Passing Parameters: YAML Files

[sknqualitasag]

Dear @mcanouil ,

I try to pass parameters (YAML Files) like in your course support.

This example works in the file ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd:

---
title: "ZWS Bericht"
format:
  confluence-html: default
params:
  datapath: "DatenInZWSRundeBericht.csv"
---

**Autor:** {{< var author >}}

**ZWS Runde:** {{< var zwsrun >}}

## Grösse der Rohdaten Files aus dem Export

```{r}
#| echo: false
#| include: false
s_actualdatapath <- params[["datapath"]]
tbl_actualdata <- readr::read_delim(file = s_actualdatapath, delim = ";", col_names = TRUE)
```

```{r}
head(tbl_actualdata)
```

However this doesn't render with the file ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd:

---
title: "ZWS Bericht"
format:
  confluence-html: default
---

**Autor:** {{< var author >}}

**ZWS Runde:** {{< var zwsrun >}}

## Grösse der Rohdaten Files aus dem Export

```{r}
#| echo: false
#| include: false
s_actualdatapath <- params[["datapath"]]
tbl_actualdata <- readr::read_delim(file = s_actualdatapath, delim = ";", col_names = TRUE)
```

```{r}
head(tbl_actualdata)
```

file params.yml contains:

datapath: "DatenInZWSRundeBericht.csv"

file _quarto.yml contains:

project:
  type: confluence
  
metadata-files:
  - _variables.yml
  - params.yml

I get following error message:

processing file: ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd
|............... | 29% [unnamed-chunk-1]

Error:
! object 'params' not found

Quitting from ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd:13-18 [unnamed-chunk-1]

Execution halted
WARN: Error encountered when rendering files

I would really appreciate, if you could help me to know how to pass parameters with a params.yml and also to help me to solve this issue.
Thanks a lot,
Cheers
Sophie

[mcanouil]

Could you properly format your post using code blocks for code and terminal outputs? Thanks.
If your code contains code blocks, you need to enclose it using more backticks, i.e., usually four ````.
See https://quarto.org/bug-reports.html#formatting-make-githubs-markdown-work-for-us.

---

No need to ping/mention.

[sknqualitasag]

Dear @mcanouil,
second try.

I try to pass parameters (YAML Files) like in your course support.

ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert_working.qmd: this file is the version working see attached
ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert_working.txt
. I put the content of .qmd in .txt such that you can see because I try to format properly the qmd but didn't get it here.

ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd: this file is the version who do not work see attached
ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.txt. I put the content of new .qmd in .txt. Further needed files
_quarto.yml,
params.yml

I get following error message see
error_message.txt

I would really appreciate, if you could help me to know how to pass parameters with a params.yml and also to help me to solve this issue.
Thanks a lot,
Cheers
Sophie

[mcanouil]

Look at the link I shared for formatting your code. I quickly edited your original message.
Note that it's easier to show code as code blocks with four backticks than upload many files, because it requires me to download all files and to open them in order to see the content.

You can share a self-contained "working" (reproducible) Quarto document using the following syntax, i.e., using more backticks than you have in your document (usually four ````).
See https://quarto.org/bug-reports.html#small-is-beautiful-aim-for-a-single-document-with-10-lines.

R	Python
````qmd --- title: "Reproducible Quarto Document" format: html engine: knitr --- This is a reproducible Quarto document. {{< lipsum 1 >}} ```{r} x <- c(1, 2, 3, 4, 5) y <- c(1, 4, 9, 16, 25) plot(x, y) ``` {#fig-placeholder} {{< lipsum 1 >}} The end after @fig-placeholder. ````	````qmd --- title: "Reproducible Quarto Document" format: html engine: jupyter --- This is a reproducible Quarto document. {{< lipsum 1 >}} ```{python} import matplotlib.pyplot as plt x = [1, 2, 3, 4, 5] y = [1, 4, 9, 16, 25] plt.plot(x, y) plt.show() ``` {#fig-placeholder} {{< lipsum 1 >}} The end after @fig-placeholder. ````

---

Parameters only work for single-document, not projects.

• _variables.yml is a special file that lives next to _quarto.yml but should not be inside or included in _quarto.yml.

• params.yml is a convenience file which does not have to be called params.yml (it can be named however you want) that you passe to Quarto CLI quarto render my-document.qmd --execute-params params.yml

Thus the following should be removed from _quarto.yml.

metadata-files:
  - _variables.yml
  - params.yml

If you want to use paramters for a project, you have to use incremental rendering.

1. quarto render -> to render the whole project
2. quarto render my-document-one.qmd --execute-params params.yml
3. quarto render my-document-two.qmd --execute-params params.yml
4. quarto render my-document-three.qmd --execute-params params.yml

[sknqualitasag]

Thanks for the link @mcanouil , now I get how to post my bug correctly, sorry about that!

Quarto 1.8.27
[✓] Checking environment information...
      Quarto cache location: /Users/skn/Library/Caches/quarto
[✓] Checking versions of quarto binary dependencies...
      Pandoc version 3.6.3: OK
      Dart Sass version 1.87.0: OK
      Deno version 2.3.1: OK
      Typst version 0.13.0: OK
[✓] Checking versions of quarto dependencies......OK
[✓] Checking Quarto installation......OK
      Version: 1.8.27
      Path: /Applications/quarto/bin

[✓] Checking tools....................OK
      TinyTeX: (external install)
      Chromium: (not installed)

[✓] Checking LaTeX....................OK
      Using: TinyTex
      Path: /Users/skn/Library/TinyTeX/bin/universal-darwin
      Version: 2024

[✓] Checking Chrome Headless....................OK
      Using: Chrome found on system
      Path: /Applications/Google Chrome.app/Contents/MacOS/Google Chrome
      Source: MacOS known location

[✓] Checking basic markdown render....OK

[✓] Checking Python 3 installation....OK
      Version: 3.11.5 (Conda)
      Path: /Users/skn/anaconda3/bin/python
      Jupyter: 5.3.0
      Kernels: python3

[✓] Checking Jupyter engine render....OK

[✓] Checking R installation...........OK
      Version: 4.5.2
      Path: /usr/local/Cellar/r/4.5.2_1/lib/R
      LibPaths:
        - /usr/local/lib/R/4.5/site-library
        - /usr/local/Cellar/r/4.5.2_1/lib/R/library
      knitr: 1.51
      rmarkdown: 2.30

[✓] Checking Knitr engine render......OK

Operation system: macOS Tahoe
IDE: RStudio, Version 2026.1.0.392

However I still don't get how to solve my issue ;-(

Are you saying with this statement "Parameters only work for single-document, not projects." that the way I try to do, it is not feasible ?

This is ZWSBerichtAutomatisiert.qmd:

---
title: "ZWS Bericht"
format:
  confluence-html: default
---

**Autor:** {{< var author >}}

**ZWS Runde:** {{< var zwsrun >}}

## Grösse der Rohdaten Files aus dem Export

```{r}
#| echo: false
#| include: false
s_actualdatapath <- params[["datapath"]]
tbl_actualdata <- readr::read_delim(file = s_actualdatapath, delim = ";", col_names = TRUE)
```

```{r}
head(tbl_actualdata)
```

file params.yml contains:

datapath: "DatenInZWSRundeBericht.csv"

file _quarto.yml contains:

project:
  type: confluence

file _variables.yml contains:

author: Sophie Kunz
zwsrun: 2604

is it correct how I pass the paramter in the .qmd ?

s_actualdatapath <- params[["datapath"]]

Maybe if my example is not suitable, you could provide me a full example how to pass parameters (like containing filename, variables) from a parameter-file (in this example say params.yaml) and how to pass it in the qmd with RStudio? I would really like to understand this.

Thanks for your help, cheers Sophie

[mcanouil]

it's doable see my reply about the steps for a project.

Note that default values for params are mandatory for knitr engine to use them.
So, even if for convenience, you are defining a YAML file with your parameters, every document using params needs to have defaults for the parameters they are using.

• doc1.qmd

---
title: Document 1
params:
  parameter-doc1: "hello"
  file-doc1: "fake/file.csv"
---

```{r}
print(params[["parameter-doc1"]])
```

• doc2.qmd

---
title: Document 2
params:
  parameter-doc2: "hello"
  file-doc2: "fake/file.csv"
---

```{r}
print(params[["parameter-doc2"]])
```

• my-awesome-parameters.yml

parameter-doc1: "This is Document 1"
file-doc1: "path/to/my-data-doc1.xlsx"
parameter-doc2: "This is my report"
file-doc2: "path/to/my-data-doc2.xlsx"

Then

quarto render doc1.qmd --execute-params pmy-awesome-parameters.yml
quarto render doc2.qmd --execute-params pmy-awesome-parameters.yml

[sknqualitasag]

Thank you, I get my error. I didn't set a default value. Now I could render.