---
title: "Project Setup"
sidebar_title: "Project Setup"
description: "Set up your `lmstudio-python` app or script."
index: 2
---

`lmstudio` is a library published on PyPI that allows you to use `lmstudio-python` in your own projects.
It is open source and developed on GitHub.
You can find the source code [here](https://github.com/lmstudio-ai/lmstudio-python).

## Installing `lmstudio-python`

As it is published to PyPI, `lmstudio-python` may be installed using `pip`
or your preferred project dependency manager (`pdm` and `uv` are shown, but other
Python project management tools offer similar dependency addition commands).

```lms_code_snippet
  variants:
    pip:
      language: bash
      code: |
        pip install lmstudio
    pdm:
      language: bash
      code: |
        pdm add lmstudio
    uv:
      language: bash
      code: |
        uv add lmstudio
```

## Customizing the server API host and TCP port

All of the examples in the documentation assume that the server API is running locally
on one of the default application ports (Note: in Python SDK versions prior to 1.5.0, the
SDK also required that the optional HTTP REST server be enabled).

The network location of the server API can be overridden by
passing a `"host:port"` string when creating the client instance.

```lms_code_snippet
  variants:
    "Python (convenience API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        import lmstudio as lms
        SERVER_API_HOST = "localhost:1234"

        # This must be the *first* convenience API interaction (otherwise the SDK
        # implicitly creates a client that accesses the default server API host)
        lms.configure_default_client(SERVER_API_HOST)

        # Note: the dedicated configuration API was added in lmstudio-python 1.3.0
        # For compatibility with earlier SDK versions, it is still possible to use
        # lms.get_default_client(SERVER_API_HOST) to configure the default client

    "Python (scoped resource API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        import lmstudio as lms
        SERVER_API_HOST = "localhost:1234"

        # When using the scoped resource API, each client instance
        # can be configured to use a specific server API host
        with lms.Client(SERVER_API_HOST) as client:
            model = client.llm.model()

            for fragment in model.respond_stream("What is the meaning of life?"):
                print(fragment.content, end="", flush=True)
            print() # Advance to a new line at the end of the response

    "Python (asynchronous API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        # Note: assumes use of an async function or the "python -m asyncio" asynchronous REPL
        # Requires Python SDK version 1.5.0 or later
        import lmstudio as lms
        SERVER_API_HOST = "localhost:1234"

        # When using the asynchronous API, each client instance
        # can be configured to use a specific server API host
        async with lms.AsyncClient(SERVER_API_HOST) as client:
            model = await client.llm.model()

            for fragment in await model.respond_stream("What is the meaning of life?"):
                print(fragment.content, end="", flush=True)
            print() # Advance to a new line at the end of the response
```

### Checking a specified API server host is running

_Required Python SDK version_: **1.5.0**

While the most common connection pattern is to let the SDK raise an exception if it can't
connect to the specified API server host, the SDK also supports running the API check directly
without creating an SDK client instance first:

```lms_code_snippet
  variants:
    "Python (synchronous API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        import lmstudio as lms
        SERVER_API_HOST = "localhost:1234"

        if lms.Client.is_valid_api_host(SERVER_API_HOST):
            print(f"An LM Studio API server instance is available at {SERVER_API_HOST}")
        else:
            print("No LM Studio API server instance found at {SERVER_API_HOST}")

    "Python (asynchronous API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        # Note: assumes use of an async function or the "python -m asyncio" asynchronous REPL
        # Requires Python SDK version 1.5.0 or later
        import lmstudio as lms
        SERVER_API_HOST = "localhost:1234"

        if await lms.AsyncClient.is_valid_api_host(SERVER_API_HOST):
            print(f"An LM Studio API server instance is available at {SERVER_API_HOST}")
        else:
            print("No LM Studio API server instance found at {SERVER_API_HOST}")
```

### Determining the default local API server port

_Required Python SDK version_: **1.5.0**

When no API server host is specified, the SDK queries a number of ports on the local loopback
interface for a running API server instance. This scan is repeated for each new client instance
created. Rather than letting the SDK perform this scan implicitly, the SDK also supports running
the scan explicitly, and passing in the reported API server details when creating clients:

```lms_code_snippet
  variants:
    "Python (synchronous API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        import lmstudio as lms

        api_host = lms.Client.find_default_local_api_host()
        if api_host is not None:
            print(f"An LM Studio API server instance is available at {api_host}")
          else:
            print("No LM Studio API server instance found on any of the default local ports")

    "Python (asynchronous API)":
      language: python
      code: |
        # Note: assumes use of an async function or the "python -m asyncio" asynchronous REPL
        # Requires Python SDK version 1.5.0 or later
        import lmstudio as lms

        api_host = await lms.AsyncClient.find_default_local_api_host()
        if api_host is not None:
            print(f"An LM Studio API server instance is available at {api_host}")
          else:
            print("No LM Studio API server instance found on any of the default local ports")
```