f_dump_nc4_metadata.f90 File Reference

Read a NetCDF-4 file and print all metadata including user-defined types. More...

Functions/Subroutines
program	f_dump_nc4_metadata
character(len=nf90_max_name) function	type_name (ncid, xtype)

Detailed Description

Read a NetCDF-4 file and print all metadata including user-defined types.

Fortran equivalent of dump_nc4_metadata.c. Reads a filename from the command line, opens the file, and prints all metadata:

• User-defined types (enum, opaque)
• All dimensions (name and length, noting unlimited dimensions)
• All global attributes (name, type, and value)
• All variables (name, type, dimensions, and attributes)
• Groups (recursively)

Note: Fortran does not handle VLEN, String, or Compound types portably, so those type classes are reported by name only without detail.

Learning Objectives:

• Use nf90_inq_typeids() to discover user-defined types
• Use nf90_inq_user_type() to determine type class
• Use nf90_inq_enum(), nf90_inq_enum_member(), nf90_inq_opaque()
• Use nf90_inq_grps() to discover groups
• Recursively traverse the group hierarchy

Prerequisites: Basic Fortran programming, familiarity with NetCDF-4

Compilation:

gfortran -o f_dump_nc4_metadata f_dump_nc4_metadata.f90 -lnetcdff -lnetcdf

Usage:

./f_dump_nc4_metadata f_user_types.nc

Author

Edward Hartnett, Intelligent Data Design, Inc.

Date

2026

Function/Subroutine Documentation

f_dump_nc4_metadata()

program f_dump_nc4_metadata

type_name()

character(len=nf90_max_name) function f_dump_nc4_metadata::type_name	(	integer, intent(in)	ncid,
		integer, intent(in)	xtype
	)