[R] Installing different versions of R simultaneously on Linux

[Rainer M Krug]

On Fri, Feb 27, 2009 at 12:37 PM, Prof Brian Ripley
<ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk> wrote:
> This is really an R-devel question.

sorry about the wrong list.

>
> On Fri, 27 Feb 2009, Rainer M Krug wrote:
>
>> Hi
>>
>> I want to install some versions of R simultaneously from source on a
>> computer (running Linux). Some programs have an option to specify a
>> suffix for the executable (eg R would become R-2.7.2 when the suffix
>> is specified as "-2.7.2"). I did not find this option for R - did I
>> overlook it?
>>
>> If it is not, how is it possible to have several versions of R on one
>> computer, or is the only way to compile them and then call R in the
>> directory of the version where it was compiled (~/R-2.7.2/bin/R)?
>>
>> If this is the case, would it be possible to add this o[ptiuon to
>> specify the suffix for the executables?
>
> 'R' is not an executable, but a shell script.
>
> You can use 'prefix' to install R anywhere, or other variables for more
> precise control (see the R-admin manual).  For example, we use rhome to have
> R 2.8.x under /usr/local/lib64/R-2.8 etc.
>
> And you can rename $prefix/bin/R to, say, R-2.7.2, or link R_HOME/bin/R to
> anywhere in yout path, under any name you choose.

OK - so the proceuder will be: if I want to install R 2.7.2 without
impacting on my existing installation of R (which is done by a package
manager), I use
> ./configure --prefix=/usr/bin/R-2.7.2
> make
> ln -s /usr/R-2.7.2/bin/R /usr/bin/R-2.7.2

and when I use
> R-2.7.2

it will start R 2.7.2

I can continue with as many installed version as I want

Thanks a lot,
that was what I was looking for

Rainer

>
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> Rainer
>> --
>> Rainer M. Krug, PhD (Conservation Ecology, SUN), MSc (Conservation
>> Biology, UCT), Dipl. Phys. (Germany)
>>
>> Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology
>> Faculty of Science
>> Natural Sciences Building
>> Private Bag X1
>> University of Stellenbosch
>> Matieland 7602
>> South Africa
>
> --
> Brian D. Ripley,                  ripley at stats.ox.ac.uk
> Professor of Applied Statistics,  http://www.stats.ox.ac.uk/~ripley/
> University of Oxford,             Tel:  +44 1865 272861 (self)
> 1 South Parks Road,                     +44 1865 272866 (PA)
> Oxford OX1 3TG, UK                Fax:  +44 1865 272595
>



-- 
Rainer M. Krug, PhD (Conservation Ecology, SUN), MSc (Conservation
Biology, UCT), Dipl. Phys. (Germany)

Centre of Excellence for Invasion Biology
Faculty of Science
Natural Sciences Building
Private Bag X1
University of Stellenbosch
Matieland 7602
South Africa