DSInstaller

Reproducible DataSHIELD runtime environments, on both the server and the client.

Website and function reference: https://datashield.github.io/DSInstaller/

A distribution is a set of DataSHIELD packages, at pinned versions, that are known to work together. Distributions have unique, date-based names (2026.04, 2026.10, …) and are never modified once released. Two aliases point to them and move over time, as in Debian:

• stable: the conservative choice, validated, with dependencies pinned through a dated CRAN snapshot.
• testing: the upcoming distribution.

A distribution is split into groups (base, resources, survival, …), so you can install only the packages of the domains you need. A group can require other groups, which are then included too.

Installation

# install.packages("remotes")
remotes::install_github("datashield/DSInstaller")

Registry

Distributions are listed in a JSON registry, maintained in this repository (inst/extdata/registry.json) and published with the package website at https://datashield.github.io/DSInstaller/registry.json. That’s the registry DSInstaller uses by default. To use another registry, set an option or an environment variable to a file path or URL:

options(dsinstaller.registry = "https://example.org/datashield/registry.json")
# or: Sys.setenv(DSINSTALLER_REGISTRY = "/path/to/registry.json")

A downloaded registry is kept for the R session and cached on disk, so the cached copy is used when you are offline. Without a cached copy, the registry bundled with the installed DSInstaller version is used.

library(DSInstaller)

ds_registry()                  # registry summary
ds_registry(refresh = TRUE)    # download it again
ds_distributions()             # one row per distribution, with its aliases
ds_distribution("stable")      # details: status, R version, CRAN snapshot, groups, packages

Client

List the client packages of a distribution, for some groups:

ds_packages("stable", side = "client", groups = "survival")

Compare them with what is installed:

ds_status("stable", side = "client")
#>                  name version installed    state
#>          dsBaseClient   6.3.1     6.3.0 outdated
#>                   DSI   1.7.1     1.8.0    newer
#>                DSOpal   1.5.0     1.5.0       ok
#>   DSMolgenisArmadillo   2.0.9      <NA>  missing
#>      dsSurvivalClient   2.2.0      <NA>  missing

(Output trimmed to the relevant columns.)

Install what is not at the expected version. Missing and outdated packages are installed, and newer ones are downgraded:

ds_install("stable", side = "client", groups = "survival", dry_run = TRUE)  # what would be done
ds_install("stable", side = "client", groups = "survival")

Dependencies come from the distribution’s CRAN snapshot. To keep the DataSHIELD packages pinned but get up-to-date dependencies, override the repositories:

ds_install("stable", side = "client", repos = getOption("repos"))

Server

The same functions install the server-side packages, for instance in an R server image:

RUN Rscript -e 'DSInstaller::ds_install("stable", side = "server", groups = c("base", "resources"))'

From the client, check that the servers you are connected to match your distribution:

conns <- DSI::datashield.login(logindata)
ds_check_servers(conns, "stable")
#>  server       name version installed   state
#>  study1     dsBase   6.3.1     6.3.1      ok
#>  study1  resourcer   1.5.0     1.5.0      ok
#>  study2     dsBase   6.3.1     6.3.0 outdated
#>  study2  resourcer   1.5.0      <NA>  missing

A package that a server doesn’t report is missing: either it is not installed, or its DataSHIELD methods are not enabled in the server profile.

Registry format

{
  "schema": 1,
  "aliases": { "stable": "2026.04", "testing": "2026.10" },
  "distributions": [
    {
      "name": "2026.04",
      "title": "DataSHIELD 2026.04",
      "released": "2026-04-01",
      "status": "stable",
      "r": ">= 4.3.0",
      "repos": "https://packagemanager.posit.co/cran/2026-04-01",
      "groups": {
        "base": { "title": "Core DataSHIELD" },
        "survival": { "title": "Survival analysis", "requires": ["base"] }
      },
      "packages": [
        { "name": "dsBase", "version": "6.3.1", "side": "server", "groups": ["base"] },
        { "name": "dsBaseClient", "version": "6.3.1", "side": "client", "groups": ["base"] },
        { "name": "dsSurvival", "version": "2.2.0", "side": "server", "groups": ["survival"],
          "source": { "type": "github", "repo": "datashield/dsSurvival", "ref": "v2.2.0" } }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

• name: YYYY.MM, or YYYY.MM.N for a point release.
• status: testing, stable, deprecated or eol. Installing an eol distribution emits a warning.
• r: the R version required on both the server and the client.
• repos: a dated CRAN snapshot used for dependencies. It is required for the distribution that stable points to.
• Package source: cran (the default, installed at exactly version), github (repo and ref) or url (a source tarball URL).

The registry is validated when it is loaded, and errors name the distribution and package at fault. The full design is in dev/PLAN.md.

Editing a registry

Rather than editing the JSON by hand, load it, change it with the editing helpers and write it back. Every change is validated, so a mistake fails right away and the file is never left invalid:

reg <- ds_registry("inst/extdata/registry.json")
reg <- ds_set_distribution(reg, "2027.04", from = "testing", released = NULL,
                           repos = "https://packagemanager.posit.co/cran/2027-04-01")
reg <- ds_set_package(reg, "2027.04", "dsBase", "server", version = "6.5.0")
reg <- ds_remove_package(reg, "2027.04", "DSMolgenisArmadillo")
reg <- ds_set_alias(reg, "testing", "2027.04")
ds_write_registry(reg, "inst/extdata/registry.json")

To check a registry file without changing it, load it with ds_registry(path).