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name: rasterio description: "Routes Rasterio dataset I/O, windowed processing, in-memory files, raster/vector feature workflows, reprojection and mosaicking, and rio CLI tasks." disable-model-invocation: true metadata: disco-role: operating license: BSD 3-Clause

Rasterio

Rasterio reads and writes geospatial raster data with a NumPy-friendly API and a rio command-line interface.

Start here when a user wants to open a raster, inspect metadata, crop or mask by geometry, reproject into a new CRS, merge overlapping scenes, process a raster in windows, or choose the right rio command.

Install and verify

For a local checkout, install from the repository root:

python -m pip install -e .

For a released environment, install the package directly:

python -m pip install rasterio

Rasterio 1.5.x requires Python 3.12+ and a working GDAL/PROJ-backed build or wheel. Optional extras exist for cloud access, plotting, and IPython-based inspection.

Minimal verification:

python -I -c "import rasterio; print(rasterio.__version__)"
rio --help

For a repo-independent smoke check, use scripts/check_install.py.

Read references/repo-provenance.md when you need to confirm whether this skill still matches the current checkout.

How to route a user request

• If the user wants basic read/write, band counts, CRS, transform, or profile copying, start with sub-skills/dataset-io-profiles/.
• If the user is asking about Window, block reads/writes, MemoryFile, ZIP/VSI paths, or custom openers, start with sub-skills/windows-memory-vsi/.
• If the user is moving between rasters and geometries, masks, rasterization, or nodata cleanup, start with sub-skills/features-masks/.
• If the user needs CRS transforms, reprojection, WarpedVRT, merge, or stack, start with sub-skills/reprojection-merge-vrt/.
• If the user wants rio command syntax, safe flags, or Click-style parse troubleshooting, start with sub-skills/rio-cli/.

If a request spans several topics, pick the most specific sub-skill first and then follow the cross-links inside that sub-skill.

Runtime map

dataset-io-profiles

Use this for ordinary raster inspection and creation tasks:

• rasterio.open
• DatasetReader / DatasetWriter
• profile / meta
• dtypes, nodata, compression, band count, dimensions, and simple round trips

windows-memory-vsi

Use this for data that should be processed in chunks, kept in memory, or opened through archive/path abstractions:

• Window
• block_windows
• MemoryFile
• ZipMemoryFile
• zip:// / file:// / GDAL VSI path handling

features-masks

Use this for geometry-driven raster/vector conversion and mask cleanup:

• shapes
• rasterize
• sieve
• geometry_window
• mask / raster_geometry_mask
• GDAL valid masks vs NumPy masked arrays

reprojection-merge-vrt

Use this for CRS changes and mosaics:

• transform / transform_geom / transform_bounds
• calculate_default_transform
• reproject
• WarpedVRT
• merge / stack

rio-cli

Use this for shell workflows:

• rio info, bounds, transform, clip, warp, mask, rasterize, shapes, merge, stack, create, convert, env, and insp

Shared references and tools

• references/troubleshooting.md — cross-cutting install/import, driver, and optional-extra failures.
• scripts/check_install.py — safe install/import/CLI smoke helper that does not depend on the original checkout.

Common prerequisites

• Python 3.12 or newer.
• GDAL/PROJ available through a wheel, conda environment, or equivalent local installation.
• Optional extras only when needed:
  • rasterio[s3] for cloud/object storage access.
  • rasterio[plot] for plotting helpers.
  • rasterio[ipython] for rio insp --ipython.

What not to do

• Do not tell users to run or read examples/, tests/, or docs/ in the original checkout at runtime.
• Do not claim GPU-specific capability for the selected workflows; the package paths here are CPU/GDAL based.
• Do not rely on the current repository path remaining available after this skill is imported.
• Do not duplicate full API tables in this file; use the nearest reference file instead.

Refresh signal

If the repo commit, public package version, or CLI/API surface changes, refresh this skill before relying on it.