---
name: setting up a development environment
description: Set up a development environment for writing and testing code.
---
# Setting Up a Development Environment
Use a reproducible, project-local environment and install NiMARE in editable mode so code changes are immediately available when running tests or examples.
## Creating or reusing an environment
- Prefer a local virtual environment (e.g., `.venv`) in the repository root; reuse it if it already exists.
- Use a supported Python version (`>=3.10`) consistent with `docs/installation.rst`.
- If no `.venv` exists, create and activate one:
```bash
python3 -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
```
- When installing dependencies, try `uv pip install ...` first to keep installs fast and deterministic.
- If `uv` is unavailable or fails, fall back to `.venv/bin/python -m pip install ...`.
## Installing NiMARE for development
- Install NiMARE in editable mode with all extras so tests and docs can run:
```bash
uv pip install -e .[all]
```
- If that fails or `uv` is not installed, use:
```bash
.venv/bin/python -m pip install -e .[all]
```
- Confirm the environment by importing NiMARE and running a small command, for example:
```bash
python -c "import nimare; print(nimare.__version__)"
```
