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352 lines
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PEP: 582
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Title: Python local packages directory
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Version: $Revision$
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Last-Modified: $Date$
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Author: Kushal Das <mail@kushaldas.in>, Steve Dower <steve.dower@python.org>,
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Donald Stufft <donald@stufft.io>, Nick Coghlan <ncoghlan@gmail.com>
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Discussions-To: https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-582-python-local-packages-directory/963/
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Status: Rejected
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Type: Standards Track
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Topic: Packaging
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Content-Type: text/x-rst
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Created: 16-May-2018
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Python-Version: 3.12
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Post-History: `01-Mar-2019 <https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-582-python-local-packages-directory/963>`__,
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Resolution: https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-582-python-local-packages-directory/963/430
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Abstract
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========
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This PEP proposes extending the existing mechanism for setting up ``sys.path``
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to include a new ``__pypackages__`` directory, in addition to the existing
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locations. The new directory will be added at the start of ``sys.path``, after
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the current working directory and just before the system site-packages, to give
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packages installed there priority over other locations.
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This is similar to the existing mechanism of adding the current directory (or
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the directory the script is located in), but by using a subdirectory,
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additional libraries are kept separate from the user's work.
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Motivation
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==========
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New Python programmers can benefit from being taught the value of isolating an
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individual project's dependencies from their system environment. However, the
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existing mechanism for doing this, virtual environments, is known to be complex
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and error-prone for beginners to understand. Explaining virtual environments is
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often a distraction when trying to get a group of beginners set up - differences
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in platform and shell environments require individual assistance, and the need
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for activation in every new shell session makes it easy for students to make
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mistakes when coming back to work after a break. This proposal offers a lightweight
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solution that gives isolation without the user needing to understand more
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advanced concepts.
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Furthermore, standalone Python applications usually need 3rd party libraries to
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function. Typically, they are either designed to be run from a virtual environment,
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where the dependencies are installed into the environment alongside the application,
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or they bundle their depenencies in a subdirectory, and modify ``sys.path`` at
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application startup. Virtual environments, while a common and effective solution
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(used, for example, by the ``pipx`` tool), are somewhat awkward to set up and manage,
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and are not relocatable. On the other hand, manual manipulation of ``sys.path`` is
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boilerplate that developers need to get right, and (being a runtime behaviour)
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it is not understood by tools like linters and type checkers. The ``__pypackages__``
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proposal formalises the idea of a "bundled dependencies" location, avoiding the
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boilerplate and providing a standard location that development tools can be taught
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to recognise.
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It should be noted that in general, Python libraries cannot be simply copied
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between machines, platforms, or even necessarily between Python versions. This
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proposal does nothing to change that fact, and while it is tempting to assume
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that bundling a script and its ``__pypackages__`` is a mechanism for
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distributing applications, this is explicitly *not* a goal of this proposal.
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Developers remain responsible for the portability of their code.
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Rationale
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=========
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While ``sys.path`` can be manipulated at runtime, the default value is important, as
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it establishes a common baseline that users and tools can agree on. The current default
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does not include a location that could be viewed as "private to the current project",
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and yet that is a useful concept.
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This is similar to the npm ``node_modules`` directory, which is popular in the
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Javascript community, and something that developers familiar with that
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ecosystem often ask for from Python.
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Specification
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=============
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This PEP proposes to add a new step in the process of calculating ``sys.path`` at
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startup.
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When the interactive interpreter starts, if a ``__pypackages__`` directory is
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found in the current working directory, then it will be included in
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``sys.path`` after the entry for current working directory and just before the
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system site-packages.
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When the interpreter runs a script, Python will try to find ``__pypackages__``
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in the same directory as the script. If found (along with the current Python
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version directory inside), then it will be used, otherwise Python will behave
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as it does currently.
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The behaviour should work exactly the same as the way the existing mechanism
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for adding the current working directory or script directory to ``sys.path``
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works. For example, ``__pypackages__`` will be ignored if the ``-P`` option or
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the ``PYTHONSAFEPATH`` environment variable is set.
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In order to be recognised, the ``__pypackages__`` directory must be laid out
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according to a new ``localpackages`` scheme in the sysconfig module.
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Specifically, both of the ``purelib`` and ``platlib`` directories must be
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present, using the following code to determine the locations of those
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directories::
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scheme = "localpackages"
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purelib = sysconfig.get_path("purelib", scheme, vars={"base": "__pypackages__", "platbase": "__pypackages__"})
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platlib = sysconfig.get_path("platlib", scheme, vars={"base": "__pypackages__", "platbase": "__pypackages__"})
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These two locations will be added to ``sys.path``, other directories or
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files in the ``__pypackages__`` directory will be silently ignored. The
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paths will be based on Python versions.
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.. note:: There is a possible option of having a separate new API, it is documented at `issue #3013 <https://github.com/python/peps/issues/3013>`_.
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Example
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-------
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The following shows an example project directory structure, and different ways
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the Python executable and any script will behave. The example is for Unix-like
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systems - on Windows the subdirectories will be different.
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::
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foo
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__pypackages__
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lib
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python3.10
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site-packages
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bottle
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myscript.py
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/> python foo/myscript.py
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sys.path[0] == 'foo'
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sys.path[1] == 'foo/__pypackages__/lib/python3.10/site-packages/'
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cd foo
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foo> /usr/bin/ansible
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#! /usr/bin/env python3
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foo> python /usr/bin/ansible
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foo> python myscript.py
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foo> python
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sys.path[0] == '.'
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sys.path[1] == './__pypackages__/lib/python3.10/site-packages'
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foo> python -m bottle
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We have a project directory called ``foo`` and it has a ``__pypackages__``
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inside of it. We have ``bottle`` installed in that
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``__pypackages__/lib/python3.10/site-packages/``, and have a ``myscript.py``
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file inside of the project directory. We have used whatever tool we generally
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use to install ``bottle`` in that location.
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For invoking a script, Python will try to find a ``__pypackages__`` inside of
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the directory that the script resides [1]_, ``/usr/bin``. The same will happen
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in case of the last example, where we are executing ``/usr/bin/ansible`` from
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inside of the ``foo`` directory. In both cases, it will **not** use the
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``__pypackages__`` in the current working directory.
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Similarly, if we invoke ``myscript.py`` from the first example, it will use the
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``__pypackages__`` directory that was in the ``foo`` directory.
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If we go inside of the ``foo`` directory and start the Python executable (the
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interpreter), it will find the ``__pypackages__`` directory inside of the
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current working directory and use it in the ``sys.path``. The same happens if we
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try to use the ``-m`` and use a module. In our example, ``bottle`` module will
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be found inside of the ``__pypackages__`` directory.
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The above two examples are only cases where ``__pypackages__`` from current
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working directory is used.
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In another example scenario, a trainer of a Python class can say "Today we are
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going to learn how to use Twisted! To start, please checkout our example
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project, go to that directory, and then run a given command to install Twisted."
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That will install Twisted into a directory separate from ``python3``. There's no
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need to discuss virtual environments, global versus user installs, etc. as the
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install will be local by default. The trainer can then just keep telling them to
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use ``python3`` without any activation step, etc.
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.. [1] In the case of symlinks, it is the directory where the actual script
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resides, not the symlink pointing to the script
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Relationship to virtual environments
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====================================
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At its heart, this proposal is simply to modify the calculation of the default
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value of ``sys.path``, and does not relate at all to the virtual environment
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mechanism. However, ``__pypackages__`` can be viewed as providing an isolation
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capability, and in that sense, it "competes" with virtual environments.
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However, there are significant differences:
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* Virtual environments are isolated from the system environment, whereas
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``__pypackages__`` simply adds to the system environment.
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* Virtual environments include a full "installation scheme", with directories
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for binaries, C header files, etc., whereas ``__pypackages__`` is solely
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for Python library code.
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* Virtual environments work most smoothly when "activated". This proposal
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needs no activation.
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This proposal should be seen as independent of virtual environments, not competing
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with them. At best, some use cases currently only served by virtual environments
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can also be served (possibly better) by ``__pypackages__``.
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It should be noted that libraries installed in ``__pypackages__`` will be visible
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in a virtual environment. This arguably breaks the isolation of virtual environments,
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but it is no different in principle to the presence of the current directory on
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``sys.path`` (or mechanisms like the ``PYTHONPATH`` environment variable). The only
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difference is in degree, as the expectation is that people will more commonly install
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packages in ``__pypackages__``. The alternative would be to explicitly detect virtual
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environments and disable ``__pypackages__`` in that case - however that would break
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scripts with bundled dependencies. The PEP authors believe that developers using
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virtual environments should be experienced enough to understand the issue and
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anticipate and avoid any problems.
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Security Considerations
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=======================
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In theory, it is possible to add a library to the ``__pypackages__`` directory
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that overrides a stdlib module or an installed 3rd party library. For the
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``__pypackages__`` associated with a script, this is assumed not to be a
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significant issue, as it is unlikely that anyone would be able to write to
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``__pypackages__`` unless they also had the ability to write to the script itself.
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For a ``__pypackages__`` directory in the current working directory, the
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interactive interpreter could be affected. However, this is not significantly
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different than the existing issue of someone having a ``math.py`` mdule in their
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current directory, and while (just like that case) it can cause user confusion,
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it does not introduce any new security implications.
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When running a script, any ``__pypackages__`` directory in the current working
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directory is ignored. This is the same approach Python uses for adding the
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current working directory to ``sys.path`` and ensures that it is not possible
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to change the behaviour of a script by modifying files in the current
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directory.
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Also, a ``__pypackages__`` directory is only recognised in the current (or
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script) directory. The interpreter will *not* scan for ``__pypackages__`` in
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parent directories. Doing so would open up the risk of security issues if
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directory permissions on parents differ. In particular, scripts in the ``bin``
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directory or ``__pypackages__`` (the ``scripts`` location in ``sysconfig``
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terms) have no special access to the libraries installed in ``__pypackages__``.
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Putting executable scripts in a ``bin`` directory is not supported by this
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proposal.
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How to Teach This
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=================
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The original motivation for this proposal was to make it easier to teach Python
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to beginners. To that end, it needs to be easy to explain, and simple to use.
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At the most basic level, this is similar to the existing mechanism where the
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script directory is added to ``sys.path`` and can be taught in a similar manner.
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However, for its intended use of "lightweight isolation", it would likely be taught
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in terms of "things you put in a ``__pypackages__`` directory are private to your
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script". The experience of the PEP authors suggests that this would be significantly
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easier to teach than the current alternative of introducing virtual environments.
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Impact on Tools
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===============
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As the intended use of the feature is to install 3rd party libraries in the new
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directory, it is important that tools, particularly installers, understand how to
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manage ``__pypackages__``.
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It is hoped that tools will introduce a dedicated "pypackages" installation
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mode that *is* guaranteed to match the expected layout in all cases. However,
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the question of how best to support the ``__pypackages__`` layout is ultimately
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left to individual tool maintainers to consider and decide on.
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Tools that locate packages without actually running Python code (IDEs, linters,
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type checkers, etc.) would need updating to recognise ``__pypackages__``. In the
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absence of such updates, the ``__pypackages__`` directory would work similarly
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to directories currently added to ``sys.path`` at runtime (i.e., the tool would
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probably ignore it).
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Backwards Compatibility
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=======================
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The directory name ``__pypackages__`` was chosen because it is unlikely to be in
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common use. It is true that users who have chosen to use that name for their own
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purposes will be impacted, but at the time this PEP was written, this was viewed
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as a relatively low risk.
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Unfortunately, in the time this PEP has been under discussion, a number of tools
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have chosen to implement variations on what is being proposed here, which are not
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all compatible with the final form of the PEP. As a result, the risk of clashes is
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now higher than originally anticipated.
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It would be possible to mitigate this by choosing a *different* name, hopefully as
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uncommon as ``__pypackages__`` originally was. But realistically, any compatibility
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issues can be viewed as simply the consequences of people trying to implement
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draft proposals, without making the effort to track changes in the proposal. As such,
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it seems reasonable to retain the ``__pypackages__`` name, and put the burden of
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addressing the compatibility issue on the tools that implemented the draft version.
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Impact on other Python implementations
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--------------------------------------
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Other Python implementations will need to replicate the new behavior of the
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interpreter bootstrap, including locating the ``__pypackages__`` directory and
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adding it the ``sys.path`` just before site packages, if it is present. This is
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no different to any other Python change.
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Reference Implementation
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========================
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`Here <https://github.com/kushaldas/pep582>`_ is a small script which will
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enable the implementation for ``Cpython`` & in ``PyPy``.
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Rejected Ideas
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==============
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* Alternative names, such as ``__pylocal__`` and ``python_modules``. Ultimately, the name is arbitrary and the chosen name is good enough.
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* Additional features of virtual environments. This proposal is not a replacement for virtual environments, and such features are therefore out of scope.
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* We will not scan any parent directory to find ``__pypackages__``. If we want to execute scripts inside of the ``~/bin/`` directory, then the ``__pypackages__`` directory must be inside of the ``~/bin/`` directory. Doing any such scan for ``__pypackages__`` (for the interpreter or a script) will have security implications and also increase startup time.
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* Raise an error if unexpected files or directories are present in ``__pypackages__``. This is considered too strict, particularly as transitional approaches like ``pip install --prefix`` can create additional files in ``__pypackages__``.
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* Using a different ``sysconfig`` scheme, or a dedicated ``pypackages`` scheme. While this is attractive in theory, it makes transition harder, as there will be no readily-available way of installing to ``__pypackages__`` until tools implement explicit support. And while the PEP authors hope and assume that such support would be added, having the proposal dependent on such support in order to be usable seems like an unacceptable risk.
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Copyright
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=========
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This document has been placed in the public domain.
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..
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Local Variables:
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mode: indented-text
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indent-tabs-mode: nil
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sentence-end-double-space: t
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fill-column: 80
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coding: utf-8
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End:
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