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We wish to completely automate installation of OpenVisualizer. The work in SW-98 provides a standardized setup.py-based install for OpenVisualizer itself. However, we must extend this standardization to OpenVisualizer's requirements. The pip installer provides this capability for Python-based modules, and this page documents how we intend to implement pip per SW-74.

However, as we show below, pip itself usually is not sufficient for a completely automated installation. However, it provides a level of automation that is good enough for our present purposes.

Required Modules

The OpenVisualizer Confluence page lists the required modules. Some modules are Python based, and some are not. This section provides a detailed review.

Python based modules

For all platforms, OpenVisualizer requires these Python-based modules:

  • pyserial – mote communication
  • PyDispatcher – event framework
  • bottle – web application framework

Non-Python modules

Python itself may be required. Windows does not provide Python,  and some Linux distributions include Python more or less by default, depending on how the distribution is installed.

Windows adds other requirements:

  • PyWin32 – Windows extensions for Python
  • TAP for Windows – TUN/TAP local IP interface

In addition, any platform may need a USB serial driver, for example FTDI for TelosB. This requirement is as much a firmware issue as a software issue.

Complete Automation on Windows

So, if pip cannot completely automate installation of OpenVisualizer, let's look at the option to provide a completely automated installation. There are two popular open source packages:

There is a setup.py extension, bdist_nsi, to create an NSIS-based Windows installer. There also is documentation on how to include a nested installer, which is required (I think) for PyWin32 and TAP for WIndows. We could use bdist_nsi to create the initial script, extend it for PyWin32 and TAP, and then create the installer.

There is a similar setup.py extension, python-innosetup, for InnoSetup.

Implementation Plan

Create pip installer, and register at Pypi.

I do not plan to pursue use of an installer a few reasons:

  • An installer seems well suited to an end-user GUI application. It would be more appropriate once we have a desktop Web UI, particularly for simulation.
  • Our users are pretty technical, and the requirement to install PyWin32 and TAP is not onerous.
  • I have never used these installers, and don't know how much work is required. In contrast, implementation of pip is small and simple.

We may get to a desktop UI installer, just not yet. (smile)

Better install/requirements documentation

  • Windows vs. Linux installation is now different enough that we need to separately call out the Windows requirements. A separate page for this documentation is worthwhile.
  • The table of requirements should be segmented into runtime vs. development, where development includes SCons, yappi, etc.

Other topics

Location of requirements.pip

We have a requirements.pip at at the topmost directory of the openwsn-sw repository. However, we only want to install OpenVisualizer, so we require requirements.pip in directory software/openvisualizer. I don't see a useful purpose for the top-level requirements.pip, and recommend we remove it.

Package Upgrades via pip

pip does support package upgrades. See the usage page.

 

 

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