# Quarto

Create reproducible documents combining narrative and code with Quarto in Positron.

[Quarto](https://quarto.org/) is an open-source scientific and technical publishing system for creating reproducible documents that combine narrative and executable code.

Positron enhances how you can use Quarto in several important ways:

- Quarto works out of the box in Positron. The Quarto CLI is bundled in Positron, and the Quarto extension is included as a [bootstrapped extension](extensions.llms.md#bootstrapped-extensions).
- Features such as statement execution work seamlessly in Positron’s Console, and Positron supports integrated rendering and preview of Quarto documents.
- Positron provides rich UI via [custom action bars](action-bars.llms.md) to preview your Quarto document, control rendering behavior, and switch between source and visual mode.
- Positron can optionally display cell output directly in the source editor; see [Inline Output](quarto-inline-output.llms.md) for details.

[![A Quarto document in Positron, with narrative, executable code chunks, and the rendered preview in Positron’s integrated Viewer pane.](images/quarto-hello-python.png)](images/quarto-hello-python.png "A Quarto document in Positron, with narrative, executable code chunks, and the rendered preview in Positron’s integrated Viewer pane.")

A Quarto document in Positron, with narrative, executable code chunks, and the rendered preview in Positron’s integrated Viewer pane.

Learn more in the Quarto documentation about [getting started with Quarto and Positron](https://quarto.org/docs/get-started/hello/positron.llms.md), or [the details of using Positron as a tool for working with Quarto](https://quarto.org/docs/tools/positron/).

> **NOTE:**
>
> Quarto’s [visual editor](https://quarto.org/docs/tools/positron/visual-editor.llms.md) has limited support in Positron. It is a great fit for rich text authoring, but statement execution and other language features are not supported. Consider switching to source mode when you need such features, and [follow along on GitHub for updates](https://github.com/posit-dev/positron/issues/1805) on this support.

## Support for R Markdown

Quarto provides Positron’s support for [R Markdown](https://rmarkdown.rstudio.com/); there is limited specialized IDE support for R Markdown other than what is provided by Quarto. Some advanced `.Rmd` features like using `params` are not supported for interactive use.

Positron’s [Command Palette](command-palette.llms.md) does provide commands for working with R Markdown:

- *R: Render Document With R Markdown* renders an `.Rmd` file using the R package [rmarkdown](https://pkgs.rstudio.com/rmarkdown/) instead of Quarto. This approach *does* support all `.Rmd` features but does *not* automatically open a preview of the rendered output.
- *R: New R Markdown from Template* creates a new `.Rmd` file from an [R Markdown template](https://rstudio.github.io/rstudio-extensions/rmarkdown_templates.llms.md) available in an installed R package, such as the GitHub flavored markdown template or the flexdashboard templates.

## Using the Quarto extension

The Quarto extension is included as a [bootstrapped extension](extensions.llms.md#bootstrapped-extensions) in Positron. This means that it will behave just like you installed it yourself; this extension will update automatically when a new version is available from the [extension gallery](extensions.llms.md#extension-gallery) and it can be uninstalled if desired.

## Managing Quarto installations

Positron bundles a version of the Quarto CLI, but you can also use a version of the Quarto CLI that you have installed yourself. This should typically work automatically, but you can manage exactly which Quarto to use via the [`quarto.path`](positron://settings/quarto.path) setting. Check the bottom status bar to see which version of Quarto is being used currently.[^1]

## Footnotes

[^1]: If you change the version of Quarto you are using, you will need to restart Positron to see the status bar update.