Install Anserini Fatjar

Install Anserini Fatjar

Overview

Use this skill to install and verify Anserini quickly from a published fatjar. Fatjar reproduction workflows are designed to run directly from the Maven Central fatjar, so a source checkout is not required. Download the released anserini-*-fatjar.jar from Maven Central, set ANSERINI_JAR to the downloaded file, and smoke test it.

Do not clone or build the source repository in this workflow.

If the user needs source development, local code changes, or a snapshot jar built from the current checkout, use $install-anserini-dev-env instead.

Workflow

1. Verify runtime tools.
2. Download the released fatjar from Maven Central.
3. Run the CACM prebuilt-index smoke test.
4. Use $anserini-cli for CLI examples after setup.

1. Verify Runtime Tools

Run:

java -version

Require:

• Java available on PATH
• Java major version 21, matching Anserini's current runtime/build requirement

2. Download Fatjar

Choose the requested Anserini release. If the user does not specify a version, verify the latest Maven Central release before choosing ANSERINI_VERSION. Check:

https://repo1.maven.org/maven2/io/anserini/anserini/maven-metadata.xml

A quick command-line check is:

ANSERINI_VERSION="$(curl -sS https://repo1.maven.org/maven2/io/anserini/anserini/maven-metadata.xml \
  | sed -n 's:.*<release>\(.*\)</release>.*:\1:p')"
test -n "$ANSERINI_VERSION"

Then download that release:

curl -fL -o "anserini-${ANSERINI_VERSION}-fatjar.jar" \
  "https://repo1.maven.org/maven2/io/anserini/anserini/${ANSERINI_VERSION}/anserini-${ANSERINI_VERSION}-fatjar.jar"
ANSERINI_JAR="anserini-${ANSERINI_VERSION}-fatjar.jar"
test -f "$ANSERINI_JAR"

If the user requested a specific release, set ANSERINI_VERSION to that version instead of the discovered latest release before downloading.

If curl is unavailable, use wget:

wget "https://repo1.maven.org/maven2/io/anserini/anserini/${ANSERINI_VERSION}/anserini-${ANSERINI_VERSION}-fatjar.jar"
ANSERINI_JAR="anserini-${ANSERINI_VERSION}-fatjar.jar"
test -f "$ANSERINI_JAR"

All subsequent commands assume ANSERINI_JAR points to the downloaded fatjar. Keep commands pinned to this jar unless the user asks to change versions.

3. Smoke Test

Run:

java -cp "$ANSERINI_JAR" io.anserini.search.SearchCollection \
  -threads 1 \
  -index cacm \
  -topics cacm \
  -output run.cacm.bm25.txt \
  -hits 1000 \
  -bm25

Treat a successful run and generated run.cacm.bm25.txt file as proof the runtime is ready. This command follows the CACM prebuilt-index reproduction config and may download the small CACM prebuilt index and topics on first use.

Then evaluate the run with Anserini's Java trec_eval wrapper:

java -cp "$ANSERINI_JAR" io.anserini.eval.TrecEval \
  -c \
  -m map \
  -m P.30 \
  cacm \
  run.cacm.bm25.txt

Expected scores are:

map     all     0.3123
P_30    all     0.1942

To verify them mechanically:

java -cp "$ANSERINI_JAR" io.anserini.eval.TrecEval \
  -c \
  -m map \
  -m P.30 \
  cacm \
  run.cacm.bm25.txt | tee eval.cacm.bm25.txt

grep -q $'map\tall\t0.3123' eval.cacm.bm25.txt
grep -q $'P_30\tall\t0.1942' eval.cacm.bm25.txt

4. Command Execution

Run Anserini commands against the downloaded jar:

java -cp "$ANSERINI_JAR" <main-class> <args>

Keep all commands pinned to the same jar version unless the user asks to change versions.

Related Skills

Canonical Anserini skills live at:

https://github.com/castorini/anserini/tree/master/.agents/skills

After fatjar setup:

• Use $anserini-cli for command-line usage, registry lookup, search, and REST examples.
• Use $anserini-reproduction for reproduction workflows and result verification.
• Do not use $install-anserini-dev-env unless the user needs a source checkout, local code changes, or a jar built from source.

Troubleshooting

• No fatjar found: download the release fatjar from Maven Central and set ANSERINI_JAR to that path.
• Download returns 404: confirm the requested Anserini version exists on Maven Central.
• ClassNotFoundException: confirm ANSERINI_JAR points to the downloaded anserini-*-fatjar.jar, not the thin jar.
• Java errors: use a supported Java version and re-run.

Completion Criteria

Treat setup as complete when all are true:

• ANSERINI_JAR points to an existing downloaded anserini-*-fatjar.jar.
• The CACM SearchCollection smoke test executes successfully and writes run.cacm.bm25.txt.
• Java TrecEval verifies MAP 0.3123 and P30 0.1942 for the CACM run.
• The user can run target commands via java -cp ....