Octave for Microsoft Windows: Difference between revisions

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GNU Octave is primarily developed on GNU/Linux and other POSIX conformal systems. The ports of GNU Octave to Windows use different approaches to get most of the original Octave and adapt it to Microsoft Windows idiosyncrasies (eg: dynamic libraries, file paths, permissions, environment variables, GUI system, etc). Bear this in mind and don't panic if you get unexpected results. There are a lot of suggestions on the mailing lists for tuning your Octave installation.
:''This article is about using pre-built installers of Octave for Windows; for instructions about building it, see [[Windows Installer]].''


About version numbers (Feb 2012):
{{Note|Windows installers are available for the latest version of '''Octave ({{Release}}, released on {{Release Date}})''' from https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/octave/windows/.}}
*The 3.6.x are current releases.
*The 3.4.x are previous releases.
*The 3.2.x are very old releases.


=Standalone ports=
Users are encouraged to use the latest version unless a specific feature or requirement warrants using an older version of the software. Version specific instructions and installation notes are provided below.


==Octave-3.6.1-mingw + octaveforge pkgs==
:'''Note:''' As of version 4.4.1, '''Octave no longer supports Windows XP'''. There may be some workarounds to get Octave installed and running in command line mode (see Bug {{bug|54662}}), but maintainers cannot provide support and troubleshooting for this beyond what has already been documented.


===Files for manual installation===
=Installers for Microsoft Windows=


#Octave-3.6.1-mingw binaries tree
The easiest way to install GNU Octave on Microsoft Windows is by using [http://hg.octave.org/mxe-octave/ MXE] builds. For the current release, both 32-bit and 64-bit installers and zip archived packages (.zip and .7z formats) can be found at https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/octave/windows/.  
#* Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_20120303.7z - MD5:294B99B5E4D47CAA83E8940EB2918D10
#: This is a 7z archive which includes a directory tree of all the binaries and libraries required for a complete octave installation (excluding octaveforge packages)
#:
#: It can be downloaded from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.1%20for%20Windows%20MinGW%20installer/ Octave Forge]
#:
#* The archive include:
#:* octave-3.6.1 including PDF documentation (built by Tatsuro Matsuka http://www.tatsuromatsuoka.com/octave/Eng/Win/)
#:* OpenBLAS-r0.1alpha2.5 and ATLAS-3.8.4 based libblas altenatives
#:* mingw32 + msys tool chain
#:* gnuplot-4.4.4
#:* fig2dev-3.2.5c
#:* ghostscript-9.0.4
#:* pstoedit-3.60
#:
#*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
#*'''Latest update:''' 2012-03-03
#Octaveforge pkgs, built for Octave-3.6.1-mingw
#* Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_pkgs_20120303.7z - MD5:44A85F26A8925FEC5E1F0856408C9DD5
#:
#: It can be downloaded from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.1%20for%20Windows%20MinGW%20installer/ Octave Forge]
#:
#: This is a 7z archive which includes additional binaries and libraries for a set of octaveforge packages.
#:
#* The included packages are:
#:* actuarial-1.1.0
#:* ad-1.0.6_patched
#:* audio-1.1.4
#:* benchmark-1.1.1
#:* bim-1.0.2
#:* bioinfo-0.1.2
#:* civil-engineering-1.0.7
#:* combinatorics-1.0.9
#:* communications-1.1.0_svn20120127_patched
#:* control-2.2.5
#:* data-smoothing-1.3.0
#:* dataframe-0.9.1
#:* econometrics-1.0.8
#:* fenv-0.1.0
#:* financial-0.3.2
#:* fpl-1.2.0
#:* fuzzy-logic-toolkit-0.3.0
#:* ga-0.9.8
#:* general-1.2.2
#:* generate_html-0.1.3
#:* geometry-1.4.0
#:* gnuplot-1.0.1
#:* gpc-0.1.7
#:* gsl-1.0.8
#:* ident-1.0.7
#:* image-1.0.15
#:* informationtheory-0.1.8
#:* integration-1.0.7_svn20120128
#:* io-1.0.17
#:* irsa-1.0.7
#:* java-1.2.8_patched
#:* linear-algebra-2.1.0_svn20120225
#:* mapping-1.0.7
#:* mechanics-1.2.0
#:* miscellaneous-1.0.11_svn20120127
#:* missing-functions-1.0.2
#:* msh-1.0.2
#:* multicore-0.2.15
#:* nan-2.5.2
#:* nlwing2-1.2.0
#:* nnet-0.1.13
#:* nurbs-1.3.5
#:* ocs-0.1.3_svn20120128_patched
#:* octclip-1.0.0
#:* octgpr-1.2.0
#:* odebvp-1.0.6
#:* odepkg-0.8.0_svn20120127
#:* optim-1.0.17_patched
#:* optiminterp-0.3.4_svn20120128_patched
#:* outliers-0.13.9
#:* physicalconstants-0.1.7
#:* plot-1.1.0
#:* quaternion-1.0.0
#:* queueing-1.0.0
#:* secs1d-0.0.8
#:* secs2d-0.0.8
#:* secs3d-0.0.1
#:* signal-1.1.2
#:* simp-1.1.0
#:* sockets-1.0.7_svn20120128_patched
#:* specfun-1.1.0
#:* special-matrix-1.0.7
#:* spline-gcvspl-1.0.8
#:* splines-1.0.7
#:* statistics-1.1.0_svn20120128
#:* strings-1.0.7
#:* struct-1.0.9
#:* symband-1.0.10
#:* symbolic-1.1.0
#:* tcl-octave-0.1.8
#:* time-1.0.9
#:* tsa-4.1.1
#:* video-1.0.2_patched
#:* vrml-1.0.12_svn20111014_patched
#:* windows-1.1.0
#:* xraylib-1.0.8
#:* zenity-0.5.7
#:
#*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
#*'''Latest update:''' 2012-03-03


===Manual installation instructions===
* For executable installers: the user can simply run the downloaded file and follow the on-screen installation promptsIt is recommended that the installation path does not include spaces or non-ASCII characters. Shortcuts to the program will be created automatically.
#Create an installation directory of which doesn't have space chars (i.e. C:\Octave\Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2\). This directory is referred hereafter as <your_install_dir>.
#Extract the complete directories tree from Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_20120303.7z to the installation directory  keeping the original directory structure as in the archive (you can use 7-zip tool from http://www.7-zip.org/)Note that the archive contains Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2 folder, so you want to extract to the *parent* of <your_install_dir>.
#Copy octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2.lnk to any convenient location and edit its properties respectively to point to <your_install_dir>\bin\octave.exe and <your_install_dir>\share\octave\3.6.1\imagelib\octave-logo.ico as an icon
#Copy octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_docs.lnk to any convenient location and edit its properties respectively to point to <your_install_dir>\doc\octave and <your_install_dir>\share\octave\3.6.1\imagelib\octave-logo.ico as an icon.
#:At this point you can:
#: a. Launch and use octave by double-clicking the copied octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2.lnk
#: b. Access and browse the documentation files by double-clicking the copied octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_docs.lnk
#Optional libblas dll replacement for optimizing the linear algebra subroutines for your CPU:
#:* The default configuration should automatically detect your cpu architecture and select an appropriately tuned library.
#:* In case the default library is not properly functioning on the actual cpu, or you wish to explore the performance with another library, you can manually replace the default one by performing the following procedures (where libblas.dll.<libblas_source> should be replaced with the full name of the desired library from the list below these instructions):
#:*# Exit octave
#:*# Delete <your_install_dir>\bin\libblas.dll
#:*# Make a copy of the desired <your_install_dir>\bin\libblas.dll.<libblas_source>
#:*# Rename the copy of the desired <your_install_dir>\bin\libblas.dll.<libblas_source> to libblas.dll
#:*  The following is a list of the available libblas.dll.<libblas_source> options:
#:*# libblas.dll.ref - reference blas implementation, very slow but most stable
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_dynamicarch-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 2 threads, detects cpu architecture and selects respective lib
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_dynamicarch_nt4-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 4 threads, detects cpu architecture and selects respective lib
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_nehalemp-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 2 threads, tuned for nehalem cpu architecture
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_nehalemp_nt4-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 4 threads, tuned for nehalem cpu architecture
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_core2p-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 2 threads, tuned for core2 cpu architecture
#:*# libblas.dll.libopenblas_core2p_nt4-r0.1alpha2.5-0-fda39c6 - Openblas based, up to 4 threads, tuned for core2 cpu architecture
#:*# libblas.dll.altas-3.8.4_ht-pentium - ATLAS based libblass, tuned for older ht-pentium (compiled by Tatsuro Matsuka)
#:*# libblas.dll.altas-3.8.4_corei5 - ATLAS based libblass, tuned for older core i5 cpu (compiled by Tatsuro Matsuka)


===Manual installation instructions for the Octave-forge packages===
* For the 7z/zip archives:
#Extract the complete directories tree from Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2_pkgs_20120303.7z to the installation directory (<your_install_dir>) keeping the original directory structure as in the archive (you can use 7zip tool from http://www.7-zip.org/).
# Extract the file content to a directory on the harddrive (such as {{Path|C:\Octave}}). Spaces or non-ASCII characters in the path are discouraged and may cause program errors.
#In order to update octave_packages database with your installation tree and auto-load most packages (excluding 'ad' and 'windows' which may crash octave when loaded and 'clear all' is executed), launch Octave and execute the following 3 rebuild commands from the octave console:
# Manually create a shortcut  to the {{Path|octave.vbs}} file in the main installation directory. (Right-click on the file, select 'Create Shortcut', and move the new shortcut to your desired location.)
    pkg rebuild -auto
# If a command-line only instance of Octave is desired, the user can create a shortcut as stated above, right-click on the shortcut, select Properties, and add <code>--no-gui</code> to the end of the Target field.
    pkg rebuild -noauto ad windows
# Run the {{Path|post-install.bat}} file before running Octave the first time to reduce plot delays due to the Windows font cache and make the pre-installed packages visible to the system.
    pkg rebuild -noauto nan % shadows many statistics functions
    pkg rebuild -noauto gsl % shadows some core functions
    pkg rebuild -auto java
#: Last pkg rebuild command is required in order for the java pkg entry to be moved to the top of <your_install_dir>\share\octave\octave_packages db file - thus java pkg is loaded before io pkg is loaded, and io pkg related jars are added to java class path.
#You can optionally adjust your installed packages status per your specific needs and usage by executing  the following commands:
: a. To interactively load or unload a package
pkg load <pkg_name>
: or
pkg unload <pkg_name>
: b. To disable auto-load for specific pkg <pkg_name>
pkg rebuild -noauto <pkg_name>
: c. To enable auto-load for specific pkg <pkg_name>
pkg rebuild -auto <pkg_name>
: d. To completely uninstall a package
pkg uninstall <pkg_name>
===Optional installation of Notepad++ as an editor (recommended)===
#Download recent Notepad++ installation package from http://notepad-plus-plus.org/ and install it on your system.
#Edit <your_install_dir>\share\octave\site\m\startup\octaverc and un-comment the line which sets octave default editor:
EDITOR('C:\Program Files\Notepad++\notepad++.exe');
: Note: You may adjust the above line for the location of notepad++.exe as installed on your system.


===Troubleshooting===
==Packages==
Upon launching, some warnings may be displayed. These warnings can be ignored.
*Following warnings are about missing external tools which may reduce some of the functions of some packages. These external tools are not provided by the 7z archives in sourceforge.
warning: gmsh does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
warning: dx does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
*Following warning is about fstat function of the statistics package that overloads the old (to be deprecated) fstat function of octave-3.6.1
warning: function C:\Octave\3.6.1_gcc-4.6.2\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.1.0\fstat.m shadows a core library function


==Octave-3.6.0-mingw + octaveforge pkgs==
A selection of pre-built, [[Octave Forge]] packages are included with for all versions of the official Windows release. If you following the installation directions above you can confirm the package list by typing the command below at the Octave command prompt:


===Files for manual installation===
  >> pkg list


#Octave-3.6.0-mingw binaries tree
A typical output (for version {{Release}}) is:
#* Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_20120129.7z - MD5:53E4823B0DC5F2923C4CBCB8B60FC1B6
                                                                                           
#: This is a 7z archive which includes a directory tree of all the binaries and libraries required for a complete octave installation (excluding octaveforge packages)
Package Name        | Version | Installation directory
#:
--------------------+---------+-----------------------
#: It can be downloaded from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.0%20for%20Windows%20MinGW%20installer/Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_20120129.7z/download octave forge]
    communications  |  1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\communications-1.2.1
#:
            control  |  3.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\control-3.1.0
#* The archive include:
    data-smoothing  |  1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\data-smoothing-1.3.0
#:* octave-3.6.0 including PDF documentation (built by Tatsuro Matsuka http://www.tatsuromatsuoka.com/octave/Eng/Win/)
          database  |  2.4.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\database-2.4.3
#:* mingw32 + msys tool chain
          dataframe  |  1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\dataframe-1.2.0
#:* gnuplot-4.4.4
              dicom  |  0.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\dicom-0.2.1
#:* fig2dev-3.2.5c
          financial  |  0.5.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\financial-0.5.3
#:* ghostscript-9.0.4
              fits  |  1.0.7 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\fits-1.0.7
#:* pstoedit-3.60
fuzzy-logic-toolkit |  0.4.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\fuzzy-logic-toolkit-0.4.5
#:
                ga  |  0.10.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ga-0.10.0
#*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
            general  |  2.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\general-2.1.0
#*'''Latest update:''' 2012-01-29
      generate_html  |  0.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\generate_html-0.3.1
#Octaveforge pkgs, built for Octave-3.6.0-mingw
          geometry |  3.0.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\geometry-3.0.0
#* Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_pkgs_20120128.7z - MD5:93CC6207EED411BCE747193D3A8B6625
                gsl  |  2.1.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\gsl-2.1.1
#:
              image  |  2.10.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\image-2.10.0
#: It can be downloaded from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.0%20for%20Windows%20MinGW%20installer/Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_pkgs_20120128.7z/download octave forge]
instrument-control  |  0.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\instrument-control-0.3.1
#:
          interval  |  3.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\interval-3.2.0
#: This is a 7z archive which includes additional binaries and libraries for a set of octaveforge packages.
                io  |  2.4.12 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\io-2.4.12
#:
    linear-algebra  |  2.2.2 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\linear-algebra-2.2.2
#* The included packages are:
              lssa  |  0.1.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\lssa-0.1.3
#:* actuarial-1.1.0
              ltfat  |  2.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ltfat-2.3.1
#:* ad-1.0.6_patched
            mapping  |  1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\mapping-1.2.1
#:* audio-1.1.4
      miscellaneous  |  1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\miscellaneous-1.2.1
#:* benchmark-1.1.1
                nan  |  3.1.4 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\nan-3.1.4
#:* bim-1.0.2
            netcdf  |  1.0.12 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\netcdf-1.0.12
#:* bioinfo-0.1.2
              nurbs  |  1.3.13 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\nurbs-1.3.13
#:* civil-engineering-1.0.7
                ocs 0.1.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ocs-0.1.5
#:* combinatorics-1.0.9
            odepkg  |  0.8.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\odepkg-0.8.5
#:* communications-1.1.0_svn20120127_patched
              optim  |  1.5.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\optim-1.5.3
#:* control-2.2.4
        optiminterp 0.3.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\optiminterp-0.3.5
#:* data-smoothing-1.2.3
        quaternion  |  2.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\quaternion-2.4.0
#:* dataframe-0.8.2
          queueing  |  1.2.6 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\queueing-1.2.6
#:* econometrics-1.0.8
            signal  |  1.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\signal-1.4.0
#:* fenv-0.1.0
            sockets  |  1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\sockets-1.2.0
#:* financial-0.3.2
          sparsersb  |  1.0.6 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\sparsersb-1.0.6
#:* fpl-1.2.0
            specfun  |  1.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\specfun-1.1.0
#:* fuzzy-logic-toolkit-0.3.0
            splines  |  1.3.2 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\splines-1.3.2
#:* ga-0.9.8
        statistics  |  1.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.4.0
#:* general-1.2.2
                stk  |  2.5.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\stk-2.5.1
#:* generate_html-0.1.3
            strings  |  1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\strings-1.2.0
#:* geometry-1.4.0
            struct 1.0.15 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\struct-1.0.15
#:* gnuplot-1.0.1
            tisean  |  0.2.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\tisean-0.2.3
#:* gpc-0.1.7
                tsa  |  4.4.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\tsa-4.4.5
#:* gsl-1.0.8
              video 1.2.4 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\video-1.2.4
#:* ident-1.0.7
            windows 1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\windows-1.3.0
#:* image-1.0.15
            zeromq  |  1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\zeromq-1.3.0
#:* informationtheory-0.1.8
#:* integration-1.0.7_svn20120128
#:* io-1.0.16
#:* irsa-1.0.7
#:* java-1.2.8_patched
#:* linear-algebra-2.1.0_svn20120127
#:* mapping-1.0.7
#:* mechanics-1.2.0
#:* miscellaneous-1.0.11_svn20120127
#:* missing-functions-1.0.2
#:* msh-1.0.2
#:* multicore-0.2.15
#:* nlwing2-1.2.0
#:* nnet-0.1.13
#:* nurbs-1.3.5
#:* ocs-0.1.3_svn20120128_patched
#:* octclip-1.0.0
#:* octgpr-1.2.0
#:* odebvp-1.0.6
#:* odepkg-0.8.0_svn20120127
#:* optim-1.0.17_patched
#:* optiminterp-0.3.4_svn20120128_patched
#:* outliers-0.13.9
#:* physicalconstants-0.1.7
#:* plot-1.1.0
#:* quaternion-1.0.0
#:* secs1d-0.0.8
#:* secs2d-0.0.8
#:* secs3d-0.0.1
#:* signal-1.1.2
#:* simp-1.1.0
#:* sockets-1.0.7_svn20120128_patched
#:* specfun-1.1.0
#:* special-matrix-1.0.7
#:* spline-gcvspl-1.0.8
#:* splines-1.0.7
#:* statistics-1.1.0_svn20120128
#:* strings-1.0.7
#:* struct-1.0.9
#:* symband-1.0.10
#:* symbolic-1.1.0
#:* tcl-octave-0.1.8
#:* time-1.0.9
#:* tsa-4.1.1
#:* video-1.0.2_patched
#:* vrml-1.0.12_svn20111014_patched
#:* windows-1.1.0
#:* xraylib-1.0.8
#:* zenity-0.5.7
#:
#*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
#*'''Latest update:''' 2012-01-28


===Manual installation instructions===
If Octave was installed from a zip of 7z archive, you may need to run:
#Create an installation directory of which doesn't have space chars (i.e. C:\Octave\Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2\). This directory is referred hereafter as <your_install_dir>.
 
#Extract the complete directories tree from Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_20120129.7z to the installation directory  keeping the original directory structure as in the archive (you can use 7-zip tool from http://www.7-zip.org/).
  >> pkg rebuild
#Copy octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2.lnk to any convenient location and edit its properties respectively to point to <your_install_dir>\bin\octave.exe and <your_install_dir>\share\octave\3.6.0\imagelib\octave-logo.ico as an icon
#Copy octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_docs.lnk to any convenient location and edit its properties respectively to point to <your_install_dir>\doc\octave and <your_install_dir>\share\octave\3.6.0\imagelib\octave-logo.ico as an icon.
#:At this point you can:
#: a. Launch and use octave by double-clicking the copied octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2.lnk
#: b. Access and browse the documentation files by double-clicking the copied octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_docs.lnk
===Manual installation instructions for the Octave-forge packages===
#Extract the complete directories tree from Octave3.6.0_gcc4.6.2_pkgs_20120128.7z to the installation directory (<your_install_dir>) keeping the original directory structure as in the archive (you can use 7zip tool from http://www.7-zip.org/).
#In order to update octave_packages database with your installation tree and auto-load most packages (excluding 'ad' and 'windows' which may crash octave when loaded and 'clear all' is executed), launch Octave and execute the following 3 rebuild commands from the octave console:
    pkg rebuild -auto
    pkg rebuild -noauto ad windows
    pkg rebuild -auto java
#: Last pkg rebuild command is required in order for the java pkg entry to be moved to the top of <your_install_dir>\share\octave\octave_packages db file - thus java pkg is loaded before io pkg is loaded, and io pkg related jars are added to java class path.
#You can optionally adjust your installed packages status per your specific needs and usage by executing  the following commands:
: a. To interactively load or unload a package
pkg load <pkg_name>
: or
pkg unload <pkg_name>
: b. To disable auto-load for specific pkg <pkg_name>
pkg rebuild -noauto <pkg_name>
: c. To enable auto-load for specific pkg <pkg_name>
pkg rebuild -auto <pkg_name>
: d. To completely uninstall a package
pkg uninstall <pkg_name>
===Optional installation of Notepad++ as an editor (recommended)===
#Download recent Notepad++ installation package from http://notepad-plus-plus.org/ and install it on your system.
#Edit <your_install_dir>\share\octave\site\m\startup\octaverc and un-comment the line which sets octave default editor:
EDITOR('C:\Program Files\Notepad++\notepad++.exe');
: Note: You may adjust the above line for the location of notepad++.exe as installed on your system.


===Troubleshooting===
All packages can be updated to the latest version by running:
Upon launching, some warnings may be displayed. These warnings can be ignored.
 
*Following warnings are about missing external tools which may reduce some of the functions of some packages. These external tools are not provided by the 7z archives in sourceforge.
  >> pkg update
warning: gmsh does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
warning: dx does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
*Following warning is about fstat function of the statistics package that overloads the old (to be deprecated) fstat function of octave-3.6.0
warning: function C:\Octave\3.6.0_gcc-4.6.2\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.1.0\fstat.m shadows a core library function


==Octave-3.4.3-mingw + octaveforge pkgs==
Other packages can be installed by running:


#Octave-3.4.3-mingw (without pkgs)
  >> pkg install -forge <package name>
#: Octave3.4.3_gcc4.5.2_20111025.7z - MD5:5AA004D933E000E762AE2AE95573ACBD - http://www.multiupload.com/KDQ1N463UW
#Octaveforge pkgs, built for Octave-3.4.3-mingw
#: Octave3.4.3_gcc4.5.2_pkgs_20111026.7z - MD5:2987F6078B4AD161F2D23634D5109D61 - http://www.multiupload.com/7U6J23CSZ6
:
:The above  archive files are now able to be downloaded from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.4.3%20for%20Windows%20MinGW%20Installer/ octave forge]
*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
*'''Latest update:''' 2011-10-26
*Packages are archived by 7zip. 7zip software can be download from http://www.7-zip.org/
*Octave Binaries are built using Tatsuro Matsuka OctaveLibs.zip and gplibs.zip (http://www.tatsuromatsuoka.com/octave/Eng/Win/)


===Troubleshooting===
To install a new or updated package version manually, the package file can be downloaded from the [https://octave.sourceforge.io/packages.php Octave Forge website] to the working directory and can be installed using:
Upon launching, some warnings may be displayed. The following warnings can be ignored:
*Following warning is about interpretation of logical operators (on scalars) in octave which is slightly different than matlab's interpretation.  
warning: C:\Octave\3.4.3_gcc-4.5.2\share\octave\packages\integration-1.0.7\PKG_ADD: possible Matlab-style short-circuit operator
at line 9, column 32
*Following messages are from java package about loading of java classes that have been found and how to manually run a statement which will display its capabilities.  
io PKG_ADD: java classes has been found and added in C:\Octave\3.4.3_gcc-4.5.2\bin
io PKG_ADD: run chk_spreadsheet_support([],3) to view io support
*Following warnings are about missing external tools which may reduce some of the functions of some packages. These external tools are not provided by the 7z archives in sourceforge.
warning: gmsh does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
warning: dx does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
*Following warning is about fstat function of the statistics package that overloads the old (to be deprecated) fstat function of octave-3.4.3
warning: function C:\Octave\3.4.3_gcc-4.5.2\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.0.10\fstat.m shadows a core library function


==Octave-3.4.2-mingw + octaveforge pkgs==
  >> pkg install package_file_name.tar.gz
#Octave-3.4.2-mingw (without pkgs)
#:Octave3.4.2_gcc4.5.2_20110914.7z - MD5:4AA0DD4C97F73B2E9E0F7370CD8AD719 - http://www.multiupload.com/TCUHKNNH9S
#Octaveforge pkgs, built for Octave-3.4.2-mingw
#:Octave3.4.2_gcc4.5.2_pkgs_20111014.7z - MD5:49097AF3C6FC6CDB58EE83F510A50993 - http://www.multiupload.com/DCWFZOUGZA
*'''Maintainer:''' Nitzan Arazi
*'''Latest update:''' 2011-10-14
*Packages are archived by the 7zip. The 7zip software can be download from http://www.7-zip.org/
*Octave Binaries are built by Tatsuro Matsuoka (http://www.tatsuromatsuoka.com/octave/Eng/Win/)
*Octave manual (<code>octave-3.4.2.pdf.zip, octave-3.4.2.html.zip</code>) can be downloaded from http://www.tatsuromatsuoka.com/octave/Eng/Win/


===Installation===
Detailed instructions for installing individual Octave Forge packages are given at https://octave.sourceforge.io/packages.php.


The installation instructions are the same as for the 3.4.3 version, above.
=GNU Octave on [https://cygwin.com/ cygwin]=


===Notes===
For details, please see http://old.nabble.com/Octave-3.4.2-mingw-%2B-octaveforge-pkgs-to32394771.html
Upon launching, some warnings may be displayed. The following warnings can be ignored:
*Following warning is about interpretation of logical operators (on scalars) in octave which is slightly different than matlab's interpretation.
warning: C:\Octave\Octave3.4.2_gcc4.5.2\share\octave\packages\integration-1.0.7\PKG_ADD: possible Matlab-style
short-circuit operator at line 9, column 32
*Following warnings are about missing external tools which may reduce some of the functions of some packages. These external tools are not provided by the 7z archives in sourceforge.
warning: gmsh does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
warning: dx does not seem to be present some functionalities will be disabled
*Following warning is about fstat function of the statistics package that overloads the old (to be deprecated) fstat function of octave-3.4.3
warning: function C:\Octave\Octave3.4.2_gcc4.5.2\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.0.10\fstat.m shadows a core library
==Octave 3.2.4 for Windows MinGW32==
*'''Download:''' [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.2.4%20for%20Windows%20MinGW32%20Installer/Octave-3.2.4_i686-pc-mingw32_gcc-4.4.0_setup.exe/download Octave-3.2.4_i686-pc-mingw32_gcc-4.4.0_setup.exe]
*'''Maintainer:''' Benjamin Lindner
*'''Latest release:''' 2010-03-25
===Includes===
*GNU Octave, version 3.2.4 (i686-pc-mingw32)
*atlas 3.8.2
*mingw32 (GCC 4.4.0 on http://www.mingw.org )
*gnuplot Version 4.4.0 specially prepared for octave
*mini-MSYS 1.0.11
*notepad++ 5.6.7 as text editor
*Some components of octave-forge packages
**actuarial-1.1.0 (New!)
**audio-1.1.4
**benchmark-1.1.1
**bim-1.0.0 (New!)
**bioinfo-0.1.2
**combinatorics-1.0.9
**communications-1.0.10
**control-1.0.11
**data-smoothing-1.2.0
**econometrics-1.0.8
**fenv-0.1.0 (New!)
**financial-0.3.2
**fixed-0.7.10
**fpl-1.0.0 (New!)
**ga-0.9.7
**general-1.2.0 (updated)
**generate_html-0.1.2 (New!)
**gnuplot-1.0.1 (New!)
**gpc-0.1.7
**gsl-1.0.8
**ident-1.0.7
**image-1.0.10
**informationtheory-0.1.8
**integration-1.0.7
**io-1.0.11 (updated)
**irsa-1.0.7
**java-1.2.7 (New!)
**jhandles-0.3.5 (New!)
**linear-algebra-1.0.8
**mapping-1.0.7
**miscellaneous-1.0.9
**missing-functions-1.0.2
**msh-1.0.0 (New!)
**nlwing2-1.1.1 (New!)
**nnet-0.1.10
**nurbs-1.0.3 (New!)
**ocs-0.0.4 (New!)
**oct2mat-1.0.7 (New!)
**octcdf-1.0.17 (updated 1.0.17+)
**octgpr-1.1.5 (New!)
**odebvp-1.0.6
**odepkg-0.6.10 (updated)
**optim-1.0.12 (updated)
**optiminterp-0.3.2
**outliers-0.13.9
**physicalconstants-0.1.7
**plot-1.0.7
**quaternion-1.0.0
**signal-1.0.10
**simp-1.1.0 (New!)
**sockets-1.0.5
**specfun-1.0.8
**special-matrix-1.0.7
**spline-gcvspl-1.0.8 (New!)
**splines-1.0.7
**statistics-1.0.9
**strings-1.0.7
**struct-1.0.7
**symband-1.0.10 (New!)
**symbolic-1.0.9
**time-1.0.9
**video-1.0.2 (New!)
**windows-1.0.8(updated to 1.0.8+)
**zenity-0.5.7
===Notes===
*Although there are some remaining known issues, some bugs reported to the octave-3.2.3 have been corrected. In addition, useful octave-forge packages are added (Java, Jhandles, ....). Please see [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.2.4%20for%20Windows%20MinGW32%20Installer/RELEASE_NOTES-3.2.4.txt/download RELEASE_NOTES.txt] for details: 
*Default Octave install folder changed to e.g. <code>C:\Octave\3.2.4_gcc-4.4.0\</code>.
*:If you have installed octave in a folder where the path name has whitespace, for example, <code>C:\Program Files\</code>, 'pkg install (package name)' command '''will fail''': See http://sourceforge.net/mailarchive/message.php?msg_name=4A1AF9EF.1000005@hotmail.com for details
'''Additional important topics found after the release:'''
*It is reported that the oct2mat octave-forge package affects plot related commands. The purpose of the package is to convert m-file into matlab-compatible coding style. Please see the documentation of the octave-forge (oct2mat - freetb4matlab) from http://octave.sourceforge.net/functions_by_package.php)
**Report for this problem: http://old.nabble.com/Re:-Octave-3.2.4-mingw32-available-p28053703.html
**Explanation of the problem: http://old.nabble.com/Re:-Octave-3.2.4-mingw32-available-p28090303.html
**Realistic solution at this moment, do not install the oct2mat package when you install octave with octave-forge packages if you do not use this package. Another solution is to execute
      pkg rebuild -noauto oct2mat
::at the octave prompt and then restart octave. The operation results in the oct2mat package not to be auto-loaded in startup. When you want to use oct2mat, execute
      pkg load oct2mat
*The plot octave-forge package still have ginput code although the ginput function is now merge into octave itself. Therefore conflict occur if the plot package is installed. To avoid this problem, rename 'ginput.m' in the folder <code>..\Octave\3.2.4_gcc-4.4.0\share\octave\packages\plot-1.0.7</code>, for example ginput.ob.m. In some computers which has one core CPU, response of ginput is very slow. In the case, modify '__gnuplot_ginput__.m' according to the following thread. http://old.nabble.com/ginput-on-Octave-3.2.4-mingw32-to28093888.html
*From gnuplot-4.4.0, the default terminal of gnuplot for windows is the wxt terminal. Some users may set the GNUTERM environmental variable for the windows terminal being default. The gnuplot for windows allows to set GNUTERM to 'win' (abbreviated form) but octave does not recognize the abbreviated form for terminal name. If one would like set GNUTERM to windows terminal, one should specify it as 'windows' (full form) but not 'win' (abbreviated form). In detail see the following thread: http://old.nabble.com/flicking-problem-again-Octave-3.2.4-mingw32-td28038688.html
=Octave on Cygwin=
== Octave 3.6.2 on cygwin==
*'''Web-Site:''' http://cygwin.com
*'''Maintainer:''' Marco Atzeri  
*'''Maintainer:''' Marco Atzeri  
*'''Latest release:''' 2012-06-04
*'''Latest release:''' 2018-08-17


*Latest packages:
*Latest packages:
:octave-3.6.2-1
:octave-forge-20120714-2


*To install : run cygwin setup.exe and select them in the Math category .
:octave-4.4.1-1
:Its announce on cygwin mailing list [https://www.cygwin.com/ml/cygwin-announce/2018-08/msg00021.html]


===Notes===
:Octave Forge packages have each a cygwin package.
*Not needed anymore, but just in case you want to try one cygwin snapshot.  
:Its announce on cygwin mailing list [https://cygwin.com/ml/cygwin-announce/2017-01/msg00078.html]
:HOWTO install a cygwin snapshot:
: Full cygwin package list is available here [https://cygwin.com/packages/]
:download <code>cygwin1-20120227.dll.bz2</code> (current last) from http://cygwin.com/snapshots/
: At 2017-04-06, 64 forge packages were available.  
    bunzip2 cygwin1-20120227.dll.bz2
    cp cygwin1-20120227.dll cygwin1.dll
    cp /bin/cygwin1.dll /bin/cygwin1.dll_backup
:exit all cygwin processes and from windows explorer
:copy the cygwin1.dll snapshot to
    c:\cygwin\bin
    (or in the equivalent directory of your cygwin installation).


*Graphics is based on X, so to plot you need to start octave within xterm (or similar).
*To install :
:  run cygwin setup-x86.exe (for cygwin 32 bit) or setup-x86_64.exe (for cygwin 64 bit) and select them in the Math category.
:  All the package dependencies will be also installed.


*A new fltk graphics_toolkit is available, and the crash on "print" issue was solved starting from 3.4.2-3 using the patch proposed here: https://savannah.gnu.org/bugs/index.php?31641
:Graphics is based on X and to plot you will need to start octave within xterm (or similar).
:  I recommend to install "xinit", "xlaunch" and "gnuplot". These packages will pull all the functional Xserver.  
:  Otherwise the only graphics will be ASCII art ;-)


*For general build notes, see <code>etc/README.Cygwin</code>.
==Notes for cygwin==


*When building from development source (default branch)  
*When building from development source (default branch)  
    "make check"  
:    "make check"  
:passes almost all the tests.  
:passes almost all the tests. Only, and not substantial, failures are:
:Only, and not substantial, failures are:
:<syntaxhighlight lang="bash">
    /pub/hg/octave/src/data.cc : 8 failures due to different handling of complex Inf on sort
/pub/hg/octave/src/data.cc : 8 failures due to different handling of complex Inf on sort
    /pub/hg/octave/src/syscalls.cc: 1 failure on fork. This disappears when octave is installed
/pub/hg/octave/src/syscalls.cc: 1 failure on fork. This disappears when octave is installed
    /pub/hg/octave/scripts/sparse/svds.m: 1 failure due to test sensitivity on starting point. See  
/pub/hg/octave/scripts/sparse/svds.m: 1 failure due to test sensitivity on starting point. See  
    https://mailman.cae.wisc.edu/pipermail/octave-maintainers/2011-September/024715.html
https://mailman.cae.wisc.edu/pipermail/octave-maintainers/2011-September/024715.html
 
</syntaxhighlight>
*To build from cygwin source package, you need to install "cygport" and the relevant development libraries
    $ tar -xvjf octave-3.6.2-1-src.tar.bz2
    gl2ps-print.patch
    octave-3.6.2-1.cygport
    octave-3.6.2-1.cygwin.patch
    octave-3.6.2-1.src.patch
    octave-3.6.2.tar.bz2
 
    $ cygport octave-3.6.2-1.cygport almostall
 
:see cygport documentation for further info.
 
=Octave with Visual Studio=
 
Octave binaries compiled with Microsoft Visual Studio are available for download from [http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.2%20for%20Windows%20Microsoft%20Visual%20Studio/ Octave-Forge site]. These binaries come in the form of an easy-to-use installer (created with [http://nsis.sourceforge.net/ NSIS]) and are provided in 2 flavors: pre-compiled version for Visual Studio 2008 and for Visual Studio 2010.
 
These binaries do not include the Microsoft Visual C++ compiler. This must be installed separately, but is only required if you plan to compile and link source code against the pre-compiled octave release. If the Visual C++ compiler is not present on the target system, then the Visual C++ runtime libraries must be installed prior the installation of these binaries. These runtime libraries are support libraries that are required by any code compiled with the Visual C++ compiler. They can be downloaded for free from the Microsoft download site:
* [http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=5582 Visual C++ 2008 runtime libraries]
* [http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=8328 Visual C++ 2010 runtime libraries]
Note that if you already installed other software on your system, there is a possibility that these runtime libraries are already present. Search for a files named msvcr90.dll (Visual Studio 2008) or msvcr100.dll (Visual Studio 2010) in the %WINDIR% directory (usually C:\WINDOWS).
 
==Installation==
 
The pre-compiled versions for Visual Studio come in the form of a self-installing executable. Simply download the executable, run it and follow the installer instructions. To avoid possible problems with white spaces in the octave paths, it is '''strongly recommended''' to install octave in a directory that do not contain any white spaces.
 
==Printing (installing Ghostscript)==
 
In order to use the {{Codeline|print}} command ghostscript must be installed.
The installer may be obtained at
[http://sourceforge.net/projects/ghostscript/ sourceforge].
 
The instructions below assume the GLP version of Ghostscript is installed with
the Destination directory {{Codeline|<nowiki>C:\Program Files (x86)\GPLGS\</nowiki>}}.
The Destination directory may be different for 32 bit and 64 bit windows and can also
change for different versions of Ghostscript.  Therefore, it is important that the user
make note of the Destination directory used to install Ghostscript and use it in place of
the Destination directory used in these instructions.
 
In order for Octave to find Ghostscript, its Destination directory used for the install must
be in the command shell's path.  This may be done by modifying the path variable via the
Control Panel, or by having Octave modify the path variable to include the Destination
directory.
 
For the latter, to following lines may be placed in the {{Codeline|<nowiki>~/.octaverc</nowiki>}} file.
The variable {{Codeline|<nowiki>gs_path</nowiki>}} should be set to the Destination
directory where Ghostscript was installed.
 
  cmd_path = getenv ("path");
  gs_path = 'C:\Program Files (x86)\GPLGS\';
  if (isempty (strfind (cmd_path, gs_path)))
    setenv ('path', strcat (cmd_path, pathsep (), gs_path));
  endif
 
To set the path via the Control Panel,
 
* Go to '''Control Panel''' --> '''System and Security''' --> '''System'''
* Click '''Advanced System Settings'''
* Click '''Environment Variables'''
* In the '''System Variables''' area, locate the Path variable, highlight it and click '''Edit'''.
* Add the Destination directory where Ghostscript is installed and confirm the change by clickiing '''OK''', '''OK''', '''OK'''.
 
If the 64 bit version of Ghostscript is installed, Octave will not automatically detect it.  To use the 64 bit version an
option telling Octave about it must be passed to the {{Codeline|print}} command.  For example to produce PDF
output for a figure, using the 64 bit version of Ghostscript, the command below may be used.
 
  print -Ggswin64c.exe figure.pdf
 
At this point most of Octave's printing functionality should work.  When output is
produced using the {{Codeline|print}} command the warnings below will be given.
 
  warning: print.m: epstool binary is not available.
  Some output formats are not available.
  warning: print.m: fig2dev binary is not available.
  Some output formats are not available.
  warning: print.m: pstoedit binary is not available.
  Some output formats are not available.
 
For the {{Codeline|print}} command to be fully functional, each of these utilities will also need to be installed,
and their locations added to the Path variable via either the Control Panel
or Octave's {{Codeline|<nowiki>~/.octaverc</nowiki>}} file.
 
==Using the Visual C++ compiler with Octave==
 
As of version 3.6.1, the Microsoft Visual C++ compiler is not automatically detected. If you need to use it from octave (for instance to compile a MEX or OCT file), then you must configure your system by updating the appropriate environment variables: '''%PATH%''', '''%INCLUDE%''' and '''%LIB%'''. One way to achieve this easily is to call the vcvarsall.bat script (from the Visual C++ installation directory) prior executing octave. You can for instance automate this by creating a batch script with the following content (adapt paths to your actual installation):
 
call "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 9.0\VC\vcvarsall.bat"
"C:\Octave-3.6.1\bin\octave.exe"
 
==Octave 3.6.1==
 
===Download===
[http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20Windows%20binaries/Octave%203.6.1%20for%20Windows%20Microsoft%20Visual%20Studio/ Octave-Forge]


===Content===
* To build GNU Octave from cygwin source package, you need to install "cygport" and the relevant development libraries
* Octave 3.6.1
:<syntaxhighlight lang="bash">
* ATLAS 3.8.4 single-threaded (SSE/SSE2/SSE3) and multi-threaded (SSE3, 2 threads)
tar -xf octave-4.4.1-1-src.tar.xz
* All required libraries
cygport octave.cygport almostall
* [https://github.com/goffioul/QtHandles QtHandles]
</syntaxhighlight>
* Octave GUI (experimental, compiled from development sources)
:see [https://cygwinports.github.io/cygport/ cygport documentation] for further info.
* Gnuplot 4.4.4
* 72 packages from Octave-Forge


[[Category:Windows]]
=General info=


=Building from source=
Be advised that GNU Octave is primarily developed on GNU/Linux and other [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/POSIX POSIX] conform systems. The ports of GNU Octave to Microsoft Windows use different approaches to get most of the original Octave and adapt it to Microsoft Windows idiosyncrasies (e.g. dynamic libraries, file paths, permissions, environment variables, GUI system, etc). Bear this in mind and don't panic if you get unexpected results. There are a lot of suggestions on the mailing lists for tuning your Octave installation. GNU Octave standalone ports for Windows are independently compiled using either the [http://mingw.org MinGW] or Microsoft Visual Studio development environments (3.6 or before).


In addition to the instructions provided in the Octave manual, a basic toolkit for building Octave in windows using the MSVC compiler has been produced by Michael Goffioul. It consists of a set of scripts that can be used to compile Octave and its dependencies.
=See also=


A pre-compiled (with VS2010) version of everything has also been provided, so it is not necessary to recompile everything from scratch. The files can be found at: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45539519/octave-build2.zip and http://dl.dropbox.com/u/45539519/VC10Libs.zip
* [[Octave for Microsoft Windows (outdated)]] for older instructions.


Note that this is not a enterprise-level SDK, so don't try to start an enterprise with it.
[[Category:Installation]]
[[Category:Building]]
[[Category:Microsoft Windows]]

Revision as of 01:05, 14 October 2019

This article is about using pre-built installers of Octave for Windows; for instructions about building it, see Windows Installer.
Info icon.svg
Windows installers are available for the latest version of Octave (9.1.0, released on March 14, 2024) from https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/octave/windows/.

Users are encouraged to use the latest version unless a specific feature or requirement warrants using an older version of the software. Version specific instructions and installation notes are provided below.

Note: As of version 4.4.1, Octave no longer supports Windows XP. There may be some workarounds to get Octave installed and running in command line mode (see Bug #54662), but maintainers cannot provide support and troubleshooting for this beyond what has already been documented.

Installers for Microsoft Windows

The easiest way to install GNU Octave on Microsoft Windows is by using MXE builds. For the current release, both 32-bit and 64-bit installers and zip archived packages (.zip and .7z formats) can be found at https://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/octave/windows/.

  • For executable installers: the user can simply run the downloaded file and follow the on-screen installation prompts. It is recommended that the installation path does not include spaces or non-ASCII characters. Shortcuts to the program will be created automatically.
  • For the 7z/zip archives:
  1. Extract the file content to a directory on the harddrive (such as C:\Octave). Spaces or non-ASCII characters in the path are discouraged and may cause program errors.
  2. Manually create a shortcut to the octave.vbs file in the main installation directory. (Right-click on the file, select 'Create Shortcut', and move the new shortcut to your desired location.)
  3. If a command-line only instance of Octave is desired, the user can create a shortcut as stated above, right-click on the shortcut, select Properties, and add --no-gui to the end of the Target field.
  4. Run the post-install.bat file before running Octave the first time to reduce plot delays due to the Windows font cache and make the pre-installed packages visible to the system.

Packages

A selection of pre-built, Octave Forge packages are included with for all versions of the official Windows release. If you following the installation directions above you can confirm the package list by typing the command below at the Octave command prompt:

  >> pkg list

A typical output (for version 9.1.0) is:

Package Name        | Version | Installation directory
--------------------+---------+-----------------------
    communications  |   1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\communications-1.2.1
           control  |   3.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\control-3.1.0
    data-smoothing  |   1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\data-smoothing-1.3.0
          database  |   2.4.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\database-2.4.3
         dataframe  |   1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\dataframe-1.2.0
             dicom  |   0.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\dicom-0.2.1
         financial  |   0.5.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\financial-0.5.3
              fits  |   1.0.7 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\fits-1.0.7
fuzzy-logic-toolkit |   0.4.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\fuzzy-logic-toolkit-0.4.5
                ga  |  0.10.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ga-0.10.0
           general  |   2.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\general-2.1.0
     generate_html  |   0.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\generate_html-0.3.1
          geometry  |   3.0.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\geometry-3.0.0
               gsl  |   2.1.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\gsl-2.1.1
             image  |  2.10.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\image-2.10.0
instrument-control  |   0.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\instrument-control-0.3.1
          interval  |   3.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\interval-3.2.0
                io  |  2.4.12 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\io-2.4.12
    linear-algebra  |   2.2.2 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\linear-algebra-2.2.2
              lssa  |   0.1.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\lssa-0.1.3
             ltfat  |   2.3.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ltfat-2.3.1
           mapping  |   1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\mapping-1.2.1
     miscellaneous  |   1.2.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\miscellaneous-1.2.1
               nan  |   3.1.4 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\nan-3.1.4
            netcdf  |  1.0.12 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\netcdf-1.0.12
             nurbs  |  1.3.13 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\nurbs-1.3.13
               ocs  |   0.1.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\ocs-0.1.5
            odepkg  |   0.8.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\odepkg-0.8.5
             optim  |   1.5.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\optim-1.5.3
       optiminterp  |   0.3.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\optiminterp-0.3.5
        quaternion  |   2.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\quaternion-2.4.0
          queueing  |   1.2.6 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\queueing-1.2.6
            signal  |   1.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\signal-1.4.0
           sockets  |   1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\sockets-1.2.0
         sparsersb  |   1.0.6 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\sparsersb-1.0.6
           specfun  |   1.1.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\specfun-1.1.0
           splines  |   1.3.2 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\splines-1.3.2
        statistics  |   1.4.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\statistics-1.4.0
               stk  |   2.5.1 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\stk-2.5.1
           strings  |   1.2.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\strings-1.2.0
            struct  |  1.0.15 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\struct-1.0.15
            tisean  |   0.2.3 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\tisean-0.2.3
               tsa  |   4.4.5 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\tsa-4.4.5
             video  |   1.2.4 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\video-1.2.4
           windows  |   1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\windows-1.3.0
            zeromq  |   1.3.0 | C:\Octave\OCTAVE~1.0-W\mingw64\share\octave\packages\zeromq-1.3.0

If Octave was installed from a zip of 7z archive, you may need to run:

  >> pkg rebuild

All packages can be updated to the latest version by running:

  >> pkg update

Other packages can be installed by running:

  >> pkg install -forge <package name>

To install a new or updated package version manually, the package file can be downloaded from the Octave Forge website to the working directory and can be installed using:

  >> pkg install package_file_name.tar.gz

Detailed instructions for installing individual Octave Forge packages are given at https://octave.sourceforge.io/packages.php.

GNU Octave on cygwin

  • Maintainer: Marco Atzeri
  • Latest release: 2018-08-17
  • Latest packages:
octave-4.4.1-1
Its announce on cygwin mailing list [1]
Octave Forge packages have each a cygwin package.
Its announce on cygwin mailing list [2]
Full cygwin package list is available here [3]
At 2017-04-06, 64 forge packages were available.
  • To install :
run cygwin setup-x86.exe (for cygwin 32 bit) or setup-x86_64.exe (for cygwin 64 bit) and select them in the Math category.
All the package dependencies will be also installed.
Graphics is based on X and to plot you will need to start octave within xterm (or similar).
I recommend to install "xinit", "xlaunch" and "gnuplot". These packages will pull all the functional Xserver.
Otherwise the only graphics will be ASCII art ;-)

Notes for cygwin

  • When building from development source (default branch)
"make check"
passes almost all the tests. Only, and not substantial, failures are:
/pub/hg/octave/src/data.cc : 8 failures due to different handling of complex Inf on sort
/pub/hg/octave/src/syscalls.cc: 1 failure on fork. This disappears when octave is installed
/pub/hg/octave/scripts/sparse/svds.m: 1 failure due to test sensitivity on starting point. See 
https://mailman.cae.wisc.edu/pipermail/octave-maintainers/2011-September/024715.html
  • To build GNU Octave from cygwin source package, you need to install "cygport" and the relevant development libraries
tar -xf octave-4.4.1-1-src.tar.xz 
cygport octave.cygport almostall
see cygport documentation for further info.

General info

Be advised that GNU Octave is primarily developed on GNU/Linux and other POSIX conform systems. The ports of GNU Octave to Microsoft Windows use different approaches to get most of the original Octave and adapt it to Microsoft Windows idiosyncrasies (e.g. dynamic libraries, file paths, permissions, environment variables, GUI system, etc). Bear this in mind and don't panic if you get unexpected results. There are a lot of suggestions on the mailing lists for tuning your Octave installation. GNU Octave standalone ports for Windows are independently compiled using either the MinGW or Microsoft Visual Studio development environments (3.6 or before).

See also