Using Brian2WASM

brian2wasm enables running standard Brian 2 Python scripts, which are converted to WebAssembly for execution in a browser environment.

Standard Usage

To run a Brian 2 script with brian2wasm, use the following command:

python -m brian2wasm filename.py

Important

  • The filename.py must be a valid Brian 2 Python script.

  • Do not include the set_device() function in your script, as brian2wasm automatically handles this.

Note

Ensure your script adheres to Brian 2 syntax and conventions. Refer to the Brian 2 documentation for guidance.

Command-Line Options

brian2wasm supports the following optional command-line flags to customize its behavior:

  1. –no-server

    python -m brian2wasm filename.py --no-server

    Important

    • Generates WebAssembly and HTML output files (e.g., filename.html, filename.js, filename.wasm) without launching a local preview server.

    • Use this option if you want to manually serve or distribute the generated files.

    Tip

    This is useful for deploying the output to a web server or for further customization of the generated files.

  2. –skip-install

    python -m brian2wasm filename.py --skip-install

    Important

    • Bypasses the check and activation of the Emscripten SDK (EMSDK).

    • Use this only if the EMSDK is already configured and available in your environment (e.g., via Pixi, Conda, or a manual installation).

    Warning

    Running with --skip-install without a properly configured EMSDK will result in errors. Verify your EMSDK setup by running emcc --version before using this option.

Note

The generated WebAssembly files can be hosted on any standard web server or viewed locally by opening the filename.html file in a web browser.