Using Template Model Builder on an M1 Mac: Incompatible architecture error

Question

I am trying to set up the Template Model Builder (TMB) package in R on my new M1 Mac. I have installed the silicon version of R and followed and installed TMB from CRAN. However, after I have compiled A C++ template function with compile("file.cpp"), I get the following error when I run dyn.load(dynlib("file")): (mach-o file, but is an incompatible architecture (have 'x86_64', need 'arm64e')).

I have tried to follow the tips from here, in the hopes that this would change the compilation architecture. Does anyone know how to resolve this error, or has anyone been able to set up and use TMB on an M1 Mac?

Answer 1

This error message suggests that the compiled C++ template function is built for the x86_64 architecture, which is not compatible with the arm64e architecture used by the M1 Mac. To resolve this issue, you need to compile the C++ template function specifically for the arm64e architecture. Here are the steps to compile the C++ template function for the arm64e architecture on your M1 Mac:

1. Make sure you have the required tools installed: You will need to have Xcode installed on your M1 Mac, as well as the Command Line Tools for Xcode. You can install the Command Line Tools by running the following command in the terminal:

   xcode-select --install

2. Set the required environment variables: You will need to set the following environment variables to ensure that the correct compilers and libraries are used for arm64e architecture:

   export PATH="/Library/Developer/CommandLineTools/usr/bin:$PATH" export CC=clang export CXX=clang++

3. Compile the C++ template function: Now that you have set the required environment variables, you can compile the C++ template function using the following command:

   R CMD SHLIB file.cpp -arch arm64e

This should produce a shared library file (.so) for the arm64e architecture. You can then load this library file using dyn.load(dynlib("file")) in R. I hope this helps resolve your issue with setting up TMB on your M1 Mac. If you continue to have trouble, you may want to consider reaching out to the TMB community for further assistance.