Install Automator

This guide will help you install Syside Automator (available on PyPI). It covers system requirements, installation steps, license activation, and updating.

Minimum Requirements

  • System requirements:

    • Windows 10+ x64 (for older versions, install Windows UCRT)

  • System requirements:

    • macOS Big Sur (11.0+, arm64)

    • macOS High Sierra (10.13+, x64)

  • System requirements:

    • Linux x64 distribution with GNU C Library glibc >= 2.31

    Note

    Some Linux distributions like Alpine and Chimera do not include glibc and may not support running applications that require it.

    How to check your glibc version

    1. Using gcc:

      $(cat $(gcc -print-file-name=libc.so) | grep -P '/[^\s]+/libc\.so\.[\w]+' -o)

      You should see output similar to: GNU C Library (GNU libc) stable release version 2.40

    2. Using Python:

      python -c "import platform; print(platform.platform())"

      You should see output similar to (glibc should be printed at the end): Linux-6.13.7-3-cachyos-x86_64-with-glibc2.41

  • Network connectivity:

    • Internet connection is required for installation, updates and usage

Note

Syside Automator periodically validates license and collects basic usage data: launch time, and hashed machine ID (not personally identifiable).

Syside Automator can be used offline for short periods of time, but a fully network-isolated solution requires an offline license available on the Business plan.

Install Python Library

For network-isolated or air-gapped environments, see Offline Installation page.

You can install Automator automatically into a Python virtual environment using Modeler. If Modeler is not installed, see Install Modeler for instructions.

  1. Open Visual Studio Code or your preferred VSCodium-based editor

  2. Open your project folder (File → Open Folder…)

  3. Open any *.sysml SysML file

  4. Click on Syside logo (top right) and select Syside Modeler: Create Python virtual environment with Syside Automator

    • This command creates a virtual environment named .venv in your workspace with Automator installed.

Version History

  • From v0.8: Syside Automator versions 0.8 and newer are available on the official PyPI. If you wish to install older versions, use a custom index with the URL of https://gitlab.com/api/v4/projects/69960816/packages/pypi/simple

Syside Automator is available on Python Package Index (PyPI). You can install it using any preferred Python package manager, such as pip:

  1. Open a terminal and create a Python virtual environment

    python -m venv .venv

  2. Activate the created virtual environment (see How to manually activate virtual environment)

  3. Run the following command:

    pip install syside

    You should see output similar to: Successfully installed syside-x.x.x

Before running Python scripts that use Syside Automator, ensure that virtual environment is activated.

How to manually activate virtual environment

  1. Run the following command in the terminal:

    1. Using Command Prompt:

      .\.venv\Scripts\activate

    2. Using PowerShell:

      .\.venv\Scripts\Activate.ps1

      PowerShell may block the activation with a “scripts disabled” error. Run the following command to allow script execution:

      Set-ExecutionPolicy Bypass -Scope Process -Force

  2. Run the following command to verify that the virtual environment was successfully activated:

    where.exe python

    The printed path should end with: /.venv/bin/python

  1. Run the following command in the terminal:

    source .venv/bin/activate

  2. Run the following command to verify that the virtual environment was successfully activated:

    which python

    The printed path should end with: /.venv/bin/python

Activate License

Version History

  • From v0.8: License activation process was simplified. The syside-license package is now only required for network-isolated or air-gapped environments (see Offline Installation page).

Warning

License keys are sensitive information, keep them private and secure. Exposure may result in unauthorized use or license revocation.

Syside Automator automatically validates the license each time import syside is called. Syside Automator expects the license key to be stored in one of the following locations:

For local development, you can store the license key in a .env file:

  1. Create a new file named .env in the root of your project directory

  2. Add your license key to the file:

    SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY=<your-license-key>

Tip

If you are using git for version control, make sure to add .env to your .gitignore file and never commit the .env file to your repository.

For GitLab users, you can also use repository-wide push rules to prevent uploading secrets. See GitLab documentation for details.

Set the SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY environment variable by running the following command:

  1. Windows (PowerShell):

    $env:SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY = "<your-license-key>"

  2. macOS / Linux (terminal):

    export SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY=<your-license-key>

Store your license key in the Operating System’s secret storage:

  • Windows: Windows Credential Store

  • macOS: Keychain credential store

  • Linux: depends on your desktop environment (KDE Wallet on Kubuntu, Passwords and Keys on Ubuntu)

Note

Storing in the secret storage is not supported on systems without the desktop environment such as Docker containers and WSL.

Using the secret storage keeps the key secure and available across all your Python projects without storing it in code or configuration files.

  1. Using Modeler (Recommended):

    1. Open Visual Studio Code or your preferred VSCodium-based editor

    2. Open the Command Palette Ctrl/Cmd-Shift-P

    3. Type Syside Modeler: Add Syside license key to keyring

      • If you’ve already activated a license in Modeler, it will be stored automatically

      • Otherwise, you’ll be prompted to enter your license key

  2. Using Python’s keyring library

    >>> import keyring
>>> keyring.set_password("license-key.syside", "license-key", "<your-license-key>")

Once stored, import syside will automatically retrieve the license from your keyring in any Python environment. No additional configuration needed.

Scope: The license key is stored per-user and works across all virtual environments and projects on your machine. Other users on the same computer will need to store their own license keys.

Activate License in CI/CD

Note

Using Automator in CI/CD requires a Deployment License Key (available under the Business plan).

The deployment license key starts with CI- to make it easier to distinguish.

Most CI/CD providers have secure secret storage for environment variables. Use your provider’s secret management instead of .env files to store your deployment key as SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY.

Add SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY as a masked CI/CD variable in your project settings (see GitLab CI/CD variables documentation).

Add SYSIDE_LICENSE_KEY as a repository secret in your repository settings (see GitHub secrets documentation).

Verify Installation

Once Syside Automator is installed and activated, follow these steps to quickly verify it is working as expected.

  1. Open a terminal in your project folder

  2. Activate the virtual environment with Syside Automator installed (see How to manually activate virtual environment)

  3. Start a Python shell and execute import syside:

    python -c "import syside; print(syside.__version__)"

If the import succeeds without errors, Syside Automator version will be displayed: x.x.x.

Note

If you get ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'syside', ensure you activated the correct virtual environment where Syside was installed.

Update Automator

You can update Automator using any preferred Python package manager, such as pip:

  1. Open a terminal

  2. Activate the virtual environment with Syside Automator installed (see How to manually activate virtual environment)

  3. Run the following command:

    pip install syside --upgrade

What’s Next?

With Syside Automator is installed and working, continue to the following pages to learn more: