Installation and introduction to Pixi

Installation and introduction to Pixi#

Learning Objectives#

After working through this topic, you should be able to:

Explain why we use pixi to install Python
Follow the installation instructions at https://pixi.sh/latest/#installation
Execute python files from your shell using pixi run

Pre-installation steps for macOS#

Verify you have the Xcode Command Line Tools installed by running:

xcode-select -p

If they are not installed you will see xcode-select: error: unable to get active developer directory.... You can che what the output means here.

You can install Xcode Tools with:

xcode-select --install

Once you make sure you have XCode installed continue with the Pixi installation.

Installation for Windows, Linux & MacOS#

Follow the installation instructions at https://pixi.sh/latest/#installation
Remember to start a new shell after installation!
In case you have any trouble, ask for help in the course Zulip

Troubleshooting (Windows)#

Sometimes there can be problems with the execution policies of Windows. You may get the following error when you try to activate a pixi shell:

File C:\Users\xxx\local\Temp\.xyz.ps1 cannot be loaded because
the execution of scripts is disabled on this system. ...
    * CategoryInfo          : SecurityError ...
    * FullyQualifiedErrorId : UnauthorizedAccess

To fix this, we will have to change the execution policy.

Open a Powershell via the Windows Start menu as administrator. To open it as administrator you need to right click on it and select “Open as administrator”.
Now write
```
Set-ExecutionPolicy RemoteSigned
```
Finally, close the Powershell, open a new, regular one (i.e., without administrator rights), and run pixi shell again.

Materials#

Video:

Download the slides.