Consolidate optimizer options and backend_options

src/everest/config/optimization_config.py

@@ -150,7 +150,7 @@ class OptimizationConfig(BaseModel, extra="forbid"):  # type: ignore
 the value to be equal to one.
 """,
     )
-    options: list[str] | None = Field(
+    options: list[str] | dict[str, Any] | None = Field(
         default=None,
         description="""specifies non-validated, optional
 passthrough parameters for the optimizer

src/everest/optimizer/everest2ropt.py

@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import logging
 import os
 from typing import Any
 
@@ -14,6 +15,7 @@
     OutputConstraintConfig,
 )
 from everest.config.utils import FlattenedControls, control_tuples
+from everest.strings import EVEREST
 
 
 def _parse_controls(ever_controls: list[ControlConfig], ropt_config):
@@ -279,19 +281,27 @@ def _parse_optimization(
     # Handle the backend options. Due to historical reasons there two keywords:
     # "options" is used to pass a list of string, "backend_options" is used to
     # pass a dict. These are redirected to the same ropt option:
-    options = ever_opt.options or []
-    backend_options = ever_opt.backend_options or {}
-    if options and backend_options:
-        raise RuntimeError("Only one of 'options' and 'backend_options' allowed.")
+    if ever_opt.backend_options is not None:
+        message = (
+            "optimization.backend_options is deprecated. "
+            "Please use optimization.options instead, "
+            "it will accept both objects and lists of strings."
+        )
+        print(message)
+        logging.getLogger(EVEREST).warning(message)
+
+    options = ever_opt.options or ever_opt.backend_options or {}
+
+    alg_const_tol = ever_opt.constraint_tolerance or None
+    if (
+        has_output_constraints
+        and alg_const_tol is not None
+        and isinstance(options, list)
+    ):
+        options += [f"constraint_tolerance = {alg_const_tol}"]
+
     # The constraint_tolerance option is only used by Dakota:
-    if backend == "dakota":
-        alg_const_tol = ever_opt.constraint_tolerance or None
-        if has_output_constraints and alg_const_tol is not None:
-            options += [f"constraint_tolerance = {alg_const_tol}"]
-    if options:
-        ropt_optimizer["options"] = options
-    if backend_options:
-        ropt_optimizer["options"] = backend_options
+    ropt_optimizer["options"] = options
 
     parallel = True if ever_opt.parallel is None else ever_opt.parallel
     ropt_optimizer["parallel"] = True if parallel is None else parallel

tests/everest/test_ropt_initialization.py

@@ -152,14 +152,17 @@ def test_everest2ropt_backend_options():
     ropt_config = everest2ropt(config)
     assert ropt_config.optimizer.options == ["test = 1"]
 
-    config.optimization.backend = "scipy"
-    config.optimization.backend_options = {"test": 1}
-    with pytest.raises(RuntimeError):
-        _ = everest2ropt(config)
+    config.optimization.backend_options = {"test": "5"}  # should be disregarded
+    ropt_config = everest2ropt(config)
+    assert ropt_config.optimizer.options == ["test = 1"]
 
     config.optimization.options = None
     ropt_config = everest2ropt(config)
-    assert ropt_config.optimizer.options["test"] == 1
+    assert ropt_config.optimizer.options == {"test": "5"}
+
+    config.optimization.options = ["hey", "a=b", "c 100"]
+    ropt_config = everest2ropt(config)
+    assert ropt_config.optimizer.options == ["hey", "a=b", "c 100"]
 
 
 def test_everest2ropt_samplers():