---
last_review: "2025-01-01"
last_reviewer: "-"
documented_code: [ ]
---

```{tags} how-to
```

# Getting started

:::{note}
This page has been migrated from the old documentation, and has not yet been fully revised.
There might be inconsistencies or errors when using with current LinkAhead versions.
:::
% TODO: Issue: https://gitlab.indiscale.com/caosdb/src/linkahead-docs/-/issues/93
% TODO: Split into README, Tutorial, and How-To
% TODO: Why does this claim google style docstrings, don't we use numpy everywhere else?
% TODO: This is a README page from the caosdb-advanced-user-tools repository, see [here](https://docs.indiscale.com/caosdb-advanced-user-tools/README_SETUP.html).
% TODO: The README should be rewritten to be a minimal setup and usage guide, with a link to this
% TODO: documentation page for further information.

## Installation

To install the advancedtools package, you can run:   `pip install caosadvancedtools`

### Additional dependencies

To test using tox, you also need to install tox:   `pip install tox`

To install dependencies used by optional functionality, the following pip extras are defined:

- `test` for testing with pytest
- `doc` for building the documentation
- `dev` for code formatting
- `h5` for the h5-crawler
- `all` to install all optional dependencies

These extras can be installed using: `pip install .[KEYWORD]`

A current list of the dependencies installed with this program as well as those installed with the
keywords can be found in `setup.py`s `setup_package()` method, in the `metadata` dictionary entries
`install_requires` and `extras_require`.

## Run Unit Tests

- All tests: `tox`
- One specific test with tox: `tox -- unittests/test_myusecase.py -k expression`
- Using only pytest: `pytest unittests` or for running only one test
  `pytest unittests/test_myusecase.py -k expression`

## Run Integration Tests Locally

1. Start LinkAhead using the profile in `integrationtests/test_profile/profile.yaml`
2. Change directory to `integrationtests/`.
3. Run `test.sh`. Note that this may modify content of the`integrationtest/extroot/` directory.
4. Alternatively, run single tests: `pyest integrationtest/test_foo.py`

## Code Formatting

`make style`

## Documentation

We use sphinx to create the documentation. Docstrings in the code should comply with the Googly
style (see link below).

Build documentation in `build/` with `make doc`.

### How to contribute

- [Google Style Python Docstrings](https://sphinxcontrib-napoleon.readthedocs.io/en/latest/example_google.html)
- [Google Style Python Docstrings 2nd reference](https://github.com/google/styleguide/blob/gh-pages/pyguide.md#38-comments-and-docstrings)
- [References to other documentation](https://www.sphinx-doc.org/en/master/usage/extensions/intersphinx.html#role-external)