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# pandas.read_hdf

`pandas.``read_hdf`(path_or_buf, key, **kwargs)

  read from the store, close it if we opened it

  Retrieve pandas object stored in file, optionally based on where criteria

  Parameters : | path_or_buf : path (string), or buffer to read from key : group identifier in the store where : list of Term (or convertable) objects, optional start : optional, integer (defaults to None), row number to start selection stop : optional, integer (defaults to None), row number to stop selection columns : optional, a list of columns that if not None, will limit the return columns iterator : optional, boolean, return an iterator, default False chunksize : optional, nrows to include in iteration, return an iterator auto_close : optional, boolean, should automatically close the store when finished, default is False
  Returns : | The selected object

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