Reahl installation¶
We recommend installing Reahl within a sandboxed Python environment provided by virtualenv. Doing this means that your main Python installation is left in the state it currently is, and that you do not need permissions of restricted users to install all the extra Python packages when developing.
Prepare your platform for Python development¶
Before you can install Reahl itself, you need to install several pieces of software on your platform (including Python and several Python development tools like virtualenv). This differs from platform to platform – please follow the instructions for your platform:
Create a virtualenv and install Reahl inside it¶
If you followed the instructions above, virtualenv should have been installed with the packages listed above. You need to now create a virtual environment using virtualenv.
On Linux or Mac, do:
virtualenv ./reahl_env
Note
If you have more than one version of Python installed, also pass the -p argument to virtualenv, specifying the path to the Python interpreter you want this virtualenv for.
On Windows, do (in a command shell):
virtualenv reahl_env
This creates a new directory reahl_env with an isolated Python environment inside it.
In order to work inside that isolated environment, you need to execute the following on the command line:
On Linux or Mac:
source ./reahl_env/bin/activate
On Windows:
reahl_env\Scripts\activate.bat
After activating your new environment, the prompt of the command line changes to reflect the environment that is currently active.
With your virtualenv activated, Reahl can be installed into it by issuing:
On Linux or Mac:
pip install reahl[declarative,sqlite,dev,doc]
On Windows:
easy_install reahl[declarative,sqlite,dev,doc]
Note
Wherever we use pip for installing things, on Windows you should use easy_install instead... pip cannot install binary packages, and many of Reahl’s dependencies are distributed in binary form for Windows.
You can still use pip on Windows to uninstall things, see what’s installed, etc.
This may run a while, as it installs all of the projects Reahl depends on as well. Some of these dependencies are installed and built from source, hence, this process needs your platform to be prepared properly for Python development before you attempt to install Reahl.
Choose what to install¶
Reahl is composed of a number of different components that you can mix and match depending on your requirements. For example, you probably do not want the development tools in a production environment, so they are packaged in a component you can omit.
In order to specify which sets of components you want installed, you use keywords in square brackets behind reahl in the command to easy_install as shown above. Here is a list of keywords you can include, and what they install:
- declarative
- The declarative implementation of the web framework
- dev
- The development tools
- doc
- Documentation and examples
- sqlite
- Support for sqlite databases
- postgresql
- Support for postgresql databases
- elixir
- Support for the older Elixir-based implementation of the web framework (uses some components from the 2.1 series, and only runs on Python 2.7)
Note
You cannot install doc and elixir together, as the reahl-doc component depends on the new, declarative implementations.