[R] contriburl argument to install.packages

[Uwe Ligges]

Roger D. Peng wrote:

> Hmm...is this maybe a bug?  Check out this section of install.packages():
> 
>     localcran <- length(grep("^file:", contriburl)) > 0
>     if (!localcran) {
>         if (is.null(destdir)) {
>             tmpd <- tempfile("Rinstdir")
>             if (!dir.create(tmpd))
>                 stop("Unable to create temp directory ", tmpd)
>         }
>         else tmpd <- destdir
>     }
>     foundpkgs <- download.packages(pkgs, destdir = tmpd, available = 
> available,
>         contriburl = contriburl, method = method)
> 
> So if `localcran' is TRUE (which in this case, it is), then `tmpd' never 
> gets defined but is passed to download.packages().

The help pages tells us (correctly):
"If CRAN is local, i.e., the URL starts with "file:", then the packages 
are not downloaded but used directly."
hence we don't need a destdir in this case, therefore no need to define 
tmpd.


> When I run a traceback() after getting the error from running 
> install.packages(), it fails in download.packages() when trying to 
> create the download directory.

Works for me without any error. Are you sure the path you specified was 
correct? If you are sure, is this R-1.9.1?

Uwe Ligges



> For example, try defining `tmpd' in your workspace and the run 
> install.packages.  This works for me:
> 
> tmpd <- "~/tmp"
> install.packages("bzTools", contriburl = "file:c:/Rlibs/build")
> 
> Of course, you still need the PACKAGES file in the contriburl directory.
> 
> -roger
> 
> John Fox wrote:
> 
>> Dear Duncan,
>>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: r-help-bounces at stat.math.ethz.ch 
>>> [mailto:r-help-bounces at stat.math.ethz.ch] On Behalf Of Duncan Murdoch
>>> Sent: Thursday, July 15, 2004 9:56 AM
>>> To: John Fox
>>> Cc: r-help at stat.math.ethz.ch
>>> Subject: Re: [R] contriburl argument to install.packages
>>>
>>> On Thu, 15 Jul 2004 10:09:46 -0400, "John Fox" <jfox at mcmaster.ca> 
>>> wrote :
>>>
>>>
>>>> Dear list members,
>>>>
>>>> I can't figure out how to specify the contriburl argument to
>>>> install.packages() properly when the packages to be 
>>>
>>>
>>> installed are in a
>>>
>>>> directory on my local machine. I have in mind a command 
>>>
>>>
>>> something like
>>>
>>>>     install.packages(missing.packages, contriburl=directory,
>>>> lib=.libPaths()[1])
>>>>
>>>> Where missing.packages is a character vector of package 
>>>
>>>
>>> names (without
>>>
>>>> versions) and directory is the location where they reside (less 
>>>> PACKAGES, I guess). I'm using R version 1.9.1 on a Windows 
>>>
>>>
>>> XP machine.
>>>
>>>> Several variations on directory <- "file:c:/temp" don't seem to work.
>>>>
>>>> Any help would be appreciated.
>>>
>>>
>>> You need a file called PACKAGES in the same directory as the 
>>> packages, which contains the package information; for example
>>>
>>> http://www.cran.mirrors.pair.com/bin/windows/contrib/1.9/PACKAGES
>>>
>>> I imagine the CRAN maintainers have scripts to produce this from the 
>>> package files, but I'm not sure where they are.
>>>
>>> To refer to a local version of this file, use the syntax you had, e.g.
>>>
>>> CRAN.packages(contriburl="file:c:/temp")
>>>
>>> will look for c:/temp/PACKAGES and display the information in it. 
>>
>>
>>
>> I had already tried this, and it doesn't appear to work for me. For 
>> example,
>>
>>     > CRAN.packages(contriburl="file:c:/temp")
>>     Error in file(file, "r") : unable to open connection
>>     In addition: Warning message:     cannot open file `c:/temp/PACKAGES'
>> I *do* have a directory c:\temp\PACKAGES
>>
>> Regards,
>>  John
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> If you don't want to maintain this file, then you can construct the 
>>> information in it using the "available=" argument to the package 
>>> functions.
>>>
>>> Duncan
>>
>>
>>
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>>
> 
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