Python API Overview

stepss is the package that delivers STEPSS for Python, one of the platform’s two editions. It provides an interface to the RAMSES dynamic simulator and the Helios AC power-flow engine, covering the full workflow: defining test cases, launching simulations, querying system states at runtime, extracting and plotting results, and running power flows. The package embeds pre-compiled RAMSES and Helios libraries for Windows, Linux, and macOS and exposes them through a clean Python API.

Package-Level Attributes

After importing the package, the following attributes are available:

Attribute	Description
stepss.__version__	Current version string
stepss.__ramses_version__	Version of the bundled RAMSES library
stepss.__helios_version__	Version of the bundled Helios library
stepss.__url__	Documentation URL
stepss.__runTimeObs__	True if Gnuplot was found in PATH at import time; runtime observables will be active

Main Classes

Class	Description
stepss.cfg	Defines a test case: data files, disturbance file, output files, observables, and runtime options.
stepss.sim	Runs simulations. Supports start/pause/continue, runtime queries, and disturbance injection.
stepss.extractor	Extracts and visualises time-series results from trajectory files produced by a simulation.
stepss.helios.HeliosSession	Runs AC power flows with the Helios engine: load, modify with redispatch, solve, contingency screening, and file exports.

Platform Support

stepss supports Windows, Linux, and macOS for both dynamic simulation and power flows. All binaries are bundled directly in the package, no separate simulator installation is required. See the installation guide for per-platform system prerequisites.

Further Reading

• API Reference, Detailed documentation for cfg, sim, and extractor
• Power Flow (Helios), Running AC power flows from Python with HeliosSession
• Examples, Practical simulation examples and notebooks

Repository

Source code: SPS-L/stepss-python-ui