R Installation

Go here to download a graphical installer of the latest R version (at least v3.2.2) appropriate for your machine’s

• processor (32-bit / 64-bit), and
• operating system (Mac / Windows).

Run the installer and follow its instructions to install the software into a folder you prefer.

It is preferred that the R installation folder path DO NOT CONTAIN BLANK SPACES, e.g., /Applications/R-3.2.3 or C:/Applications/R-3.2.3, because spaces occasionally cause bugs in dependent open-source software packages.

Extra Steps for Windows Users Only

Windows users need one extra step to make sure you can run the command Rscript.exe from the command-line terminal.

• Go to Control Panel > System > Advanced System Settings > Environment Variables, look under the System Variable section for the variable Path, and append the following path to the existing text:

  ;<Your R Installation Folder>/bin

  (note that there should be a semi-colon (;) separating the existing path and the appended path, and that there must be no space between that semi-colon and the appended path)

• Open the Windows command-line terminal via, enter the following command and verify that it returns the folder path containing the Rscript.exe file:

  where Rscript

• Rtools Installation: Rtools comprises a set of supporting software necessary for installing several advanced R packages on Windows;

  • In the same navigation flow you've gone through the obtain your R graphical installer, you would have seen a link to obtain a graphical installer for Rtools. Follow that link to download and run a latest Rtools installer appropriate for your machine's operating system (Mac / Windows). Again, install Rtools into a folder path with NO SPACES, e.g., /Applications/Rtools or C:/Applications/Rtools to avoid bugs.