# qmamba package manager

> **Important — Preview**
>
> The KDB-X package manager qmamba is currently in Public Preview, and its API interfaces may change before General Availability. Feedback is welcome to [tech@kx.com](mailto:tech@kx.com) or the [KX Community Slack channel](https://kx.com/slack).
>
*This page explains what the qmamba package manager is and when to use it. The package manager is currently available in a public preview capacity and all feedback on it is welcome*

qmamba is a package manager for KDB-X, built using [libmamba](https://mamba.readthedocs.io/en/latest/index.html).

It enables you to download and install KDB-X modules from inside a q session with a few commands. You can source the modules from the KX channel on [anaconda](https://anaconda.org/channels/kx) as prebuilt packages, and qmamba automatically fetches any dependencies and resolves any conflicts.

qmamba also supports multiple independent environments. You can install packages into separate environments and switch between them.

## Use cases

Use qmamba when you want to:

* **Install a KDB-X module without building it from source**: fetch prebuilt packages from the KX channel and let qmamba resolve the dependency tree for you.
* **Mix KX and third-party packages**: draw KDB-X modules from the `kx` channel and their native dependencies from `conda-forge` in a single transaction.
* **Isolate work in separate environments**: keep the packages for each project in their own environment and switch between them without reinstalling.
* **Manage packages from inside q**: search, install, list, and update packages in a running q session instead of a separate CLI.

## Prerequisites

qmamba supports the following platforms:

* Linux (x86_64)
* Linux ARM (aarch64)
* macOS (Intel and Apple Silicon)

## Background

qmamba provides a [rich set of APIs](https://github.com/KxSystems/qmamba/blob/main/docs/reference.md) to:

* search for packages
* install and manage packages
* create and manage environments

The qmamba APIs mirror the mamba CLI commands, so if you have experience using `micromamba` or `miniconda`, they are already familiar. Basic APIs such as `search`, `install`, and `list` are common to most package managers. Anyone who has used `apt`, `yum`, `brew`, or `vcpkg` can get started quickly.

## Load qmamba

Load qmamba as a module with `use`:
```q
q)qmamba:use `kx.qmamba
```

## Get help with the APIs

Each API takes a dictionary input of options. To see the available options for a given API, their types, and a description, pass `` `help `` to the API. For example:
```txt
q)qmamba.install `help
option            | type       default    description
------------------| ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ALLOW_DOWNGRADE   | int        0          "Allow downgrade when installing packages"
ALLOW_UNINSTALL   | int        1          "Allow uninstall when installing or updating packages"
...
VERIFY_ARTIFACTS  | int        0          "Run verifications on packages signatures (experimental)"
YES               | int        0          "Automatically answer yes on prompted questions"
...
```

Most APIs also have a shortcut which allows you to specify the most commonly used option for that operation without having to wrap it in a dictionary. For example:

* `qmamba.install enlist "package"` is the same as ``qmamba.install (enlist `SPECS)!(enlist enlist "package")``
* `qmamba.activate "name"` is the same as ``qmamba.activate (enlist `NAME)!(enlist "name"))``
* shortcuts for other APIs are detailed in the [function reference](https://github.com/KxSystems/qmamba/blob/main/docs/reference.md#function-reference)

## Next steps

A few concepts are used extensively in the rest of this documentation. Get familiar with them first by reading the [Concepts](https://github.com/KxSystems/qmamba/blob/main/docs/concepts.md) page.

Then continue with [Getting started](getting-started.md) for a quick tour of the basic functionality.