Get started

Requirements

Install Python 3.11–3.13, Git, and Git LFS. Then install the Niyān package in an isolated environment:

pipx install niyan

If pipx is unavailable, follow its installation guide. Verify the tools:

niyan --version
git --version
git lfs version

Sign in

Pass the complete server URL to the login command:

niyan auth login https://data.example.edu

The CLI opens a browser to complete authentication and stores the resulting access token in your operating system's credential store. That login is available across your account on this computer.

To limit a login to the current project directory, run:

niyan auth login https://data.example.edu --local

Use niyan auth status to inspect active logins and niyan auth logout to revoke one.

TIP

Access tokens issued through the CLI and tokens created in the web application appear together under Settings → Security → Access tokens. See Account security and access tokens to review or revoke them.

Find a dataset

List the datasets visible to your account:

niyan dataset list

Dataset names use their group path, for example genomics/reference-data. Groups can be nested, so a longer path such as biology/genomics/reference-data is valid.

Clone one into a working directory:

niyan dataset clone genomics/reference-data

Niyān clones only the current branch and its latest history by default. This avoids filling a workstation with old versions of large files. Use --full-history only when you actually need the complete history locally.

The same server URL opens the user dashboard in a browser. Dashboard sessions and CLI tokens are separate credentials but operate under the same user account and permissions.