# tasks.ref(...)

`tasks.ref(`*`task_name: str, local: bool = False`*`)`

* **Parameters**
  * `task: str`: the name of the task whose output you'd like to retrieve. This name should be in the form `<module_name>`, or `<module_name>.<task_name>`, where `<task_name>` is the name of the Prism task class / function.
  * `local: bool`:  whether `task` lives in the same module. The default is `False`.&#x20;

**Examples:**

Non-local tasks:

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Class-based tasks" %}

```python
import prism.task
import prism.target
import prism.decorators

class ExampleTask(prism.task.PrismTask):
    
    @prism.decorators.target(
        type=prism.target.Txt, 
        loc="/Users/hello_world.txt",
        **kwargs
    )
    def run(self, tasks, hooks):
        test_str = "Hello, world!"

        # Get output from task in first_task.py. If this module
        # contains multiple tasks, then we'll need to specify
        # the task via <module_name>.<task_name>
        previous_task_output = tasks.ref("first_task")
        return test_str + previous_task_output
```

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Function-based tasks" %}

```python
from prism.decorators import task

@task()
def example_function(tasks, hooks):
    test_str = "Hello, world!"
    
    # Get output from task in first_task.py. If this module
    # contains multiple tasks, then we'll need to specify
    # the task via <module_name>.<task_name>
    previous_task_output = tasks.ref("first_task")

    return test_str + previous_task_output
```

{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}

Local tasks:

{% tabs %}
{% tab title="Class-based tasks" %}

```python
import prism.task
import prism.target
import prism.decorators

class FirstTask(prism.task.PrismTask):
    
    def run(self, tasks, hooks):
        # do something


class ExampleTask(prism.task.PrismTask):
    
    @prism.decorators.target(
        type=prism.target.Txt, 
        loc="/Users/hello_world.txt",
        **kwargs
    )
    def run(self, tasks, hooks):
        test_str = "Hello, world!"
        previous_task_output = tasks.ref("FirstTask", local=True)
        return test_str + previous_task_output
```

{% endtab %}

{% tab title="Function-based tasks" %}

```python
from prism.decorators import task

@task()
def first_task(tasks, hooks):
    # do something


@task()
def example_function(tasks, hooks):
    test_str = "Hello, world!"
    previous_task_output = tasks.ref("first_task", local=True)
    return test_str + previous_task_output
```

{% endtab %}
{% endtabs %}