Projects

Files

Introduction

The files in your projects enable you to implement trading algorithms, perform research, and store important information. Python projects start with a main.py and a research.ipynb file. C# projects start with a Main.cs and a Research.ipynb file. Use the main.py or Main.cs file to implement trading algorithms and use the ipynb file to access the Research Environment.

Supported File Types

Local Platform supports .py, .cs, and .ipynb files in your projects.

Code Files

The .py/.cs files are code files. These are the files where you implement your trading algorithm. When you backtest the project or deploy the project to live trading, the LEAN engine executes the algorithm you define in these code files.

Notebook Files

The .ipynb files are notebook files. These are the files you open when you want to access the Research Environment to perform quantitative research. When you save notebook files, it saves the input cells but not the output cells.

Configuration Files

Projects also contain configuration files, which are .json files, but they aren't displayed in the Explorer panel. These files contain information like the project description, parameters, and shared libraries. For more information about project configuration files, see Configuration.

Result Files

When you run a backtest, optimize some parameters, or deploy a strategy to live trading on your local machine, the results are saved as phyical files in the project directory. Local Platform doesn't push these result files to QuantConnect Cloud.

View Files

To view the files in a project, open the project and then, in the left navigation bar, click the Explorer icon.

The QC (Workspace) section of the Explorer panel shows the files in the project.

C# project files panel Python project files panel

Add Files

Follow these steps to add a file to a project:

  1. Open the project.
  2. In the left navigation menu, click the Explorer icon.
  3. In the Explorer panel, expand the QC (Workspace) section.
  4. Click the New file button New File icon.
  5. Enter a file name and extension.
  6. Press Enter.
Adding a new file

Add Directories

You can organize the code and notebook files in your project into directories to make navigating them easier. For example, if you have multiple Alpha models in your strategy, you can create an alphas directory in your project to hold a file for each Alpha model.

Follow these steps to add a directory to a project:

  1. Open the project.
  2. In the left navigation menu, click the Explorer icon.
  3. In the Explorer panel, expand the QC (Workspace) section.
  4. Click the New directory button New Directory icon.
  5. Enter a directory name and then press Enter.
Adding a new directory

Open Files

Follow these steps to open a file in a project:

  1. Open the project.
  2. In the left navigation menu, click the Explorer icon.
  3. In the Explorer panel, click the file you want to open.

Close Files

To close a file, at the top of VS Code, click the x button on the file tab you want to close.

To close all of the files in a project, at the top of VS Code, right-click one of the file tabs and then click Close All.

Rename Files and Directories

Follow these steps to rename a file or directory in a project:

  1. Open the project.
  2. In the left navigation menu, click the Explorer icon.
  3. In the Explorer panel, right-click the file or directory you want to rename and then click Rename.
  4. Enter the new name and then press Enter.
Renaming a file

Delete Files and Directories

Follow these steps to delete a file or directory in a project:

  1. Open the project.
  2. In the left navigation menu, click the Explorer icon.
  3. In the Explorer panel, right-click the file or directory you want to delete and then click Delete Permanently.
  4. Click Delete.

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