info_tfgrid/collections/developers/javascript/grid3_javascript_installation.md

<h1>Installation</h1>

<h2>Table of Contents</h2>

- [Introduction](#introduction)
- [Prerequisites](#prerequisites)
- [Installation](#installation)
  - [External Package](#external-package)
  - [Local Usage](#local-usage)
- [Getting Started](#getting-started)
  - [Client Configuration](#client-configuration)
- [Generate the Documentation](#generate-the-documentation)
- [How to Run the Scripts](#how-to-run-the-scripts)
- [Reference API](#reference-api)

***

## Introduction

We present here the general steps required to install and use the ThreeFold Grid Client.

The [Grid Client](https://github.com/threefoldtech/tfgrid-sdk-ts/tree/development/packages/grid_client) is written using [TypeScript](https://www.typescriptlang.org/) to provide more convenience and type-checked code. It is used to deploy workloads like virtual machines, kubernetes clusters, quantum storage, and more.

## Prerequisites

To install the Grid Client, you will need the following on your machine:

- [Node.js](https://nodejs.org/en) ^18
- npm 8.2.0 or higher
- may need to install libtool (**apt-get install libtool**)

> Note: [nvm](https://nvm.sh/) is the recommended way for installing node.

To use the Grid Client, you will need the following on the TFGrid:

- A TFChain account
- TFT in your wallet

If it is not the case, please visit the [Get started section](system_administrators@@tfgrid3_getstarted).

## Installation

### External Package

To install the external package, simply run the following command:

```bash
yarn add @threefold/grid_client
```

> Note: For the **qa**, **test** and **main** networks, please use @2.1.1 version.

### Local Usage

To use the Grid Client locally, clone the repository then install the Grid Client:

- Clone the repository
```bash
   git clone https://github.com/threefoldtech/tfgrid-sdk-ts
```
- Install the Grid Client with yarn or npm
```bash
yarn install
```
```bash
npm install
```

> Note: In the directory **grid_client/scripts**, we provided a set of scripts to test the Grid Client.

## Getting Started

You will need to set the client configuration either by setting the json file manually (**scripts/config.json**) or by using the provided script (**scripts/client_loader.ts**). 

### Client Configuration

Make sure to set the client configuration properly before using the Grid Client.

- **network**: The network environment (**dev**, **qa**, **test** or **main**).

- **mnemonic**: The 12 words mnemonics for your account. 
  - Learn how to create one [here](dashboard@@wallet_connector).

- **storeSecret**: This is any word that will be used for encrypting/decrypting the keys on ThreeFold key-value store.

- **ssh_key**: The public SSH key set on your machine.

> Note: Only networks can't be isolated, all projects can see the same network.

## Generate the Documentation

The easiest way to test the installation is to run the following command with either yarn or npm to generate the Grid Client documentation:

* With yarn
    ```
    yarn run serve-docs
    ```
* With npm
    ```
    npm run serve-docs
    ```

> Note: You can also use the command **yarn run** to see all available options.

## How to Run the Scripts

You can explore the Grid Client by testing the different scripts proposed in **grid_client/scripts**.

- Update your customized deployments specs if needed
- Run using [ts-node](https://www.npmjs.com/ts-node)
  - With yarn
      ```bash
      yarn run ts-node --project tsconfig-node.json scripts/zdb.ts
      ```
  - With npx
      ```bash
      npx ts-node --project tsconfig-node.json scripts/zdb.ts
      ```

## Reference API

While this is still a work in progress, you can have a look [here](https://threefoldtech.github.io/tfgrid-sdk-ts/packages/grid_client/docs/api/index.html).