---
title: "Initializing the Runtime"
slug: "initializing-the-runtime"
tags: ["5.5", "DataEngine"]
updated: 2026-10-27T23:00:54Z
published: 2026-10-27T23:00:54Z
canonical: "docs.vastdata.com/initializing-the-runtime"
---

> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.vastdata.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Initializing the Runtime

## init()

```plaintext
def init()
```

The `init()` function:

- Is invoked once when the container pod that deploys the function starts.
- Enables you to pass custom attributes to be accessible in the event handler path.

### Parameters

- `ctx` (required). Passes custom attributes to the [ctx](/docs-5-5/docs/class-reference#ctx-class) class. This enables the attributes to be accessed in the event handler path.