The Aster R product consists of a number of components, and requires a number of steps to install. Some of the steps involve installing software onto a Linux cluster. In case the Aster R end user does not have such experience, or does not have the required permissions to carry out the tasks, assistance from Aster database administrators or IT personnel may be required to complete the installation procedures listed in this chapter.
If the Aster cluster does not have direct access to the Internet, all R packages and required supporting operating system files must be downloaded onto a separate computer and then copied to the queen node of the Aster Database cluster.
When R has direct access to an external R package repository such as CRAN, R handles package dependencies automatically - when a package is installed, all the additional required packages are installed as well. If the Aster cluster does not have direct access to the Internet, these dependencies are not resolved automatically, and the Aster R end user or database administrator must ensure that the dependencies are resolved.
Teradata Aster provides a bundle that contains the most commonly used R packages, their dependencies, and the supporting files. Teradata recommends users install this bundle.
Use Cases
Aster R provides R capabilities in a couple of different ways. The required installation steps depend on how Aster R will be used.
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Use an R-like interface to the Aster Database for data exploration.
The user installs the TeradataAsterR package on a client system connected to an Aster Database, and uses the client computer to query and access the Aster Database.
This procedure is described in Installing Aster R on the Client.
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Run R scripts or execute R code directly on the Aster cluster.
The user installs open-source R onto the Aster cluster.
This procedure is described in Installing Open-Source R on the Aster Cluster.
Because the Aster cluster typically does not have access to the Internet, the procedure to install R packages on the Aster cluster is different from that when using R on a personal laptop. Refer to Installing the Bundle of Commonly Used R Packages and Installing Additional Packages on the Cluster for information on how to install additional R packages on the Aster cluster.