# How to run (activate?) a Jupyter Notebook in a specific environment
**URL:** https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841
**Category:** Jupyter-Notebook
**Created:** [June 30, 2021, 3:02pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841 "2021-06-30T15:02:45Z")
**Posts on this page:** 13
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:02pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/1 "2021-06-30T15:02:45Z")
I am trying to run a Jupyter notebook (and a project in general) in a specific environment with only a limited number of packages.
I have created a folder. In my terminal, I navigated to this folder, started julia, and ran `]activate .`. I then added a few packages `]add DifferentialEquations, Plots`. Next I started jupyter, and created a Jupyter notebook in the same folder (in which there now is a Manifest.toml and a Project.toml file). I start the Jupyter notebook. However, this Jupyter notebook have access to a lot of other packages more than jus DifferentialEquations and Plots (packages which I have added to my main environment).
I have tried running `using Pkg; Pkg.activate()` in the Jupyter notebook, but didn’t work.
Exactly how would I go about to make this happen?
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### Author:  [@pdeffebach](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/pdeffebach)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:06pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/2 "2021-06-30T15:06:01Z")
What does `pwd()` give you? Maybe you aren’t in the correct directory.
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### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:07pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/3 "2021-06-30T15:07:20Z")
If I run `pwd()` in the Jupyter notebook it returns the path to the place where the jupyter notebook and the 2 toml files are (if I understood the question right?).
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### Author:  [@fredrikekre](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/fredrikekre)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:34pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/4 "2021-06-30T15:34:09Z")
> [@Torkel](#):
>
> However, this Jupyter notebook have access to a lot of other packages more than jus DifferentialEquations and Plots (packages which I have added to my main environment).
This is expected. The load path is a stack, and the active project is just the top-most entry. You can inspect the stack with `Base.load_path()`.
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### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:42pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/5 "2021-06-30T15:42:09Z")
I see, yes if I do `Base.load_path()` things points somewhere else.
However, how would I do to set a more limited scope? Typically I have just run everything in the main one, but if I understand things right the recommended approach is to have a specific environment for every project (?). The idea is to prepare some files and code, so that someone else then could re-run the project in the same environment using that file.
(also, the main environment is a mess, and I can’t really update it anymore because various incompatibilities starts to appear)
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### Author:  [@pdeffebach](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/pdeffebach)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:52pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/6 "2021-06-30T15:52:44Z")
`push!(empty!(LOAD_PATH), "@")` should do it.
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### Author:  [@sijo](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/sijo)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 3:54pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/7 "2021-06-30T15:54:06Z")
You can control the load path with the `JULIA_LOAD_PATH` environment variable. See the following pieces of documentation:
- [Code Loading · The Julia Language](https://docs.julialang.org/en/v1/manual/code-loading/#Environment-stacks)
- [Constants · The Julia Language](https://docs.julialang.org/en/v1/base/constants/#Base.LOAD_PATH)
- [Environment Variables · The Julia Language](https://docs.julialang.org/en/v1/manual/environment-variables/#JULIA_LOAD_PATH)
For example, starting jupyter with `JULIA_LOAD_PATH="@:@stdlib" jupyter-notebook` should do it.
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### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 4:02pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/8 "2021-06-30T16:02:16Z")
> `push!(empty!(LOAD_PATH), "@")` should do it.
So, I tried to run this in my Jupyter Notebook, but the result seems to be that my load path is empty? I can’t run `using` on any package (even those I tried to add to this environment). Also, `Base.load_path()` returns `String[]`.
> For example, starting jupyter with `JULIA_LOAD_PATH="@:@stdlib" jupyter-notebook` should do it.
If I add this thing, would it make Jupyter default loading any environment with toml files in the folder of the notebook? Also, would I need to to start jupyter from that specific folder, or could I have one jupyter program open, with several notebooks open in various folders, in various projects, in various environments?
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### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 4:13pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/9 "2021-06-30T16:13:23Z")
So I did a bit of testing. If I create a new notebook in that folder, and then run
```julia
using Pkg
Pkg,status()
```
to check my environment, then if I create the notebook in Julia 1.5.2 I am in the local environment. However, if I do the same in Julia 1.6.1, it doesn’t seem to work. I am not sure why, but if there would be some way to resume the Julia 1.5.2 behaviour, that would be great!
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### Author:  [@pdeffebach](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/pdeffebach)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 4:28pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/10 "2021-06-30T16:28:29Z")
This is a known bug, I just ran into it and fixed it with advice from here: [https://github.com/JuliaLang/Pkg.jl/issues/2542](https://github.com/JuliaLang/Pkg.jl/issues/2542)
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### Author:  [@pdeffebach](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/pdeffebach)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 4:41pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/11 "2021-06-30T16:41:59Z")
> [@Torkel](#):
>
> So, I tried to run this in my Jupyter Notebook, but the result seems to be that my load path is empty? I can’t run `using` on any package (even those I tried to add to this environment). Also, `Base.load_path()` returns `String[]` .
Run `Pkg.activate()` again after you do this maybe?
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### Author:  [@sijo](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/sijo)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 4:55pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/12 "2021-06-30T16:55:20Z")
> [@pdeffebach](#):
>
> Run `Pkg.activate()` again after you do this maybe?
I think IJulia does that automatically.
> [@Torkel](#):
>
> If I add this thing, would it make Jupyter default loading any environment with toml files in the folder of the notebook?
That’s the default behavior without any extra config.
> [@Torkel](#):
>
> would I need to to start jupyter from that specific folder, or could I have one jupyter program open, with several notebooks open in various folders, in various projects, in various environments?
The second one: `JULIA_LOAD_PATH="@:@stdlib"` is passed to each Julia instance, started for each notebook. Each of these Julia instances will interpret `@` and `@stdlib` “locally”. Unless I’m mistaken of course 🙂
Note that the Julia default is equivalent to `JULIA_LOAD_PATH="@:@v#.#:@stdlib"`. This means that Julia will load packages from the local project (`@`), from the global user environment (`@v#.#`) and from the Julia installation (`@stdlib`). All we’re doing is removing the `@v#.#`.
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### Author:  [@Torkel](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/Torkel)
#### Post date: [June 30, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/how-to-run-activate-a-jupyter-notebook-in-a-specific-environment/63841/13 "2021-06-30T17:38:35Z")
Thanks for all the help everyone 🙂 I think I understand better what is going on now, and also learnt a little.