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Setup Locust on Windows

This document provides a step-by-step guide to installing and setting up Locust, a Python-based load testing tool, on a Windows operating system. Follow these instructions to ensure a successful installation and configuration.

💡Jump to Load Testing: If you have finished the setup then you can go ahead to Stress Testing

Prerequisites​

Before you begin, make sure you have the following prerequisites in place:

  • Windows operating system (Windows 7 or later)
  • Internet connection

Installation Steps​

1. Install Python 3.8​

Locust requires Python to be installed on your system. Here's how you can install Python 3.8:

  1. Visit the official Python website: Python Downloads.
  2. Download the latest version of Python 3.8 for Windows.
  3. Run the installer. Important: Ensure that you select the "Add Python 3.8 to PATH" option on the first screen of the installer. This will add Python to your system's PATH environment variable, allowing you to easily run Python commands from the command line.

2. Install Visual Studio Build Tools​

Locust has dependencies that require the Visual Studio Build Tools to be installed. Follow these steps to install the necessary tools:

  1. Visit the Visual Studio Build Tools download page: Visual Studio Build Tools.
  2. Download and run the Visual Studio Build Tools installer.
  3. Follow the on-screen instructions to install the C++ tools.

3. Install Required Python Packages​

To run Locust, you need to install several Python packages. Open the Command Prompt (CMD) and execute the following commands:

Install plugins:

pip install pyzmq gevent greenlet locust uuid matplotlib pandas

4. Verify Installation​

After installing the required packages, ensure that everything is set up correctly by running a simple command:

  1. Close the current instance of the Command Prompt to refresh environment variables.
  2. Open a new instance of the Command Prompt.
  3. Run the following command to verify Locust installation:
    locust --help

If the installation was successful, you should see the Locust help information displayed in the Command Prompt.

Conclusion​

Congratulations! You have successfully set up Locust on your Windows system. You can now use Locust to perform load testing and measure the performance of your applications. Refer to the Locust Documentation for more information on how to create and run load tests using Locust.