form.

Next: How Do I Define a Model? >

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Software Developer Tools:

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