CODEWITHSUNDEEP
rpackagedevtoolsroxygen2
Paryl
Paryl

Reputation: 221

Create an R package that includes a locally stored dependency

I'm developing an R package that uses a dependency that is a locally stored package, and I cannot figure out how to properly list that package in the DESCRIPTION file. The package I am building is PackageA and it depends on PackageB. PackageB is locally stored on my drive after I was shared a zip folder of it from a colleague. Both of these packages are meant to be for internal use only and will not be stored on any repositories. I found the following page that shows how this can be done using the Remotes: tag in the DESCRIPTION file:

https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/devtools/vignettes/dependencies.html

This can be done with the following code, but when I try this I receive an error also shown below:

#Example from linked vignette
# Local
Remotes: local::/pkgs/testthat

#Both of these attempts produce the same error
#1. Specify file path to the unpacked version of the package in my R library
Remotes: local::C:/Users/name/library/PackageB

#2. Specify file path to the original .zip version of the package
Remotes: local::C:/Users/name/library/PackageB.zip

#devtools::build() error
   ERROR: package installation failed
Error in (function (command = NULL, args = character(), error_on_status = TRUE,  : 
  System command 'Rcmd.exe' failed, exit status: 1, stdout + stderr:
E> * checking for file 'C:\Users\name\PackageA/DESCRIPTION' ... OK
E> * preparing 'PackageA':
E> * checking DESCRIPTION meta-information ... OK
E> * installing the package to build vignettes
E>       -----------------------------------
E> ERROR: dependency 'PackageB' is not available for package 'PackageA'
E> * removing 'C:/Users/tmpfolder/PackageA'
E>       -----------------------------------
E> ERROR: package installation failed

#Rstudio Install and Restart error; I would build the source after this but it doesn't get that far
Error: Dependency package(s) 'PackageB' not available.
Backtrace:
    x
 1. +-base::suppressPackageStartupMessages(...)
 2. | \-base::withCallingHandlers(expr, packageStartupMessage = function(c) tryInvokeRestart("muffleMessage"))
 3. \-devtools::document(...)
 4.   \-roxygen2::roxygenise(pkg$path, roclets)
 5.     \-roxygen2:::load_code(base_path)
 6.       \-pkgload::load_all(path, helpers = FALSE, attach_testthat = FALSE)
 7.         \-pkgload:::load_imports(path)
 8.           \-pkgload:::abort_for_missing_packages(res, imports$package)
Warning message:
In (function (dep_name, dep_ver = "*")  :
  Dependency package 'PackageB' not available.
Execution halted

Exited with status 1.

I'm wondering if I'm specifying the file path incorrectly, but maybe its something more complicated.

Upvotes: 2

Views: 677

Answers (1)

Dirk is no longer here
Dirk is no longer here

Reputation: 368519

"You can't" via the standard repo as Imports etc need to access the package. What you can do is to create a local repo (and for example the drat packages makes that easy), and that repo to set of known repos on the test box (add to options(repos), or use a drat helper function) and test then.

Alternatively you can use the Additional_repositories field but only for a Suggests: so you will have to test for presence before using code from that second package in the first.

And, in a nutshell, "just having the package installed" is not good enough for the tests. Just not how R thinks about packages.

Upvotes: 2

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