open jupyter notebook from terminal

HaC 2025

3 min read 18-03-2025

Jupyter Notebooks are an invaluable tool for data scientists, researchers, and anyone working with code interactively. But did you know you can bypass the JupyterLab interface entirely and launch your notebooks directly from your terminal? This method offers efficiency and streamlined workflow, particularly when scripting or automating tasks. This guide will walk you through various ways to open Jupyter Notebooks from your terminal, covering different scenarios and troubleshooting common issues.

Launching Jupyter Notebook from the Terminal: The Basics

The simplest way to open a Jupyter Notebook from your terminal is using the jupyter notebook command. This command assumes you have Jupyter installed and are in a directory containing the notebook you want to open.

Step 1: Navigate to your notebook's directory.

Use the cd command in your terminal to change to the directory containing your .ipynb file. For instance:

cd /path/to/your/notebooks

Step 2: Launch Jupyter Notebook.

Type the following command and press Enter:

jupyter notebook

This will launch Jupyter Notebook in your default web browser, displaying all the notebooks in the current directory. You can then click on the notebook you want to open. This opens Jupyter in a general directory, not specifying a notebook file.

If you already have a Jupyter server running, this command will likely open a new tab in your browser instead. Stop and restart the Jupyter server before trying this if you find issues.

Opening a Specific Jupyter Notebook from the Command Line

While the above method works, it's often more efficient to open a specific notebook directly. This is especially useful in scripts or automated processes. Unfortunately, a direct command to open a specific notebook doesn't exist in the core Jupyter functionality. We'll explore workarounds.

Workaround 1: Specifying the Notebook's Path

You can still use the jupyter notebook command, but specify the path to your notebook directly within the URL. This works as a workaround.

First, find the URL that Jupyter Notebook creates. After starting the server, it usually provides a link to the homepage. You will see something like http://localhost:8888/?token=abcdef123456.

Now, modify the URL to include the relative or absolute path to your notebook. Let's say your notebook is named my_notebook.ipynb in the same directory. The altered URL would be:

http://localhost:8888/notebooks/my_notebook.ipynb?token=abcdef123456

Paste this adjusted URL into your browser's address bar.

This is not ideal if you want to completely avoid the browser as it's a step requiring manual intervention.

Workaround 2: Using a Script (More Advanced)

For truly automated opening, you can create a small script (e.g., in Python or Bash) that launches Jupyter Notebook and then opens the specific notebook in a browser using a command-line tool like open (macOS) or xdg-open (Linux).

Here's a basic Python example:

import webbrowser
import subprocess

notebook_path = "/path/to/your/notebook.ipynb"

# Start Jupyter Notebook server in background
subprocess.Popen(["jupyter", "notebook"])

# Wait a few seconds for the server to start (adjust as needed)
import time
time.sleep(5)

# Construct the URL and open it in the browser
url = "http://localhost:8888/notebooks/" + notebook_path.split('/')[-1]  #Construct the URL
webbrowser.open(url)

Remember to replace /path/to/your/notebook.ipynb with the actual path. This script starts the server and opens the correct URL automatically, avoiding manual steps.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

Jupyter not found: Ensure Jupyter is installed correctly. Use pip install jupyter or conda install -c conda-forge jupyter depending on your package manager.
Port already in use: If you get an error about a port already in use (usually port 8888), stop any existing Jupyter Notebook servers. You can check for running processes with commands such as ps aux | grep jupyter and terminate the processes with kill [process ID]. Then restart the server.
Incorrect path: Double-check that the path to your notebook is correct and you are in the right directory.
Permissions issues: Make sure you have the necessary permissions to access the directory and file.

Conclusion

While there isn't a single command to directly open a Jupyter Notebook from your terminal without starting the server, the methods described above provide effective workarounds. Choosing the best approach depends on your needs and technical comfort level. For simple use, launching the Jupyter server and selecting your notebook is fine. For more advanced automation, the scripting approach provides a robust and efficient solution for opening Jupyter notebooks directly from the terminal.