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Installation

Note that some packages may be out-of-date. You can always get the newest nbsphinx release from PyPI (using pip). If you want to try the latest development version, have a look at the file CONTRIBUTING.rst.

nbsphinx Packages

Anaconda Badge

If you are using the conda package manager (e.g. with Anaconda for Linux/macOS/Windows), you can install nbsphinx from the conda-forge channel:

conda install -c conda-forge nbsphinx

If you are using Linux, there are packages available for many distributions.

Packaging status

PyPI version

On any platform, you can also install nbsphinx with pip, Python’s own package manager:

python3 -m pip install nbsphinx --user

If you want to install it system-wide for all users (assuming you have the necessary rights), just drop the --user flag.

To upgrade an existing nbsphinx installation to the newest release, use the --upgrade flag:

python3 -m pip install nbsphinx --upgrade --user

If you suddenly change your mind, you can un-install it with:

python3 -m pip uninstall nbsphinx

Depending on your Python installation, you may have to use python instead of python3.

nbsphinx Prerequisites

Some of the aforementioned packages will install some of these prerequisites automatically, some of the things may be already installed on your computer anyway.

Python

Of course you’ll need Python, because both Sphinx and nbsphinx are implemented in Python. There are many ways to get Python. If you don’t know which one is best for you, you can try Anaconda.

Sphinx

You’ll need Sphinx as well, because nbsphinx is just a Sphinx extension and doesn’t do anything on its own.

If you use conda, you can get Sphinx from the conda-forge channel:

conda install -c conda-forge sphinx

Alternatively, you can install it with pip (see below):

python3 -m pip install Sphinx --user

pip

Recent versions of Python already come with pip pre-installed. If you don’t have it, you can install it manually.

pandoc

The stand-alone program pandoc is used to convert Markdown content to something Sphinx can understand. You have to install this program separately, ideally with your package manager. If you are using conda, you can install pandoc from the conda-forge channel:

conda install -c conda-forge pandoc

If that doesn’t work out for you, have a look at pandoc’s installation instructions.

Note:

The use of pandoc in nbsphinx is temporary, but will likely stay that way for a long time, see issue #36.

Pygments Lexer for Syntax Highlighting

To get proper syntax highlighting in code cells, you’ll need an appropriate Pygments lexer. This of course depends on the programming language of your Jupyter notebooks (more specifically, the pygments_lexer metadata of your notebooks).

For example, if you use Python in your notebooks, you’ll have to have the IPython package installed, e.g. with

conda install -c conda-forge ipython

or

python3 -m pip install IPython --user

Note:

If you are using Anaconda with the default channel and syntax highlighting in code cells doesn’t seem to work, you can try to install IPython from the conda-forge channel or directly with pip, or as a work-around, add 'IPython.sphinxext.ipython_console_highlighting' to extensions in your conf.py.

For details, see Anaconda issue #1430 and nbsphinx issue #24.

Jupyter Kernel

If you want to execute your notebooks during the Sphinx build process (see Controlling Notebook Execution), you need an appropriate Jupyter kernel installed.

For example, if you use Python, you should install the ipykernel package, e.g. with

conda install -c conda-forge ipykernel

or

python3 -m pip install ipykernel --user

If you created your notebooks yourself with Jupyter, it’s very likely that you have the right kernel installed already.