diff --git a/build-config/hypre/meson.build b/build-config/hypre/meson.build
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..72951bf
--- /dev/null
+++ b/build-config/hypre/meson.build
@@ -0,0 +1,2 @@
+hypre_sp = cmake.subproject('hypre')
+hypre_dep = hypre_sp.dependency('HYPRE')
diff --git a/build-config/meson.build b/build-config/meson.build
index f7f6466..18e4720 100644
--- a/build-config/meson.build
+++ b/build-config/meson.build
@@ -5,3 +5,18 @@ subdir('yaml-cpp')
 subdir('quill')
 subdir('boost')
 subdir('opatIO')
+subdir('mpi')
+subdir('hypre')
+
+# Set the config file error handling options
+configErr = get_option('config_error_handling')
+
+# build up any -D flags we need
+commonCppArgs = []
+if configErr == 'warn'
+    commonCppArgs += ['-DCONFIG_WARN']
+elif configErr == 'harsh'
+    commonCppArgs += ['-DCONFIG_HARSH']
+endif
+
+add_project_arguments(commonCppArgs, language: 'cpp')
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/build-config/mpi/.mpi_installed b/build-config/mpi/.mpi_installed
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/build-config/mpi/install.sh b/build-config/mpi/install.sh
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..9a02198
--- /dev/null
+++ b/build-config/mpi/install.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,272 @@
+#!/usr/bin/env bash
+#
+# install_mpi.sh - Interactive installation script for MPI.
+#
+# This script checks if MPI is installed (by trying to compile a simple MPI program).
+# If not found, it prompts the user to install MPI using the native package manager for:
+#   - FreeBSD, Ubuntu, Debian, Fedora, Arch, Mint, Manjaro, macOS, OpenSuse, and NixOS.
+#
+# All output is colorized for clarity and logged to mpi-install-log.txt.
+
+set -e
+
+# ANSI color codes.
+RED="\033[0;31m"
+GREEN="\033[0;32m"
+YELLOW="\033[0;33m"
+BLUE="\033[0;34m"
+NC="\033[0m"  # No Color
+
+# Log file.
+LOGFILE="mpi-install-log.txt"
+touch "$LOGFILE" # Ensure log file exists
+
+# Log function: prints to stdout and appends to logfile.
+log() {
+  local message="$1"
+  # Print the colored message to stdout.
+  echo -e "$message"
+  # Strip ANSI escape sequences and append the cleaned message to the log file.
+  echo -e "$message" | sed -r 's/\x1B\[[0-9;]*[mK]//g' >> "$LOGFILE"
+}
+
+# Function to check if MPI (specifically mpicc and a compilable environment) is installed.
+check_mpi_installed() {
+  log "${BLUE}[Info] Checking for MPI (e.g., Open MPI, MPICH) using mpicc...${NC}"
+  local tmpDir="mpiTest" # Define tmpDir locally
+  
+  # Clean up any previous test directory
+  if [[ -d "$tmpDir" ]]; then
+    rm -rf "$tmpDir"
+  fi
+  mkdir "$tmpDir"
+  local sourceFile="$tmpDir/test_mpi.c"
+  local outputFile="$tmpDir/test_mpi_app"
+
+  # Write a minimal MPI C program
+  cat > "$sourceFile" <<EOF
+#include <mpi.h>
+#include <stdio.h>
+
+int main(int argc, char** argv) {
+  if (MPI_Init(NULL, NULL) != MPI_SUCCESS) {
+    // Using fprintf for stderr in case stdout is redirected by build tools
+    fprintf(stderr, "MPI_Init failed\n");
+    return 1;
+  }
+  int world_size;
+  if (MPI_Comm_size(MPI_COMM_WORLD, &world_size) != MPI_SUCCESS) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "MPI_Comm_size failed\n");
+    MPI_Finalize(); // Attempt to finalize even if a step fails
+    return 1;
+  }
+  int world_rank;
+  if (MPI_Comm_rank(MPI_COMM_WORLD, &world_rank) != MPI_SUCCESS) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "MPI_Comm_rank failed\n");
+    MPI_Finalize();
+    return 1;
+  }
+  // A simple printf to ensure it links and runs, though not strictly necessary for the check
+  // printf("MPI Initialized successfully on rank %d of %d\\n", world_rank, world_size);
+  if (MPI_Finalize() != MPI_SUCCESS) {
+    fprintf(stderr, "MPI_Finalize failed\n");
+    return 1;
+  }
+  return 0;
+}
+EOF
+
+  # Try to find mpicc and compile the test program
+  if command -v mpicc &> /dev/null; then
+    # Log the compilation command
+    log "${BLUE}[Info] Attempting to compile MPI test program with: mpicc \"$sourceFile\" -o \"$outputFile\"${NC}"
+    # Attempt compilation, redirecting stdout and stderr of mpicc to the log file for details
+    if mpicc "$sourceFile" -o "$outputFile" >> "$LOGFILE" 2>&1; then
+      log "${GREEN}[Success] MPI compiler (mpicc) found and test program compiled successfully.${NC}"
+      # Optional: Could add a mpiexec -n 1 "$outputFile" check here for further validation
+      rm -rf "$tmpDir"
+      return 0 # MPI seems to be installed and working
+    else
+      log "${RED}[Error] MPI compiler (mpicc) found, but failed to compile the test program. See $LOGFILE for details.${NC}"
+    fi
+  else
+    log "${RED}[Error] MPI compiler (mpicc) not found in PATH.${NC}"
+  fi
+  
+  # Cleanup and return failure
+  rm -rf "$tmpDir"
+  return 1
+}
+
+# Prompt the user for a yes/no answer.
+prompt_yes_no() {
+  local promptMsg="$1"
+  while true; do
+    read -r -p "$(echo -e "${YELLOW}$promptMsg${NC} (y/n): ")" answer
+    case "$answer" in
+      [Yy]* ) return 0;;
+      [Nn]* ) return 1;;
+      * ) echo -e "${RED}Please answer yes (y) or no (n).${NC}";;
+    esac
+  done
+}
+
+# Detect OS and Distribution.
+OS=$(uname -s)
+DISTRO="unknown"
+if [ -f /etc/os-release ]; then
+  # shellcheck disable=SC1091
+  . /etc/os-release
+  DISTRO=$ID
+elif [ -f /etc/lsb-release ]; then # Fallback for older systems
+  # shellcheck disable=SC1091
+  . /etc/lsb-release
+  DISTRO=$DISTRIB_ID
+fi
+# Normalize some distro names
+DISTRO=$(echo "$DISTRO" | tr '[:upper:]' '[:lower:]')
+
+
+if [[ "$OS" == "Darwin" ]]; then
+  OS="macOS"
+fi
+
+if [[ $OS == "macOS" ]]; then
+    log "${BLUE}[Info] Detected OS: ${OS}${NC}"
+else
+    log "${BLUE}[Info] Detected OS: ${OS}  Distribution: ${DISTRO}${NC}"
+fi
+
+# Main script logic
+log "${BLUE}[Info] Starting MPI installation check...${NC}"
+
+if check_mpi_installed; then
+  log "${GREEN}[Success] MPI appears to be already installed and configured on your system.${NC}"
+  log "${GREEN}[Success] Your MPI-dependent application can now proceed.${NC}"
+  exit 0
+else
+  log "${YELLOW}[Warning] MPI was not detected or is not properly configured on your system.${NC}"
+  if prompt_yes_no "[Query] Would you like this script to attempt to install MPI (Open MPI) now?"; then
+    log "${BLUE}[Info] Attempting to install MPI...${NC}"
+    case "$OS" in
+      "macOS")
+        if ! command -v brew &> /dev/null; then
+          log "${YELLOW}[Warning] Homebrew is not installed. It is highly recommended for installing MPI on macOS.${NC}"
+          if prompt_yes_no "[Query] Would you like to install Homebrew now?"; then
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] Installing Homebrew...${NC}"
+            # Piping to tee to ensure output is captured in the log file
+            /bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)" 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+          else
+            log "${RED}[Error] Homebrew is required for an easy MPI installation on macOS using this script. Aborting.${NC}"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+        fi
+        log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: brew install open-mpi${NC}"
+        brew install open-mpi 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+        ;;
+      "Linux")
+        case "$DISTRO" in
+          "ubuntu"|"debian"|"linuxmint"|"pop"|"raspbian") # Added pop and raspbian
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get install -y libopenmpi-dev${NC}"
+            sudo apt-get update 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+            sudo apt-get install -y libopenmpi-dev 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+            ;;
+          "fedora"|"centos"|"rhel") # Added centos and rhel (dnf is common now)
+             if command -v dnf &> /dev/null; then
+                log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo dnf install -y openmpi-devel${NC}"
+                sudo dnf install -y openmpi-devel 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+             elif command -v yum &> /dev/null; then # Fallback for older CentOS/RHEL
+                log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo yum install -y openmpi-devel${NC}"
+                sudo yum install -y openmpi-devel 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+             else
+                log "${RED}[Error] Neither dnf nor yum found. Cannot install MPI on this Fedora/RHEL-like system automatically.${NC}"
+                exit 1
+             fi
+            ;;
+          "arch"|"manjaro"|"endeavouros") # Added endeavouros
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo pacman -S --noconfirm openmpi${NC}"
+            sudo pacman -S --noconfirm openmpi 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+            ;;
+          "opensuse"|"opensuse-leap"|"opensuse-tumbleweed") # More specific opensuse IDs
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo zypper install -y openmpi-devel${NC}" # Or openmpi4-devel, openmpi-devel is often a meta package
+            sudo zypper install -y openmpi-devel 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+            ;;
+          "nixos")
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] On NixOS, you typically manage packages declaratively or with nix-shell.${NC}"
+            log "${BLUE}[Info] To install Open MPI imperatively: nix-env -iA nixpkgs.openmpi${NC}"
+            log "${YELLOW}[Warning] This script will not run nix-env automatically. Please install manually if desired.${NC}"
+            log "${YELLOW}[Info] For declarative environment, add 'openmpi' to your configuration.nix or shell.nix.${NC}"
+            # nix-env -iA nixpkgs.openmpi 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE" # Decided against auto-running this for NixOS
+            ;;
+          *)
+            log "${RED}[Error] Your Linux distribution ($DISTRO) is not recognized or not explicitly supported for automatic MPI installation by this script.${NC}"
+            log "${RED}[Info] Please try installing Open MPI or another MPI implementation manually.${NC}"
+            exit 1
+            ;;
+        esac
+        ;;
+      "FreeBSD")
+        log "${BLUE}[Info] Running: sudo pkg install openmpi${NC}"
+        sudo pkg install -y openmpi 2>&1 | tee -a "$LOGFILE"
+        ;;
+      *)
+        log "${RED}[Error] Automatic MPI installation is not supported on OS: ${OS} by this script.${NC}"
+        log "${RED}[Info] Please try installing Open MPI or another MPI implementation manually.${NC}"
+        exit 1
+        ;;
+    esac
+
+    # Verify MPI installation after attempting to install
+    log "${BLUE}[Info] Verifying MPI installation attempt...${NC}"
+    if check_mpi_installed; then
+      log "${GREEN}[Success] MPI installation appears to have succeeded.${NC}"
+    else
+      log "${RED}[Error] MPI installation appears to have failed or is still not correctly configured. Please check $LOGFILE and install MPI manually.${NC}"
+      exit 1
+    fi
+
+  else
+    log "${YELLOW}[Info] User chose not to install MPI automatically.${NC}"
+    log "${RED}[Error] MPI is required for the application to proceed.${NC}"
+    log "${YELLOW}Please install an MPI implementation (e.g., Open MPI, MPICH) manually using the appropriate command for your system:${NC}"
+    case "$OS" in
+      "macOS")
+        log "${YELLOW}  Example: brew install open-mpi (Install Homebrew from https://brew.sh if not present)${NC}"
+        ;;
+      "Linux")
+        case "$DISTRO" in
+          "ubuntu"|"debian"|"linuxmint"|"pop"|"raspbian")
+            log "${YELLOW}  Example: sudo apt-get install libopenmpi-dev${NC}"
+            ;;
+          "fedora"|"centos"|"rhel")
+            log "${YELLOW}  Example: sudo dnf install openmpi-devel (or sudo yum install openmpi-devel)${NC}"
+            ;;
+          "arch"|"manjaro"|"endeavouros")
+            log "${YELLOW}  Example: sudo pacman -S openmpi${NC}"
+            ;;
+          "opensuse"|"opensuse-leap"|"opensuse-tumbleweed")
+            log "${YELLOW}  Example: sudo zypper install openmpi-devel${NC}"
+            ;;
+          "nixos")
+            log "${YELLOW}  Example: nix-env -iA nixpkgs.openmpi or add to configuration.nix${NC}"
+            ;;
+          *)
+            log "${YELLOW}  Please consult your distribution's documentation for installing an MPI development package (e.g., Open MPI, MPICH).${NC}"
+            ;;
+        esac
+        ;;
+      "FreeBSD")
+        log "${YELLOW}  Example: sudo pkg install openmpi${NC}"
+        ;;
+      *)
+        log "${YELLOW}  Please consult your operating system's documentation for installing an MPI development package.${NC}"
+        ;;
+    esac
+    exit 1
+  fi
+fi
+
+log "${GREEN}[SUCCESS] MPI is installed and ready for use!${NC}"
+log "${GREEN}[SUCCESS] 4DSSE installation can now proceed.${NC}"
+exit 0
+
diff --git a/build-config/mpi/meson.build b/build-config/mpi/meson.build
index e69de29..775a46d 100644
--- a/build-config/mpi/meson.build
+++ b/build-config/mpi/meson.build
@@ -0,0 +1 @@
+mpi_dep = dependency('mpi', version: '>=5.0.0', language: 'cpp')
\ No newline at end of file