# Setting environment and instantiating packages in one step?
**URL:** https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441
**Category:** New to Julia
**Created:** [March 3, 2021, 8:43pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441 "2021-03-03T20:43:11Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@gleyland](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/gleyland)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 8:43pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/1 "2021-03-03T20:43:11Z")
Hi,
Is it possible to use a single command to activate an environment and instantiate all of its packages?
It’s been a while since I played with rust, but I seem to remember that I could check out a repo, type `cargo run` (or `cargo test`) and have it install what I needed and run (or test) the project.
I haven’t found the equivalent in julia. `julia --project=@.` is close: it seems to activate the environment, but doesn’t seem to instantiate the packages?
My best guess so far is `julia --project=@. -e"using Pkg; Pkg.instantiate()" src/main.jl`, but `-e` and running a file seem to be mutually exclusive?
Is there an obvious option I’ve missed? This is not a big deal - it’s easy to write a shell script with a `setup` and a `run` option. I would just like to check that I’m making the most of Julia’s capabilities.
Thanks in advance!
Geoff
---
### Author:  [@pixel27](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/pixel27)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 8:59pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/2 "2021-03-03T20:59:05Z")
I’m assuming these are your packages? I usually put a `run.jl` in the root folder that usually starts with:
```julia
using Pkg
Pkg.activate(".")
include("src/main.jl")
```
So to run my package I’m just executing `julia run.jl` in the project’s folder (rather than the src folder). If the package does something long running (like start a web server) Before the activate I’ll have something like:
```julia
if @isdefined(instance) && instance !== nothing
Package.stop(instance)
global instance = nothing
end
```
Where `Package` is the name of the module defined in `src/main.jl`. That way during development if I re-run `run.jl` it will stop the old code before the newer code is loaded and started.
---
### Author:  [@gleyland](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/gleyland)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 9:09pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/3 "2021-03-03T21:09:56Z")
Thanks!
The `include` trick makes it work.
Yes, these are our packages. We use a similar pattern, but with a shell script, which is now, thanks to your response:
```julia
#!/bin/bash
case $1 in
run)
julia --project=@. -e"using Pkg; Pkg.instantiate(); include(\"src/main.jl\")" -- -l debug
;;
# other options
esac
```
So you can just type `./admin run` and it should “just work”. What’s nice here is that the command-line options work!
Thanks again!
Geoff
---
### Author:  [@GunnarFarneback](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/GunnarFarneback)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 9:44pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/4 "2021-03-03T21:44:19Z")
> [@gleyland](#):
>
> So you can just type `./admin run` and it should “just work”. What’s nice here is that the command-line options work!
This just works except for one corner case: if the user should happen to already have a copy of the General registry, which is outdated enough to completely miss one of the packages in the Manifest.
---
### Author:  [@gleyland](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/gleyland)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 10:35pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/5 "2021-03-03T22:35:25Z")
Thanks! Is there a solution for that case?
---
### Author:  [@GunnarFarneback](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/GunnarFarneback)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 10:43pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/6 "2021-03-03T22:43:10Z")
You can do a `Pkg.Registry.update()` before instantiate, but it’s a tradeoff with speed.
---
### Author:  [@gleyland](https://discourse.julialang.org/u/gleyland)
#### Post date: [March 3, 2021, 11:37pm UTC](https://discourse.julialang.org/t/setting-environment-and-instantiating-packages-in-one-step/56441/7 "2021-03-03T23:37:31Z")
Oh, thanks!
Maybe a try-catch around the `instantiate`? But what I have hits the 80/20 rule, so I’m pretty happy with it.