Windows Setup

Install the following programs from their respective project websites:

Python 3.6 (64 bit)
Git (64 bit)
Graphviz

The Git installer, will also provide Git Bash, which provides a Linux-style terminal to run commandline tools. Start it from the Windows Programs section.

If you do not like working with Git Bash, alternatives are CMD and PowerShell, as well as the Windows Subsystem for Linux (WSL) on Windows 10. We do not provide support or instructions for these alternatives.

PATH Environment in Git Bash

Try to run Python in Bash:

python --version

If there is an error message bash: python: command not found the directory containing Python.exe is not registered in your PATH evironment variable.

Add your Python installation directories to PATH (the actual directories to Python.exe and pip.exe may vary on your system):

echo 'export PATH=${PATH}:${HOME}/AppData/Local/Programs/Python/Python36' >> ~/.bashrc
echo 'export PATH=${PATH}:${HOME}/AppData/Local/Programs/Python/Python36/Scripts' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Try again:

python --version

You should now be able to run pip as well:

pip --version

Use pip to install Python packages pipenv and jupyterlab:

pip install --user pipenv jupyterlab

Try to run the jupyter executable:

jupyter --version

If there is an error message bash: jupyter: command not found you also have to add Python’s Script directory to your PATH (the actual directory may vary on your system):

echo 'export PATH=${PATH}:${HOME}/AppData/Roaming/Python/Python36/Scripts' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Try again:

jupyter --version

You should now be able to run pipenv as well:

pipenv --version

Then try running dot, which is a Graphviz program:

dot --version

If there is an error message bash: dot: command not found you also have to add the Graphviz bin directory to your PATH (the actual directory may vary on your system):

echo 'export PATH=${PATH}:"/c/Program Files (x86)/Graphviz2.38/bin"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Try again:

dot --version

Optional: Python CLI

If you are trying to run a Python commandline interpreter in Git Bash, the terminal may freeze. In this case, create an alias for Python to resolve this problem.

echo 'alias python="winpty python.exe"' >> ~/.bashrc
source ~/.bashrc

Educational Materials

Now that your programming environment is working with Git Bash on Windows, follow the common instruction on the home page to use the actual Jupyter notebooks from our educational-materials git repository.

Please note, that we do not regularly test the Jupyter notebooks on Windows. If you encounter a problem, please let us know and we will try to resolve it.

View on gitlab