[R] making a second version of R

[Hervé Pagès]

Hi Erin,

On 03/08/2012 08:11 PM, Erin Hodgess wrote:
> Hi R People:
>
> I currently have a version on R on a Debian squeeze Linux machine,
> which I obtained via "apt-get instal...."
>
> Now I would like to have a second installation of R (for a small
> experiment) that I compile myself from the tar file.  I'm going to
> delete it as soon as the experiment fails, which I think it will.
>
> But anyway, I'm trying to compile this from scratch.  The R-2.14.2
> direction is in /home/erin/
>
> I want all of the R directories to go to /home/build1, so they don't
> interfere with the "real" R.
>
> I think I want to do the following:
>
> cd /home/build1
> /home/erin/R-2.14.2/configure --prefix=/home/build1
>
> make
>
>
>
> and let it rip.
>
> Is this the right thing to do or am I leaving out something, please?
> I feel like I'm leaving something out.

Here is how I generally do this:

   1) Download and extract the source.
      cd
      mkdir src
      cd ~/src/
      wget http://cran.fhcrc.org/src/base/R-2/R-2.14.2.tar.gz
      tar zxf R-2.14.2.tar.gz

   2) Compile the 1st instance.
      cd
      mkdir R-2.14.2-instance1
      cd R-2.14.2-instance1
      ~/src/R-2.14.2/configure    # no need to specify --prefix here
      make -j2    # use -j4 if you are on a quad core

   3) Run the first instance.
      cd
      R-2.14.2-instance1/bin/R

If you want more than one instance, do 2) and 3) again
for each additional instance (replace R-2.14.2-instance1 by
R-2.14.2-instanceX).

Never do make install!

I must have done this 100 times since I started to work with R,
I always have 3 or more independent instances of R at the same time
on my laptop. They never "interfere" (when you install packages,
everything goes under R-2.14.2-instanceX/library/).

Cheers,
H.

>
> Thanks,
> Erin
>
>
>
>


-- 
Hervé Pagès

Program in Computational Biology
Division of Public Health Sciences
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