OpenBB/website/content/platform/installation.md

---
title: Installation
sidebar_position: 1
description: This page presents the general system requirements, supported environments,
  installation procedures, and setup for running the OpenBB Platform. It discusses
  the prerequisites including Python version, operating system requirements, Docker
  usage, and the process of building the platform from source.
keywords:
- OpenBB Platform
- Python
- System requirements
- Supported environments
- Installation
- Docker
- Python virtual environment
- Installation from source
- Windows 10
- Mac OS Big Sur
- Linux
- Package installation
- VS Code
- PyCharm
- Jupyter
- GitHub
- Conda
- venv
- API
- Repository
- pip
- Poetry
- Toml
- PyPI
- Node.js
- npm
---

import HeadTitle from '@site/src/components/General/HeadTitle.tsx';

<HeadTitle title="Installation | OpenBB Platform Docs" />

## General System Requirements

Most systems capable of running Python 3.8-3.11 will be compatible with the OpenBB Platform. A modern processor (five years or less), running an up-to-date operating system, with at least 4GB of RAM, is recommended. Maintaining the system with current patches ensures maximum compatibility. At a minimum, Windows and macOS should be:

- Windows 10
- Mac OS Big Sur

Linux users should run the command line update for the package manager, prior to installation.

## Supported Environments

The OpenBB Platform is installed within a Python virtual environment. It is compatible with versions of Python between 3.8 and 3.11, inclusively. The method for creating the environment will be a matter of user preference, from the command line - [Conda](https://docs.conda.io/projects/miniconda/en/latest/miniconda-install.html), [venv](https://docs.python.org/3/library/venv.html), etc. - or in a code editor and IDE - [VS Code](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/languages/python), [PyCharm](https://www.jetbrains.com/pycharm/), [Jupyter](https://jupyter.org/).

If you're interested in using the [Docker](/platform/installation#docker) container, skip ahead to the specific section [below](/platform/installation#docker).

For those new to Python, [this article](https://www.infoworld.com/article/3306656/python-virtualenv-and-venv-dos-and-donts.html) shares some tips on getting started and why environments are important.

See [this guide](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/python/environments) for creating a Python environment in VS Code.

With the environment created, and activated, begin the installation process.

## Installation

Before installation, update the package manager so that `pip` is current, then create the environment with the desired version of Python.

:::note
Installing packages directly to the system Python or `base` environment is not recommended.  Create a new environment first (can be any name, using openbb here for example).

```bash
conda create -n openbb python=3.11
conda activate openbb
```

:::

### PyPI

Install from PyPI with:

```console
pip install openbb
```

This will install the core OpenBB Platform, along with officially supported extensions and providers.

To install all extensions and providers (both officially supported and community maintained ones):

```console
pip install openbb[all]
```

:::tip
In a macOS `zsh` Terminal shell, add quotation marks around the library name.

`"openbb[all]"`
:::

To install a single extension:

```console
pip install openbb[charting]
```

```console
pip install openbb[ta]
```

Or install a single provider:

```console
pip install openbb[yfinance]
```

To install the Nightly distribution (this installs all extras by default):

```console
pip install openbb-nightly
```

From your python interpreter, import the OpenBB Platform:

```console
from openbb import obb
```

When the package is imported, any installed extensions will be discovered, imported and available for use.

:::note
Currently if you wish to have the bare-bones openbb package with no extensions or providers, you can install with:

```console
pip install openbb-core && pip install openbb --no-deps
```

:::

### Docker

OpenBB provides a `.dockerfile` on [GitHub](https://github.com/OpenBB-finance/OpenBBTerminal).

Run the following command from the repo root to build the image:

```bash
docker build -f build/docker/api.dockerfile -t openbb-platform:latest .
```

To run it:

```bash
docker run --rm -p 8000:8000 -v ~/.openbb_platform:/root/.openbb_platform openbb-platform:latest
```

This will mount the local `~/.openbb_platform` directory into the Docker container to use with the API keys and preferences from there, and it will expose the API on port `8000`.

### Source

To build the OpenBB Platform from the source code, first install `git`:

```console
pip install git
```

Next, clone the repository from GitHub:

```console
git clone git@github.com:OpenBB-finance/OpenBBTerminal.git
```

When it is done, checkout the branch where the code is living:

```console
git checkout develop
```

Then, `cd` into the directory:

```console
cd openbb_platform
```

Install required packages

```console
pip install poetry toml
```

Finally, run the developer installation script:

```console
python dev_install.py
```

:::note
To install all extensions and providers, run: `python dev_install.py -e`
:::

### Devcontainer

The OpenBB Platform can be run in a [Devcontainer](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/devcontainers/containers) in VS Code. This is a container with a well-defined environment, and it can be used to develop, build, test, and run the OpenBB Platform and its CLI.

1. Open the project in VS Code
2. Press F1 (Command Palette) and select Remote-Containers: Reopen in Container
3. Wait for the container to build and the postCreateCommand to run
4. Open a terminal in VS Code and run the following command: source obb/bin/activate

> You can also click the Dev Containers badge at the top of the README to open the project in a Devcontainer.

## Post-Installation

With a fresh installation, and upon installing or uninstalling extensions, the Python interface needs to be built.  This is done automatically, but can be manually triggered if required. Start a Python session and then `import openbb`:

```console
python

from openbb import obb

exit()
```

To manually trigger the build:

```python
import openbb
openbb.build()
```

Restart the Python interpreter and then begin using the OpenBB Platform.

```python
from openbb import obb
```

Start the REST API with:

```console
uvicorn openbb_core.api.rest_api:app --host 0.0.0.0 --port 8000 --reload
```

See more information about using the REST API in the [usage section](/platform/usage/rest_api)

## Hub Synchronization

Once you have installed the OpenBB Platform with the desired providers and extensions, you can synchronize with the [OpenBB Hub](my.openbb.co). The main benefit of this is that you can use your single login to access your saved credentials and preferences from any instance. To login, you can use the `login` method, either using your email and password:

```python
obb.account.login(email='my_email_here', password='my_password_here')
```

Or using your personal access token:

```python
obb.account.login(pat='my_pat_here')
```

## Documentation

The documentation and packages are kept in the `/website` folder, at the base of the repository. Navigate there to install the dependencies and start the development server.

### Generate Markdown Files

Markdown files for the Reference and Data Models pages need to be generated.
This will generate content based on what is actually installed and contained locally, so it may appear different than what is on this website.

Open a terminal command line to the `/OpenBBTerminal/website` folder, then enter:

```bash
python generate_platform_v4_markdown.py
```

### Node.js

- [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/en/) >= 16.13.0
  To check if Node.js installed, run this command:

```bash
node --version # should be v16.13.0 or higher
```

#### Install Dependencies

```bash
npm install
```

#### Start Development Server

```bash
npm start
```

This starts a local development server at: [http://localhost:3000](http://localhost:3000)

Most changes are reflected live without having to restart the server.

#### Build

```bash
npm run build
```

This command generates static content into the `build` directory and can be served using any static contents hosting service. OpenBB uses Github Pages to host our website, it's deployed in the `gh-pages` branch.