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1.. _api-reference:
2
3*************
4API Reference
5*************
6
7.. seealso::
8
9   `New and changed setup.py arguments in setuptools`_
10      The ``setuptools`` project adds new capabilities to the ``setup`` function
11      and other APIs, makes the API consistent across different Python versions,
12      and is hence recommended over using ``distutils`` directly.
13
14.. _New and changed setup.py arguments in setuptools: https://setuptools.readthedocs.io/en/latest/setuptools.html#new-and-changed-setup-keywords
15
16.. include:: ./_setuptools_disclaimer.rst
17
18:mod:`distutils.core` --- Core Distutils functionality
19======================================================
20
21.. module:: distutils.core
22   :synopsis: The core Distutils functionality
23
24
25The :mod:`distutils.core` module is the only module that needs to be installed
26to use the Distutils. It provides the :func:`setup` (which is called from the
27setup script). Indirectly provides the  :class:`distutils.dist.Distribution` and
28:class:`distutils.cmd.Command` class.
29
30
31.. function:: setup(arguments)
32
33   The basic do-everything function that does most everything you could ever ask
34   for from a Distutils method.
35
36   The setup function takes a large number of arguments. These are laid out in the
37   following table.
38
39   .. tabularcolumns:: |l|L|L|
40
41   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
42   | argument name      | value                          | type                                                        |
43   +====================+================================+=============================================================+
44   | *name*             | The name of the package        | a string                                                    |
45   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
46   | *version*          | The version number of the      | a string                                                    |
47   |                    | package; see                   |                                                             |
48   |                    | :mod:`distutils.version`       |                                                             |
49   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
50   | *description*      | A single line describing the   | a string                                                    |
51   |                    | package                        |                                                             |
52   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
53   | *long_description* | Longer description of the      | a string                                                    |
54   |                    | package                        |                                                             |
55   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
56   | *author*           | The name of the package author | a string                                                    |
57   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
58   | *author_email*     | The email address of the       | a string                                                    |
59   |                    | package author                 |                                                             |
60   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
61   | *maintainer*       | The name of the current        | a string                                                    |
62   |                    | maintainer, if different from  |                                                             |
63   |                    | the author. Note that if       |                                                             |
64   |                    | the maintainer is provided,    |                                                             |
65   |                    | distutils will use it as the   |                                                             |
66   |                    | author in :file:`PKG-INFO`     |                                                             |
67   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
68   | *maintainer_email* | The email address of the       | a string                                                    |
69   |                    | current maintainer, if         |                                                             |
70   |                    | different from the author      |                                                             |
71   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
72   | *url*              | A URL for the package          | a string                                                    |
73   |                    | (homepage)                     |                                                             |
74   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
75   | *download_url*     | A URL to download the package  | a string                                                    |
76   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
77   | *packages*         | A list of Python packages that | a list of strings                                           |
78   |                    | distutils will manipulate      |                                                             |
79   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
80   | *py_modules*       | A list of Python modules that  | a list of strings                                           |
81   |                    | distutils will manipulate      |                                                             |
82   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
83   | *scripts*          | A list of standalone script    | a list of strings                                           |
84   |                    | files to be built and          |                                                             |
85   |                    | installed                      |                                                             |
86   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
87   | *ext_modules*      | A list of Python extensions to | a list of instances of                                      |
88   |                    | be built                       | :class:`distutils.core.Extension`                           |
89   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
90   | *classifiers*      | A list of categories for the   | a list of strings; valid classifiers are listed on `PyPI    |
91   |                    | package                        | <https://pypi.org/classifiers>`_.                           |
92   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
93   | *distclass*        | the :class:`Distribution`      | a subclass of                                               |
94   |                    | class to use                   | :class:`distutils.core.Distribution`                        |
95   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
96   | *script_name*      | The name of the setup.py       | a string                                                    |
97   |                    | script - defaults to           |                                                             |
98   |                    | ``sys.argv[0]``                |                                                             |
99   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
100   | *script_args*      | Arguments to supply to the     | a list of strings                                           |
101   |                    | setup script                   |                                                             |
102   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
103   | *options*          | default options for the setup  | a dictionary                                                |
104   |                    | script                         |                                                             |
105   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
106   | *license*          | The license for the package    | a string                                                    |
107   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
108   | *keywords*         | Descriptive meta-data, see     | a list of strings or a comma-separated string               |
109   |                    | :pep:`314`                     |                                                             |
110   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
111   | *platforms*        |                                | a list of strings or a comma-separated string               |
112   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
113   | *cmdclass*         | A mapping of command names to  | a dictionary                                                |
114   |                    | :class:`Command` subclasses    |                                                             |
115   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
116   | *data_files*       | A list of data files to        | a list                                                      |
117   |                    | install                        |                                                             |
118   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
119   | *package_dir*      | A mapping of package to        | a dictionary                                                |
120   |                    | directory names                |                                                             |
121   +--------------------+--------------------------------+-------------------------------------------------------------+
122
123
124
125.. function:: run_setup(script_name[, script_args=None, stop_after='run'])
126
127   Run a setup script in a somewhat controlled environment, and return  the
128   :class:`distutils.dist.Distribution` instance that drives things.   This is
129   useful if you need to find out the distribution meta-data  (passed as keyword
130   args from *script* to :func:`setup`), or  the contents of the config files or
131   command-line.
132
133   *script_name* is a file that will be read and run with :func:`exec`.  ``sys.argv[0]``
134   will be replaced with *script* for the duration of the call.  *script_args* is a
135   list of strings; if supplied, ``sys.argv[1:]`` will be replaced by *script_args*
136   for the duration  of the call.
137
138   *stop_after* tells :func:`setup` when to stop processing; possible  values:
139
140   .. tabularcolumns:: |l|L|
141
142   +---------------+---------------------------------------------+
143   | value         | description                                 |
144   +===============+=============================================+
145   | *init*        | Stop after the :class:`Distribution`        |
146   |               | instance has been created  and populated    |
147   |               | with the keyword arguments to :func:`setup` |
148   +---------------+---------------------------------------------+
149   | *config*      | Stop after config files have been parsed    |
150   |               | (and their data stored in the               |
151   |               | :class:`Distribution` instance)             |
152   +---------------+---------------------------------------------+
153   | *commandline* | Stop after the command-line                 |
154   |               | (``sys.argv[1:]`` or  *script_args*) have   |
155   |               | been parsed (and the data stored in the     |
156   |               | :class:`Distribution` instance.)            |
157   +---------------+---------------------------------------------+
158   | *run*         | Stop after all commands have been run (the  |
159   |               | same as  if :func:`setup` had been called   |
160   |               | in the usual way). This is the default      |
161   |               | value.                                      |
162   +---------------+---------------------------------------------+
163
164In addition, the :mod:`distutils.core` module exposed a number of  classes that
165live elsewhere.
166
167* :class:`~distutils.extension.Extension` from :mod:`distutils.extension`
168
169* :class:`~distutils.cmd.Command` from :mod:`distutils.cmd`
170
171* :class:`~distutils.dist.Distribution` from :mod:`distutils.dist`
172
173A short description of each of these follows, but see the relevant module for
174the full reference.
175
176
177.. class:: Extension
178
179   The Extension class describes a single C or C++ extension module in a setup
180   script. It accepts the following keyword arguments in its constructor:
181
182   .. tabularcolumns:: |l|L|l|
183
184   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
185   | argument name          | value                          | type                      |
186   +========================+================================+===========================+
187   | *name*                 | the full name of the           | a string                  |
188   |                        | extension, including any       |                           |
189   |                        | packages --- ie. *not* a       |                           |
190   |                        | filename or pathname, but      |                           |
191   |                        | Python dotted name             |                           |
192   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
193   | *sources*              | list of source filenames,      | a list of strings         |
194   |                        | relative to the distribution   |                           |
195   |                        | root (where the setup script   |                           |
196   |                        | lives), in Unix form           |                           |
197   |                        | (slash-separated) for          |                           |
198   |                        | portability.                   |                           |
199   |                        | Source files may be C, C++,    |                           |
200   |                        | SWIG (.i), platform-specific   |                           |
201   |                        | resource files, or whatever    |                           |
202   |                        | else is recognized by the      |                           |
203   |                        | :command:`build_ext` command   |                           |
204   |                        | as source for a Python         |                           |
205   |                        | extension.                     |                           |
206   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
207   | *include_dirs*         | list of directories to search  | a list of strings         |
208   |                        | for C/C++ header files (in     |                           |
209   |                        | Unix form for portability)     |                           |
210   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
211   | *define_macros*        | list of macros to define; each | a list of tuples          |
212   |                        | macro is defined using a       |                           |
213   |                        | 2-tuple ``(name, value)``,     |                           |
214   |                        | where *value* is               |                           |
215   |                        | either the string to define it |                           |
216   |                        | to or ``None`` to define it    |                           |
217   |                        | without a particular value     |                           |
218   |                        | (equivalent of ``#define FOO`` |                           |
219   |                        | in source or :option:`!-DFOO`  |                           |
220   |                        | on Unix C compiler command     |                           |
221   |                        | line)                          |                           |
222   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
223   | *undef_macros*         | list of macros to undefine     | a list of strings         |
224   |                        | explicitly                     |                           |
225   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
226   | *library_dirs*         | list of directories to search  | a list of strings         |
227   |                        | for C/C++ libraries at link    |                           |
228   |                        | time                           |                           |
229   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
230   | *libraries*            | list of library names (not     | a list of strings         |
231   |                        | filenames or paths) to link    |                           |
232   |                        | against                        |                           |
233   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
234   | *runtime_library_dirs* | list of directories to search  | a list of strings         |
235   |                        | for C/C++ libraries at run     |                           |
236   |                        | time (for shared extensions,   |                           |
237   |                        | this is when the extension is  |                           |
238   |                        | loaded)                        |                           |
239   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
240   | *extra_objects*        | list of extra files to link    | a list of strings         |
241   |                        | with (eg. object files not     |                           |
242   |                        | implied by 'sources', static   |                           |
243   |                        | library that must be           |                           |
244   |                        | explicitly specified, binary   |                           |
245   |                        | resource files, etc.)          |                           |
246   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
247   | *extra_compile_args*   | any extra platform- and        | a list of strings         |
248   |                        | compiler-specific information  |                           |
249   |                        | to use when compiling the      |                           |
250   |                        | source files in 'sources'. For |                           |
251   |                        | platforms and compilers where  |                           |
252   |                        | a command line makes sense,    |                           |
253   |                        | this is typically a list of    |                           |
254   |                        | command-line arguments, but    |                           |
255   |                        | for other platforms it could   |                           |
256   |                        | be anything.                   |                           |
257   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
258   | *extra_link_args*      | any extra platform- and        | a list of strings         |
259   |                        | compiler-specific information  |                           |
260   |                        | to use when linking object     |                           |
261   |                        | files together to create the   |                           |
262   |                        | extension (or to create a new  |                           |
263   |                        | static Python interpreter).    |                           |
264   |                        | Similar interpretation as for  |                           |
265   |                        | 'extra_compile_args'.          |                           |
266   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
267   | *export_symbols*       | list of symbols to be exported | a list of strings         |
268   |                        | from a shared extension. Not   |                           |
269   |                        | used on all platforms, and not |                           |
270   |                        | generally necessary for Python |                           |
271   |                        | extensions, which typically    |                           |
272   |                        | export exactly one symbol:     |                           |
273   |                        | ``init`` + extension_name.     |                           |
274   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
275   | *depends*              | list of files that the         | a list of strings         |
276   |                        | extension depends on           |                           |
277   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
278   | *language*             | extension language (i.e.       | a string                  |
279   |                        | ``'c'``, ``'c++'``,            |                           |
280   |                        | ``'objc'``). Will be detected  |                           |
281   |                        | from the source extensions if  |                           |
282   |                        | not provided.                  |                           |
283   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
284   | *optional*             | specifies that a build failure | a boolean                 |
285   |                        | in the extension should not    |                           |
286   |                        | abort the build process, but   |                           |
287   |                        | simply skip the extension.     |                           |
288   +------------------------+--------------------------------+---------------------------+
289
290   .. versionchanged:: 3.8
291
292      On Unix, C extensions are no longer linked to libpython except on
293      Android and Cygwin.
294
295
296.. class:: Distribution
297
298   A :class:`Distribution` describes how to build, install and package up a Python
299   software package.
300
301   See the :func:`setup` function for a list of keyword arguments accepted  by the
302   Distribution constructor. :func:`setup` creates a Distribution instance.
303
304   .. versionchanged:: 3.7
305      :class:`~distutils.core.Distribution` now warns if ``classifiers``,
306      ``keywords`` and ``platforms`` fields are not specified as a list or
307      a string.
308
309.. class:: Command
310
311   A :class:`Command` class (or rather, an instance of one of its subclasses)
312   implement a single distutils command.
313
314
315:mod:`distutils.ccompiler` --- CCompiler base class
316===================================================
317
318.. module:: distutils.ccompiler
319   :synopsis: Abstract CCompiler class
320
321
322This module provides the abstract base class for the :class:`CCompiler`
323classes.  A :class:`CCompiler` instance can be used for all the compile  and
324link steps needed to build a single project. Methods are provided to  set
325options for the compiler --- macro definitions, include directories,  link path,
326libraries and the like.
327
328This module provides the following functions.
329
330
331.. function:: gen_lib_options(compiler, library_dirs, runtime_library_dirs, libraries)
332
333   Generate linker options for searching library directories and linking with
334   specific libraries.  *libraries* and *library_dirs* are, respectively, lists of
335   library names (not filenames!) and search directories.  Returns a list of
336   command-line options suitable for use with some compiler (depending on the two
337   format strings passed in).
338
339
340.. function:: gen_preprocess_options(macros, include_dirs)
341
342   Generate C pre-processor options (:option:`!-D`, :option:`!-U`, :option:`!-I`) as
343   used by at least two types of compilers: the typical Unix compiler and Visual
344   C++. *macros* is the usual thing, a list of 1- or 2-tuples, where ``(name,)``
345   means undefine (:option:`!-U`) macro *name*, and ``(name, value)`` means define
346   (:option:`!-D`) macro *name* to *value*.  *include_dirs* is just a list of
347   directory names to be added to the header file search path (:option:`!-I`).
348   Returns a list of command-line options suitable for either Unix compilers or
349   Visual C++.
350
351
352.. function:: get_default_compiler(osname, platform)
353
354   Determine the default compiler to use for the given platform.
355
356   *osname* should be one of the standard Python OS names (i.e. the ones returned
357   by ``os.name``) and *platform* the common value returned by ``sys.platform`` for
358   the platform in question.
359
360   The default values are ``os.name`` and ``sys.platform`` in case the parameters
361   are not given.
362
363
364.. function:: new_compiler(plat=None, compiler=None, verbose=0, dry_run=0, force=0)
365
366   Factory function to generate an instance of some CCompiler subclass for the
367   supplied platform/compiler combination. *plat* defaults to ``os.name`` (eg.
368   ``'posix'``, ``'nt'``), and *compiler*  defaults to the default compiler for
369   that platform. Currently only ``'posix'`` and ``'nt'`` are supported, and the
370   default compilers are "traditional Unix interface" (:class:`UnixCCompiler`
371   class) and Visual C++ (:class:`MSVCCompiler` class).  Note that it's perfectly
372   possible to ask for a Unix compiler object under Windows, and a Microsoft
373   compiler object under Unix---if you supply a value for *compiler*, *plat* is
374   ignored.
375
376   .. % Is the posix/nt only thing still true? Mac OS X seems to work, and
377   .. % returns a UnixCCompiler instance. How to document this... hmm.
378
379
380.. function:: show_compilers()
381
382   Print list of available compilers (used by the :option:`!--help-compiler` options
383   to :command:`build`, :command:`build_ext`, :command:`build_clib`).
384
385
386.. class:: CCompiler([verbose=0, dry_run=0, force=0])
387
388   The abstract base class :class:`CCompiler` defines the interface that  must be
389   implemented by real compiler classes.  The class also has  some utility methods
390   used by several compiler classes.
391
392   The basic idea behind a compiler abstraction class is that each instance can be
393   used for all the compile/link steps in building a single project.  Thus,
394   attributes common to all of those compile and link steps --- include
395   directories, macros to define, libraries to link against, etc. --- are
396   attributes of the compiler instance.  To allow for variability in how individual
397   files are treated, most of those attributes may be varied on a per-compilation
398   or per-link basis.
399
400   The constructor for each subclass creates an instance of the Compiler object.
401   Flags are *verbose* (show verbose output), *dry_run* (don't actually execute the
402   steps) and *force* (rebuild everything, regardless of dependencies). All of
403   these flags default to ``0`` (off). Note that you probably don't want to
404   instantiate :class:`CCompiler` or one of its subclasses directly - use the
405   :func:`distutils.CCompiler.new_compiler` factory function instead.
406
407   The following methods allow you to manually alter compiler options for  the
408   instance of the Compiler class.
409
410
411   .. method:: CCompiler.add_include_dir(dir)
412
413      Add *dir* to the list of directories that will be searched for header files.
414      The compiler is instructed to search directories in the order in which they are
415      supplied by successive calls to :meth:`add_include_dir`.
416
417
418   .. method:: CCompiler.set_include_dirs(dirs)
419
420      Set the list of directories that will be searched to *dirs* (a list of strings).
421      Overrides any preceding calls to :meth:`add_include_dir`; subsequent calls to
422      :meth:`add_include_dir` add to the list passed to :meth:`set_include_dirs`.
423      This does not affect any list of standard include directories that the compiler
424      may search by default.
425
426
427   .. method:: CCompiler.add_library(libname)
428
429      Add *libname* to the list of libraries that will be included in all links driven
430      by this compiler object.  Note that *libname* should \*not\* be the name of a
431      file containing a library, but the name of the library itself: the actual
432      filename will be inferred by the linker, the compiler, or the compiler class
433      (depending on the platform).
434
435      The linker will be instructed to link against libraries in the order they were
436      supplied to :meth:`add_library` and/or :meth:`set_libraries`.  It is perfectly
437      valid to duplicate library names; the linker will be instructed to link against
438      libraries as many times as they are mentioned.
439
440
441   .. method:: CCompiler.set_libraries(libnames)
442
443      Set the list of libraries to be included in all links driven by this compiler
444      object to *libnames* (a list of strings).  This does not affect any standard
445      system libraries that the linker may include by default.
446
447
448   .. method:: CCompiler.add_library_dir(dir)
449
450      Add *dir* to the list of directories that will be searched for libraries
451      specified to :meth:`add_library` and :meth:`set_libraries`.  The linker will be
452      instructed to search for libraries in the order they are supplied to
453      :meth:`add_library_dir` and/or :meth:`set_library_dirs`.
454
455
456   .. method:: CCompiler.set_library_dirs(dirs)
457
458      Set the list of library search directories to *dirs* (a list of strings).  This
459      does not affect any standard library search path that the linker may search by
460      default.
461
462
463   .. method:: CCompiler.add_runtime_library_dir(dir)
464
465      Add *dir* to the list of directories that will be searched for shared libraries
466      at runtime.
467
468
469   .. method:: CCompiler.set_runtime_library_dirs(dirs)
470
471      Set the list of directories to search for shared libraries at runtime to *dirs*
472      (a list of strings).  This does not affect any standard search path that the
473      runtime linker may search by default.
474
475
476   .. method:: CCompiler.define_macro(name[, value=None])
477
478      Define a preprocessor macro for all compilations driven by this compiler object.
479      The optional parameter *value* should be a string; if it is not supplied, then
480      the macro will be defined without an explicit value and the exact outcome
481      depends on the compiler used.
482
483      .. XXX true? does ANSI say anything about this?
484
485
486   .. method:: CCompiler.undefine_macro(name)
487
488      Undefine a preprocessor macro for all compilations driven by this compiler
489      object.  If the same macro is defined by :meth:`define_macro` and
490      undefined by :meth:`undefine_macro` the last call takes precedence
491      (including multiple redefinitions or undefinitions).  If the macro is
492      redefined/undefined on a per-compilation basis (ie. in the call to
493      :meth:`compile`), then that takes precedence.
494
495
496   .. method:: CCompiler.add_link_object(object)
497
498      Add *object* to the list of object files (or analogues, such as explicitly named
499      library files or the output of "resource compilers") to be included in every
500      link driven by this compiler object.
501
502
503   .. method:: CCompiler.set_link_objects(objects)
504
505      Set the list of object files (or analogues) to be included in every link to
506      *objects*.  This does not affect any standard object files that the linker may
507      include by default (such as system libraries).
508
509   The following methods implement methods for autodetection of compiler  options,
510   providing some functionality similar to GNU :program:`autoconf`.
511
512
513   .. method:: CCompiler.detect_language(sources)
514
515      Detect the language of a given file, or list of files. Uses the  instance
516      attributes :attr:`language_map` (a dictionary), and  :attr:`language_order` (a
517      list) to do the job.
518
519
520   .. method:: CCompiler.find_library_file(dirs, lib[, debug=0])
521
522      Search the specified list of directories for a static or shared library file
523      *lib* and return the full path to that file.  If *debug* is true, look for a
524      debugging version (if that makes sense on the current platform).  Return
525      ``None`` if *lib* wasn't found in any of the specified directories.
526
527
528   .. method:: CCompiler.has_function(funcname [, includes=None, include_dirs=None, libraries=None, library_dirs=None])
529
530      Return a boolean indicating whether *funcname* is supported on the current
531      platform.  The optional arguments can be used to augment the compilation
532      environment by providing additional include files and paths and libraries and
533      paths.
534
535
536   .. method:: CCompiler.library_dir_option(dir)
537
538      Return the compiler option to add *dir* to the list of directories searched for
539      libraries.
540
541
542   .. method:: CCompiler.library_option(lib)
543
544      Return the compiler option to add *lib* to the list of libraries linked into the
545      shared library or executable.
546
547
548   .. method:: CCompiler.runtime_library_dir_option(dir)
549
550      Return the compiler option to add *dir* to the list of directories searched for
551      runtime libraries.
552
553
554   .. method:: CCompiler.set_executables(**args)
555
556      Define the executables (and options for them) that will be run to perform the
557      various stages of compilation.  The exact set of executables that may be
558      specified here depends on the compiler class (via the 'executables' class
559      attribute), but most will have:
560
561      +--------------+------------------------------------------+
562      | attribute    | description                              |
563      +==============+==========================================+
564      | *compiler*   | the C/C++ compiler                       |
565      +--------------+------------------------------------------+
566      | *linker_so*  | linker used to create shared objects and |
567      |              | libraries                                |
568      +--------------+------------------------------------------+
569      | *linker_exe* | linker used to create binary executables |
570      +--------------+------------------------------------------+
571      | *archiver*   | static library creator                   |
572      +--------------+------------------------------------------+
573
574      On platforms with a command-line (Unix, DOS/Windows), each of these is a string
575      that will be split into executable name and (optional) list of arguments.
576      (Splitting the string is done similarly to how Unix shells operate: words are
577      delimited by spaces, but quotes and backslashes can override this.  See
578      :func:`distutils.util.split_quoted`.)
579
580   The following methods invoke stages in the build process.
581
582
583   .. method:: CCompiler.compile(sources[, output_dir=None, macros=None, include_dirs=None, debug=0, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None, depends=None])
584
585      Compile one or more source files. Generates object files (e.g.  transforms a
586      :file:`.c` file to a :file:`.o` file.)
587
588      *sources* must be a list of filenames, most likely C/C++ files, but in reality
589      anything that can be handled by a particular compiler and compiler class (eg.
590      :class:`MSVCCompiler` can handle resource files in *sources*).  Return a list of
591      object filenames, one per source filename in *sources*.  Depending on the
592      implementation, not all source files will necessarily be compiled, but all
593      corresponding object filenames will be returned.
594
595      If *output_dir* is given, object files will be put under it, while retaining
596      their original path component.  That is, :file:`foo/bar.c` normally compiles to
597      :file:`foo/bar.o` (for a Unix implementation); if *output_dir* is *build*, then
598      it would compile to :file:`build/foo/bar.o`.
599
600      *macros*, if given, must be a list of macro definitions.  A macro definition is
601      either a ``(name, value)`` 2-tuple or a ``(name,)`` 1-tuple. The former defines
602      a macro; if the value is ``None``, the macro is defined without an explicit
603      value.  The 1-tuple case undefines a macro.  Later
604      definitions/redefinitions/undefinitions take precedence.
605
606      *include_dirs*, if given, must be a list of strings, the directories to add to
607      the default include file search path for this compilation only.
608
609      *debug* is a boolean; if true, the compiler will be instructed to output debug
610      symbols in (or alongside) the object file(s).
611
612      *extra_preargs* and *extra_postargs* are implementation-dependent. On platforms
613      that have the notion of a command-line (e.g. Unix, DOS/Windows), they are most
614      likely lists of strings: extra command-line arguments to prepend/append to the
615      compiler command line.  On other platforms, consult the implementation class
616      documentation.  In any event, they are intended as an escape hatch for those
617      occasions when the abstract compiler framework doesn't cut the mustard.
618
619      *depends*, if given, is a list of filenames that all targets depend on.  If a
620      source file is older than any file in depends, then the source file will be
621      recompiled.  This supports dependency tracking, but only at a coarse
622      granularity.
623
624      Raises :exc:`CompileError` on failure.
625
626
627   .. method:: CCompiler.create_static_lib(objects, output_libname[, output_dir=None, debug=0, target_lang=None])
628
629      Link a bunch of stuff together to create a static library file. The "bunch of
630      stuff" consists of the list of object files supplied as *objects*, the extra
631      object files supplied to :meth:`add_link_object` and/or
632      :meth:`set_link_objects`, the libraries supplied to :meth:`add_library` and/or
633      :meth:`set_libraries`, and the libraries supplied as *libraries* (if any).
634
635      *output_libname* should be a library name, not a filename; the filename will be
636      inferred from the library name.  *output_dir* is the directory where the library
637      file will be put.
638
639      .. XXX defaults to what?
640
641      *debug* is a boolean; if true, debugging information will be included in the
642      library (note that on most platforms, it is the compile step where this matters:
643      the *debug* flag is included here just for consistency).
644
645      *target_lang* is the target language for which the given objects are being
646      compiled. This allows specific linkage time treatment of certain languages.
647
648      Raises :exc:`LibError` on failure.
649
650
651   .. method:: CCompiler.link(target_desc, objects, output_filename[, output_dir=None, libraries=None, library_dirs=None, runtime_library_dirs=None, export_symbols=None, debug=0, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None, build_temp=None, target_lang=None])
652
653      Link a bunch of stuff together to create an executable or shared library file.
654
655      The "bunch of stuff" consists of the list of object files supplied as *objects*.
656      *output_filename* should be a filename.  If *output_dir* is supplied,
657      *output_filename* is relative to it (i.e. *output_filename* can provide
658      directory components if needed).
659
660      *libraries* is a list of libraries to link against.  These are library names,
661      not filenames, since they're translated into filenames in a platform-specific
662      way (eg. *foo* becomes :file:`libfoo.a` on Unix and :file:`foo.lib` on
663      DOS/Windows).  However, they can include a directory component, which means the
664      linker will look in that specific directory rather than searching all the normal
665      locations.
666
667      *library_dirs*, if supplied, should be a list of directories to search for
668      libraries that were specified as bare library names (ie. no directory
669      component).  These are on top of the system default and those supplied to
670      :meth:`add_library_dir` and/or :meth:`set_library_dirs`.  *runtime_library_dirs*
671      is a list of directories that will be embedded into the shared library and used
672      to search for other shared libraries that \*it\* depends on at run-time.  (This
673      may only be relevant on Unix.)
674
675      *export_symbols* is a list of symbols that the shared library will export.
676      (This appears to be relevant only on Windows.)
677
678      *debug* is as for :meth:`compile` and :meth:`create_static_lib`,  with the
679      slight distinction that it actually matters on most platforms (as opposed to
680      :meth:`create_static_lib`, which includes a *debug* flag mostly for form's
681      sake).
682
683      *extra_preargs* and *extra_postargs* are as for :meth:`compile`  (except of
684      course that they supply command-line arguments for the particular linker being
685      used).
686
687      *target_lang* is the target language for which the given objects are being
688      compiled. This allows specific linkage time treatment of certain languages.
689
690      Raises :exc:`LinkError` on failure.
691
692
693   .. method:: CCompiler.link_executable(objects, output_progname[, output_dir=None, libraries=None, library_dirs=None, runtime_library_dirs=None, debug=0, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None, target_lang=None])
694
695      Link an executable.  *output_progname* is the name of the file executable, while
696      *objects* are a list of object filenames to link in. Other arguments  are as for
697      the :meth:`link` method.
698
699
700   .. method:: CCompiler.link_shared_lib(objects, output_libname[, output_dir=None, libraries=None, library_dirs=None, runtime_library_dirs=None, export_symbols=None, debug=0, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None, build_temp=None, target_lang=None])
701
702      Link a shared library. *output_libname* is the name of the output  library,
703      while *objects* is a list of object filenames to link in.  Other arguments are
704      as for the :meth:`link` method.
705
706
707   .. method:: CCompiler.link_shared_object(objects, output_filename[, output_dir=None, libraries=None, library_dirs=None, runtime_library_dirs=None, export_symbols=None, debug=0, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None, build_temp=None, target_lang=None])
708
709      Link a shared object. *output_filename* is the name of the shared object that
710      will be created, while *objects* is a list of object filenames  to link in.
711      Other arguments are as for the :meth:`link` method.
712
713
714   .. method:: CCompiler.preprocess(source[, output_file=None, macros=None, include_dirs=None, extra_preargs=None, extra_postargs=None])
715
716      Preprocess a single C/C++ source file, named in *source*. Output will be written
717      to file named *output_file*, or *stdout* if *output_file* not supplied.
718      *macros* is a list of macro definitions as for :meth:`compile`, which will
719      augment the macros set with :meth:`define_macro` and :meth:`undefine_macro`.
720      *include_dirs* is a list of directory names that will be added to the  default
721      list, in the same way as :meth:`add_include_dir`.
722
723      Raises :exc:`PreprocessError` on failure.
724
725   The following utility methods are defined by the :class:`CCompiler` class, for
726   use by the various concrete subclasses.
727
728
729   .. method:: CCompiler.executable_filename(basename[, strip_dir=0, output_dir=''])
730
731      Returns the filename of the executable for the given *basename*.  Typically for
732      non-Windows platforms this is the same as the basename,  while Windows will get
733      a :file:`.exe` added.
734
735
736   .. method:: CCompiler.library_filename(libname[, lib_type='static', strip_dir=0, output_dir=''])
737
738      Returns the filename for the given library name on the current platform. On Unix
739      a library with *lib_type* of ``'static'`` will typically  be of the form
740      :file:`liblibname.a`, while a *lib_type* of ``'dynamic'``  will be of the form
741      :file:`liblibname.so`.
742
743
744   .. method:: CCompiler.object_filenames(source_filenames[, strip_dir=0, output_dir=''])
745
746      Returns the name of the object files for the given source files.
747      *source_filenames* should be a list of filenames.
748
749
750   .. method:: CCompiler.shared_object_filename(basename[, strip_dir=0, output_dir=''])
751
752      Returns the name of a shared object file for the given file name *basename*.
753
754
755   .. method:: CCompiler.execute(func, args[, msg=None, level=1])
756
757      Invokes :func:`distutils.util.execute`. This method invokes a  Python function
758      *func* with the given arguments *args*, after  logging and taking into account
759      the *dry_run* flag.
760
761
762   .. method:: CCompiler.spawn(cmd)
763
764      Invokes :func:`distutils.util.spawn`. This invokes an external  process to run
765      the given command.
766
767
768   .. method:: CCompiler.mkpath(name[, mode=511])
769
770      Invokes :func:`distutils.dir_util.mkpath`. This creates a directory  and any
771      missing ancestor directories.
772
773
774   .. method:: CCompiler.move_file(src, dst)
775
776      Invokes :meth:`distutils.file_util.move_file`. Renames *src* to  *dst*.
777
778
779   .. method:: CCompiler.announce(msg[, level=1])
780
781      Write a message using :func:`distutils.log.debug`.
782
783
784   .. method:: CCompiler.warn(msg)
785
786      Write a warning message *msg* to standard error.
787
788
789   .. method:: CCompiler.debug_print(msg)
790
791      If the *debug* flag is set on this :class:`CCompiler` instance, print  *msg* to
792      standard output, otherwise do nothing.
793
794.. % \subsection{Compiler-specific modules}
795.. %
796.. % The following modules implement concrete subclasses of the abstract
797.. % \class{CCompiler} class. They should not be instantiated directly, but should
798.. % be created using \function{distutils.ccompiler.new_compiler()} factory
799.. % function.
800
801
802:mod:`distutils.unixccompiler` --- Unix C Compiler
803==================================================
804
805.. module:: distutils.unixccompiler
806   :synopsis: UNIX C Compiler
807
808
809This module provides the :class:`UnixCCompiler` class, a subclass of
810:class:`CCompiler` that handles the typical Unix-style command-line  C compiler:
811
812* macros defined with :option:`!-Dname[=value]`
813
814* macros undefined with :option:`!-Uname`
815
816* include search directories specified with :option:`!-Idir`
817
818* libraries specified with :option:`!-llib`
819
820* library search directories specified with :option:`!-Ldir`
821
822* compile handled by :program:`cc` (or similar) executable with :option:`!-c`
823  option: compiles :file:`.c` to :file:`.o`
824
825* link static library handled by :program:`ar` command (possibly with
826  :program:`ranlib`)
827
828* link shared library handled by :program:`cc` :option:`!-shared`
829
830
831:mod:`distutils.msvccompiler` --- Microsoft Compiler
832====================================================
833
834.. module:: distutils.msvccompiler
835   :synopsis: Microsoft Compiler
836
837.. XXX: This is *waaaaay* out of date!
838
839This module provides :class:`MSVCCompiler`, an implementation of the abstract
840:class:`CCompiler` class for Microsoft Visual Studio. Typically, extension
841modules need to be compiled with the same compiler that was used to compile
842Python. For Python 2.3 and earlier, the compiler was Visual Studio 6. For Python
8432.4 and 2.5, the compiler is Visual Studio .NET 2003.
844
845:class:`MSVCCompiler` will normally choose the right compiler, linker etc. on
846its own. To override this choice, the environment variables *DISTUTILS_USE_SDK*
847and *MSSdk* must be both set. *MSSdk* indicates that the current environment has
848been setup by the SDK's ``SetEnv.Cmd`` script, or that the environment variables
849had been registered when the SDK was installed; *DISTUTILS_USE_SDK* indicates
850that the distutils user has made an explicit choice to override the compiler
851selection by :class:`MSVCCompiler`.
852
853
854:mod:`distutils.bcppcompiler` --- Borland Compiler
855==================================================
856
857.. module:: distutils.bcppcompiler
858
859
860This module provides :class:`BorlandCCompiler`, a subclass of the abstract
861:class:`CCompiler` class for the Borland C++ compiler.
862
863
864:mod:`distutils.cygwincompiler` --- Cygwin Compiler
865===================================================
866
867.. module:: distutils.cygwinccompiler
868
869
870This module provides the :class:`CygwinCCompiler` class, a subclass of
871:class:`UnixCCompiler` that handles the Cygwin port of the GNU C compiler to
872Windows.  It also contains the Mingw32CCompiler class which handles the mingw32
873port of GCC (same as cygwin in no-cygwin mode).
874
875
876:mod:`distutils.archive_util` ---  Archiving utilities
877======================================================
878
879.. module:: distutils.archive_util
880   :synopsis: Utility functions for creating archive files (tarballs, zip files, ...)
881
882
883This module provides a few functions for creating archive files, such as
884tarballs or zipfiles.
885
886
887.. function:: make_archive(base_name, format[, root_dir=None, base_dir=None, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
888
889   Create an archive file (eg. ``zip`` or ``tar``).  *base_name*  is the name of
890   the file to create, minus any format-specific extension;  *format* is the
891   archive format: one of ``zip``, ``tar``, ``gztar``, ``bztar``, ``xztar``, or
892   ``ztar``. *root_dir* is a directory that will be the root directory of the
893   archive; ie. we typically ``chdir`` into *root_dir* before  creating the
894   archive.  *base_dir* is the directory where we start  archiving from; ie.
895   *base_dir* will be the common prefix of all files and directories in the
896   archive.  *root_dir* and *base_dir* both default to the current directory.
897   Returns the name of the archive file.
898
899   .. versionchanged:: 3.5
900      Added support for the ``xztar`` format.
901
902
903.. function:: make_tarball(base_name, base_dir[, compress='gzip', verbose=0, dry_run=0])
904
905   'Create an (optional compressed) archive as a tar file from all files in and
906   under *base_dir*. *compress* must be ``'gzip'`` (the default),
907   ``'bzip2'``, ``'xz'``, ``'compress'``, or ``None``.  For the ``'compress'``
908   method the compression utility named by :program:`compress` must be on the
909   default program search path, so this is probably Unix-specific.  The output
910   tar file will be named :file:`base_dir.tar`, possibly plus the appropriate
911   compression extension (``.gz``, ``.bz2``, ``.xz`` or ``.Z``).  Return the
912   output filename.
913
914   .. versionchanged:: 3.5
915      Added support for the ``xz`` compression.
916
917
918.. function:: make_zipfile(base_name, base_dir[, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
919
920   Create a zip file from all files in and under *base_dir*.  The output zip file
921   will be named *base_name* + :file:`.zip`.  Uses either the  :mod:`zipfile` Python
922   module (if available) or the InfoZIP :file:`zip`  utility (if installed and
923   found on the default search path).  If neither  tool is available, raises
924   :exc:`DistutilsExecError`.   Returns the name of the output zip file.
925
926
927:mod:`distutils.dep_util` --- Dependency checking
928=================================================
929
930.. module:: distutils.dep_util
931   :synopsis: Utility functions for simple dependency checking
932
933
934This module provides functions for performing simple, timestamp-based
935dependency of files and groups of files; also, functions based entirely  on such
936timestamp dependency analysis.
937
938
939.. function:: newer(source, target)
940
941   Return true if *source* exists and is more recently modified than *target*, or
942   if *source* exists and *target* doesn't. Return false if both exist and *target*
943   is the same age or newer  than *source*. Raise :exc:`DistutilsFileError` if
944   *source* does not exist.
945
946
947.. function:: newer_pairwise(sources, targets)
948
949   Walk two filename lists in parallel, testing if each source is newer than its
950   corresponding target.  Return a pair of lists (*sources*, *targets*) where
951   source is newer than target, according to the semantics of :func:`newer`.
952
953   .. % % equivalent to a listcomp...
954
955
956.. function:: newer_group(sources, target[, missing='error'])
957
958   Return true if *target* is out-of-date with respect to any file listed in
959   *sources*.  In other words, if *target* exists and is newer than every file in
960   *sources*, return false; otherwise return true. *missing* controls what we do
961   when a source file is missing; the default (``'error'``) is to blow up with an
962   :exc:`OSError` from  inside :func:`os.stat`; if it is ``'ignore'``, we silently
963   drop any missing source files; if it is ``'newer'``, any missing source files
964   make us assume that *target* is out-of-date (this is handy in "dry-run" mode:
965   it'll make you pretend to carry out commands that wouldn't work because inputs
966   are missing, but that doesn't matter because you're not actually going to run
967   the commands).
968
969
970:mod:`distutils.dir_util` --- Directory tree operations
971=======================================================
972
973.. module:: distutils.dir_util
974   :synopsis: Utility functions for operating on directories and directory trees
975
976
977This module provides functions for operating on directories and trees of
978directories.
979
980
981.. function:: mkpath(name[, mode=0o777, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
982
983   Create a directory and any missing ancestor directories.  If the directory
984   already exists (or if *name* is the empty string, which means the current
985   directory, which of course exists), then do nothing.  Raise
986   :exc:`DistutilsFileError` if unable to create some directory along the way (eg.
987   some sub-path exists, but is a file rather than a directory).  If *verbose* is
988   true, print a one-line summary of each mkdir to stdout.  Return the list of
989   directories actually created.
990
991
992.. function:: create_tree(base_dir, files[, mode=0o777, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
993
994   Create all the empty directories under *base_dir* needed to put *files* there.
995   *base_dir* is just the name of a directory which doesn't necessarily exist
996   yet; *files* is a list of filenames to be interpreted relative to *base_dir*.
997   *base_dir* + the directory portion of every file in *files* will be created if
998   it doesn't already exist.  *mode*, *verbose* and *dry_run* flags  are as for
999   :func:`mkpath`.
1000
1001
1002.. function:: copy_tree(src, dst[, preserve_mode=1, preserve_times=1, preserve_symlinks=0, update=0, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
1003
1004   Copy an entire directory tree *src* to a new location *dst*.  Both *src* and
1005   *dst* must be directory names.  If *src* is not a directory, raise
1006   :exc:`DistutilsFileError`.  If *dst* does  not exist, it is created with
1007   :func:`mkpath`.  The end result of the  copy is that every file in *src* is
1008   copied to *dst*, and  directories under *src* are recursively copied to *dst*.
1009   Return the list of files that were copied or might have been copied, using their
1010   output name. The return value is unaffected by *update* or *dry_run*: it is
1011   simply the list of all files under *src*, with the names changed to be under
1012   *dst*.
1013
1014   *preserve_mode* and *preserve_times* are the same as for
1015   :func:`distutils.file_util.copy_file`; note that they only apply to
1016   regular files, not to
1017   directories.  If *preserve_symlinks* is true, symlinks will be copied as
1018   symlinks (on platforms that support them!); otherwise (the default), the
1019   destination of the symlink will be copied.  *update* and *verbose* are the same
1020   as for :func:`copy_file`.
1021
1022   Files in *src* that begin with :file:`.nfs` are skipped (more information on
1023   these files is available in answer D2 of the `NFS FAQ page
1024   <http://nfs.sourceforge.net/#section_d>`_).
1025
1026   .. versionchanged:: 3.3.1
1027      NFS files are ignored.
1028
1029.. function:: remove_tree(directory[, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
1030
1031   Recursively remove *directory* and all files and directories underneath it. Any
1032   errors are ignored (apart from being reported to ``sys.stdout`` if *verbose* is
1033   true).
1034
1035
1036:mod:`distutils.file_util` --- Single file operations
1037=====================================================
1038
1039.. module:: distutils.file_util
1040   :synopsis: Utility functions for operating on single files
1041
1042
1043This module contains some utility functions for operating on individual files.
1044
1045
1046.. function:: copy_file(src, dst[, preserve_mode=1, preserve_times=1, update=0, link=None, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
1047
1048   Copy file *src* to *dst*. If *dst* is a directory, then *src* is copied there
1049   with the same name; otherwise, it must be a filename. (If the file exists, it
1050   will be ruthlessly clobbered.) If *preserve_mode* is true (the default), the
1051   file's mode (type and permission bits, or whatever is analogous on the
1052   current platform) is copied. If *preserve_times* is true (the default), the
1053   last-modified and last-access times are copied as well. If *update* is true,
1054   *src* will only be copied if *dst* does not exist, or if *dst* does exist but
1055   is older than *src*.
1056
1057   *link* allows you to make hard links (using :func:`os.link`) or symbolic links
1058   (using :func:`os.symlink`) instead of copying: set it to ``'hard'`` or
1059   ``'sym'``; if it is ``None`` (the default), files are copied. Don't set *link*
1060   on systems that don't support it: :func:`copy_file` doesn't check if hard or
1061   symbolic linking is available.  It uses :func:`_copy_file_contents` to copy file
1062   contents.
1063
1064   Return a tuple ``(dest_name, copied)``: *dest_name* is the actual  name of the
1065   output file, and *copied* is true if the file was copied  (or would have been
1066   copied, if *dry_run* true).
1067
1068   .. % XXX if the destination file already exists, we clobber it if
1069   .. % copying, but blow up if linking.  Hmmm.  And I don't know what
1070   .. % macostools.copyfile() does.  Should definitely be consistent, and
1071   .. % should probably blow up if destination exists and we would be
1072   .. % changing it (ie. it's not already a hard/soft link to src OR
1073   .. % (not update) and (src newer than dst)).
1074
1075
1076.. function:: move_file(src, dst[, verbose, dry_run])
1077
1078   Move file *src* to *dst*. If *dst* is a directory, the file will be moved into
1079   it with the same name; otherwise, *src* is just renamed to *dst*.  Returns the
1080   new full name of the file.
1081
1082   .. warning::
1083
1084      Handles cross-device moves on Unix using :func:`copy_file`.  What about
1085      other systems?
1086
1087
1088.. function:: write_file(filename, contents)
1089
1090   Create a file called *filename* and write *contents* (a sequence of strings
1091   without line terminators) to it.
1092
1093
1094:mod:`distutils.util` --- Miscellaneous other utility functions
1095===============================================================
1096
1097.. module:: distutils.util
1098   :synopsis: Miscellaneous other utility functions
1099
1100
1101This module contains other assorted bits and pieces that don't fit into  any
1102other utility module.
1103
1104
1105.. function:: get_platform()
1106
1107   Return a string that identifies the current platform.  This is used mainly to
1108   distinguish platform-specific build directories and platform-specific built
1109   distributions.  Typically includes the OS name and version and the
1110   architecture (as supplied by 'os.uname()'), although the exact information
1111   included depends on the OS; e.g., on Linux, the kernel version isn't
1112   particularly important.
1113
1114   Examples of returned values:
1115
1116   * ``linux-i586``
1117   * ``linux-alpha``
1118   * ``solaris-2.6-sun4u``
1119
1120   For non-POSIX platforms, currently just returns ``sys.platform``.
1121
1122   For Mac OS X systems the OS version reflects the minimal version on which
1123   binaries will run (that is, the value of ``MACOSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET``
1124   during the build of Python), not the OS version of the current system.
1125
1126   For universal binary builds on Mac OS X the architecture value reflects
1127   the universal binary status instead of the architecture of the current
1128   processor. For 32-bit universal binaries the architecture is ``fat``,
1129   for 64-bit universal binaries the architecture is ``fat64``, and
1130   for 4-way universal binaries the architecture is ``universal``. Starting
1131   from Python 2.7 and Python 3.2 the architecture ``fat3`` is used for
1132   a 3-way universal build (ppc, i386, x86_64) and ``intel`` is used for
1133   a universal build with the i386 and x86_64 architectures
1134
1135   Examples of returned values on Mac OS X:
1136
1137   * ``macosx-10.3-ppc``
1138
1139   * ``macosx-10.3-fat``
1140
1141   * ``macosx-10.5-universal``
1142
1143   * ``macosx-10.6-intel``
1144
1145   For AIX, Python 3.9 and later return a string starting with "aix", followed
1146   by additional fields (separated by ``'-'``) that represent the combined
1147   values of AIX Version, Release and Technology Level (first field), Build Date
1148   (second field), and bit-size (third field). Python 3.8 and earlier returned
1149   only a single additional field with the AIX Version and Release.
1150
1151   Examples of returned values on AIX:
1152
1153   * ``aix-5307-0747-32`` # 32-bit build on AIX ``oslevel -s``: 5300-07-00-0000
1154
1155   * ``aix-7105-1731-64`` # 64-bit build on AIX ``oslevel -s``: 7100-05-01-1731
1156
1157   * ``aix-7.2``          # Legacy form reported in Python 3.8 and earlier
1158
1159   .. versionchanged:: 3.9
1160      The AIX platform string format now also includes the technology level,
1161      build date, and ABI bit-size.
1162
1163
1164.. function:: convert_path(pathname)
1165
1166   Return 'pathname' as a name that will work on the native filesystem, i.e. split
1167   it on '/' and put it back together again using the current directory separator.
1168   Needed because filenames in the setup script are always supplied in Unix style,
1169   and have to be converted to the local convention before we can actually use them
1170   in the filesystem.  Raises :exc:`ValueError` on non-Unix-ish systems if
1171   *pathname* either  starts or ends with a slash.
1172
1173
1174.. function:: change_root(new_root, pathname)
1175
1176   Return *pathname* with *new_root* prepended.  If *pathname* is relative, this is
1177   equivalent to ``os.path.join(new_root,pathname)`` Otherwise, it requires making
1178   *pathname* relative and then joining the two, which is tricky on DOS/Windows.
1179
1180
1181.. function:: check_environ()
1182
1183   Ensure that 'os.environ' has all the environment variables we guarantee that
1184   users can use in config files, command-line options, etc.  Currently this
1185   includes:
1186
1187   * :envvar:`HOME` - user's home directory (Unix only)
1188   * :envvar:`PLAT` - description of the current platform, including hardware and
1189     OS (see :func:`get_platform`)
1190
1191
1192.. function:: subst_vars(s, local_vars)
1193
1194   Perform shell/Perl-style variable substitution on *s*.  Every occurrence of
1195   ``$`` followed by a name is considered a variable, and variable is substituted
1196   by the value found in the *local_vars* dictionary, or in ``os.environ`` if it's
1197   not in *local_vars*. *os.environ* is first checked/augmented to guarantee that
1198   it contains certain values: see :func:`check_environ`.  Raise :exc:`ValueError`
1199   for any variables not found in either *local_vars* or ``os.environ``.
1200
1201   Note that this is not a fully-fledged string interpolation function. A valid
1202   ``$variable`` can consist only of upper and lower case letters, numbers and an
1203   underscore. No { } or ( ) style quoting is available.
1204
1205
1206.. function:: split_quoted(s)
1207
1208   Split a string up according to Unix shell-like rules for quotes and backslashes.
1209   In short: words are delimited by spaces, as long as those spaces are not escaped
1210   by a backslash, or inside a quoted string. Single and double quotes are
1211   equivalent, and the quote characters can be backslash-escaped.  The backslash is
1212   stripped from any two-character escape sequence, leaving only the escaped
1213   character.  The quote characters are stripped from any quoted string.  Returns a
1214   list of words.
1215
1216   .. % Should probably be moved into the standard library.
1217
1218
1219.. function:: execute(func, args[, msg=None, verbose=0, dry_run=0])
1220
1221   Perform some action that affects the outside world (for instance, writing to the
1222   filesystem).  Such actions are special because they are disabled by the
1223   *dry_run* flag.  This method takes  care of all that bureaucracy for you; all
1224   you have to do is supply the function to call and an argument tuple for it (to
1225   embody the "external action" being performed), and an optional message to print.
1226
1227
1228.. function:: strtobool(val)
1229
1230   Convert a string representation of truth to true (1) or false (0).
1231
1232   True values are ``y``, ``yes``, ``t``, ``true``, ``on``  and ``1``; false values
1233   are ``n``, ``no``, ``f``, ``false``,  ``off`` and ``0``.  Raises
1234   :exc:`ValueError` if *val*  is anything else.
1235
1236
1237.. function:: byte_compile(py_files[, optimize=0, force=0, prefix=None, base_dir=None, verbose=1, dry_run=0, direct=None])
1238
1239   Byte-compile a collection of Python source files to :file:`.pyc` files in a
1240   :file:`__pycache__` subdirectory (see :pep:`3147` and :pep:`488`).
1241   *py_files* is a list of files to compile; any files that don't end in
1242   :file:`.py` are silently skipped.  *optimize* must be one of the following:
1243
1244   * ``0`` - don't optimize
1245   * ``1`` - normal optimization (like ``python -O``)
1246   * ``2`` - extra optimization (like ``python -OO``)
1247
1248   If *force* is true, all files are recompiled regardless of timestamps.
1249
1250   The source filename encoded in each :term:`bytecode` file defaults to the filenames
1251   listed in *py_files*; you can modify these with *prefix* and *basedir*.
1252   *prefix* is a string that will be stripped off of each source filename, and
1253   *base_dir* is a directory name that will be prepended (after *prefix* is
1254   stripped).  You can supply either or both (or neither) of *prefix* and
1255   *base_dir*, as you wish.
1256
1257   If *dry_run* is true, doesn't actually do anything that would affect the
1258   filesystem.
1259
1260   Byte-compilation is either done directly in this interpreter process with the
1261   standard :mod:`py_compile` module, or indirectly by writing a temporary script
1262   and executing it.  Normally, you should let :func:`byte_compile` figure out to
1263   use direct compilation or not (see the source for details).  The *direct* flag
1264   is used by the script generated in indirect mode; unless you know what you're
1265   doing, leave it set to ``None``.
1266
1267   .. versionchanged:: 3.2.3
1268      Create ``.pyc`` files with an :func:`import magic tag
1269      <imp.get_tag>` in their name, in a :file:`__pycache__` subdirectory
1270      instead of files without tag in the current directory.
1271
1272   .. versionchanged:: 3.5
1273      Create ``.pyc`` files according to :pep:`488`.
1274
1275
1276.. function:: rfc822_escape(header)
1277
1278   Return a version of *header* escaped for inclusion in an :rfc:`822` header, by
1279   ensuring there are 8 spaces space after each newline. Note that it does no other
1280   modification of the string.
1281
1282   .. % this _can_ be replaced
1283
1284.. % \subsection{Distutils objects}
1285
1286
1287:mod:`distutils.dist` --- The Distribution class
1288================================================
1289
1290.. module:: distutils.dist
1291   :synopsis: Provides the Distribution class, which represents the module distribution being
1292              built/installed/distributed
1293
1294
1295This module provides the :class:`~distutils.core.Distribution` class, which
1296represents the module distribution being built/installed/distributed.
1297
1298
1299:mod:`distutils.extension` --- The Extension class
1300==================================================
1301
1302.. module:: distutils.extension
1303   :synopsis: Provides the Extension class, used to describe C/C++ extension modules in setup
1304              scripts
1305
1306
1307This module provides the :class:`Extension` class, used to describe C/C++
1308extension modules in setup scripts.
1309
1310.. % \subsection{Ungrouped modules}
1311.. % The following haven't been moved into a more appropriate section yet.
1312
1313
1314:mod:`distutils.debug` --- Distutils debug mode
1315===============================================
1316
1317.. module:: distutils.debug
1318   :synopsis: Provides the debug flag for distutils
1319
1320
1321This module provides the DEBUG flag.
1322
1323
1324:mod:`distutils.errors` --- Distutils exceptions
1325================================================
1326
1327.. module:: distutils.errors
1328   :synopsis: Provides standard distutils exceptions
1329
1330
1331Provides exceptions used by the Distutils modules.  Note that Distutils modules
1332may raise standard exceptions; in particular, SystemExit is usually raised for
1333errors that are obviously the end-user's fault (eg. bad command-line arguments).
1334
1335This module is safe to use in ``from ... import *`` mode; it only exports
1336symbols whose names start with ``Distutils`` and end with ``Error``.
1337
1338
1339:mod:`distutils.fancy_getopt` --- Wrapper around the standard getopt module
1340===========================================================================
1341
1342.. module:: distutils.fancy_getopt
1343   :synopsis: Additional getopt functionality
1344
1345
1346This module provides a wrapper around the standard :mod:`getopt`  module that
1347provides the following additional features:
1348
1349* short and long options are tied together
1350
1351* options have help strings, so :func:`fancy_getopt` could potentially  create a
1352  complete usage summary
1353
1354* options set attributes of a passed-in object
1355
1356* boolean options can have "negative aliases" --- eg. if :option:`!--quiet` is
1357  the "negative alias" of :option:`!--verbose`, then :option:`!--quiet` on the
1358  command line sets *verbose* to false.
1359
1360.. function:: fancy_getopt(options, negative_opt, object, args)
1361
1362   Wrapper function. *options* is a list of ``(long_option, short_option,
1363   help_string)`` 3-tuples as described in the constructor for
1364   :class:`FancyGetopt`. *negative_opt* should be a dictionary mapping option names
1365   to option names, both the key and value should be in the *options* list.
1366   *object* is an object which will be used to store values (see the :meth:`getopt`
1367   method of the :class:`FancyGetopt` class). *args* is the argument list. Will use
1368   ``sys.argv[1:]`` if you  pass ``None`` as *args*.
1369
1370
1371.. function:: wrap_text(text, width)
1372
1373   Wraps *text* to less than *width* wide.
1374
1375
1376.. class:: FancyGetopt([option_table=None])
1377
1378   The option_table is a list of 3-tuples: ``(long_option, short_option,
1379   help_string)``
1380
1381   If an option takes an argument, its *long_option* should have ``'='`` appended;
1382   *short_option* should just be a single character, no ``':'`` in any case.
1383   *short_option* should be ``None`` if a *long_option*  doesn't have a
1384   corresponding *short_option*. All option tuples must have long options.
1385
1386The :class:`FancyGetopt` class provides the following methods:
1387
1388
1389.. method:: FancyGetopt.getopt([args=None, object=None])
1390
1391   Parse command-line options in args. Store as attributes on *object*.
1392
1393   If *args* is ``None`` or not supplied, uses ``sys.argv[1:]``.  If *object* is
1394   ``None`` or not supplied, creates a new :class:`OptionDummy` instance, stores
1395   option values there, and returns a tuple ``(args, object)``.  If *object* is
1396   supplied, it is modified in place and :func:`getopt` just returns *args*; in
1397   both cases, the returned *args* is a modified copy of the passed-in *args* list,
1398   which is left untouched.
1399
1400   .. % and args returned are?
1401
1402
1403.. method:: FancyGetopt.get_option_order()
1404
1405   Returns the list of ``(option, value)`` tuples processed by the previous run of
1406   :meth:`getopt`  Raises :exc:`RuntimeError` if :meth:`getopt` hasn't been called
1407   yet.
1408
1409
1410.. method:: FancyGetopt.generate_help([header=None])
1411
1412   Generate help text (a list of strings, one per suggested line of output) from
1413   the option table for this :class:`FancyGetopt` object.
1414
1415   If supplied, prints the supplied *header* at the top of the help.
1416
1417
1418:mod:`distutils.filelist` --- The FileList class
1419================================================
1420
1421.. module:: distutils.filelist
1422   :synopsis: The FileList class, used for poking about the file system and
1423              building lists of files.
1424
1425
1426This module provides the :class:`FileList` class, used for poking about the
1427filesystem and building lists of files.
1428
1429
1430:mod:`distutils.log` --- Simple :pep:`282`-style logging
1431========================================================
1432
1433.. module:: distutils.log
1434   :synopsis: A simple logging mechanism, :pep:`282`-style
1435
1436
1437:mod:`distutils.spawn` --- Spawn a sub-process
1438==============================================
1439
1440.. module:: distutils.spawn
1441   :synopsis: Provides the spawn() function
1442
1443
1444This module provides the :func:`spawn` function, a front-end to  various
1445platform-specific functions for launching another program in a  sub-process.
1446Also provides :func:`find_executable` to search the path for a given executable
1447name.
1448
1449
1450:mod:`distutils.sysconfig` --- System configuration information
1451===============================================================
1452
1453.. module:: distutils.sysconfig
1454   :synopsis: Low-level access to configuration information of the Python interpreter.
1455.. moduleauthor:: Fred L. Drake, Jr. <fdrake@acm.org>
1456.. moduleauthor:: Greg Ward <gward@python.net>
1457.. sectionauthor:: Fred L. Drake, Jr. <fdrake@acm.org>
1458
1459
1460The :mod:`distutils.sysconfig` module provides access to Python's low-level
1461configuration information.  The specific configuration variables available
1462depend heavily on the platform and configuration. The specific variables depend
1463on the build process for the specific version of Python being run; the variables
1464are those found in the :file:`Makefile` and configuration header that are
1465installed with Python on Unix systems.  The configuration header is called
1466:file:`pyconfig.h` for Python versions starting with 2.2, and :file:`config.h`
1467for earlier versions of Python.
1468
1469Some additional functions are provided which perform some useful manipulations
1470for other parts of the :mod:`distutils` package.
1471
1472
1473.. data:: PREFIX
1474
1475   The result of ``os.path.normpath(sys.prefix)``.
1476
1477
1478.. data:: EXEC_PREFIX
1479
1480   The result of ``os.path.normpath(sys.exec_prefix)``.
1481
1482
1483.. function:: get_config_var(name)
1484
1485   Return the value of a single variable.  This is equivalent to
1486   ``get_config_vars().get(name)``.
1487
1488
1489.. function:: get_config_vars(...)
1490
1491   Return a set of variable definitions.  If there are no arguments, this returns a
1492   dictionary mapping names of configuration variables to values.  If arguments are
1493   provided, they should be strings, and the return value will be a sequence giving
1494   the associated values. If a given name does not have a corresponding value,
1495   ``None`` will be included for that variable.
1496
1497
1498.. function:: get_config_h_filename()
1499
1500   Return the full path name of the configuration header.  For Unix, this will be
1501   the header generated by the :program:`configure` script; for other platforms the
1502   header will have been supplied directly by the Python source distribution.  The
1503   file is a platform-specific text file.
1504
1505
1506.. function:: get_makefile_filename()
1507
1508   Return the full path name of the :file:`Makefile` used to build Python.  For
1509   Unix, this will be a file generated by the :program:`configure` script; the
1510   meaning for other platforms will vary.  The file is a platform-specific text
1511   file, if it exists. This function is only useful on POSIX platforms.
1512
1513
1514.. function:: get_python_inc([plat_specific[, prefix]])
1515
1516   Return the directory for either the general or platform-dependent C include
1517   files.  If *plat_specific* is true, the platform-dependent include directory is
1518   returned; if false or omitted, the platform-independent directory is returned.
1519   If *prefix* is given, it is used as either the prefix instead of
1520   :const:`PREFIX`, or as the exec-prefix instead of :const:`EXEC_PREFIX` if
1521   *plat_specific* is true.
1522
1523
1524.. function:: get_python_lib([plat_specific[, standard_lib[, prefix]]])
1525
1526   Return the directory for either the general or platform-dependent library
1527   installation.  If *plat_specific* is true, the platform-dependent include
1528   directory is returned; if false or omitted, the platform-independent directory
1529   is returned.  If *prefix* is given, it is used as either the prefix instead of
1530   :const:`PREFIX`, or as the exec-prefix instead of :const:`EXEC_PREFIX` if
1531   *plat_specific* is true.  If *standard_lib* is true, the directory for the
1532   standard library is returned rather than the directory for the installation of
1533   third-party extensions.
1534
1535The following function is only intended for use within the :mod:`distutils`
1536package.
1537
1538
1539.. function:: customize_compiler(compiler)
1540
1541   Do any platform-specific customization of a
1542   :class:`distutils.ccompiler.CCompiler` instance.
1543
1544   This function is only needed on Unix at this time, but should be called
1545   consistently to support forward-compatibility.  It inserts the information that
1546   varies across Unix flavors and is stored in Python's :file:`Makefile`.  This
1547   information includes the selected compiler, compiler and linker options, and the
1548   extension used by the linker for shared objects.
1549
1550This function is even more special-purpose, and should only be used from
1551Python's own build procedures.
1552
1553
1554.. function:: set_python_build()
1555
1556   Inform the :mod:`distutils.sysconfig` module that it is being used as part of
1557   the build process for Python.  This changes a lot of relative locations for
1558   files, allowing them to be located in the build area rather than in an installed
1559   Python.
1560
1561
1562:mod:`distutils.text_file` --- The TextFile class
1563=================================================
1564
1565.. module:: distutils.text_file
1566   :synopsis: Provides the TextFile class, a simple interface to text files
1567
1568
1569This module provides the :class:`TextFile` class, which gives an interface  to
1570text files that (optionally) takes care of stripping comments, ignoring  blank
1571lines, and joining lines with backslashes.
1572
1573
1574.. class:: TextFile([filename=None, file=None, **options])
1575
1576   This class provides a file-like object that takes care of all  the things you
1577   commonly want to do when processing a text file  that has some line-by-line
1578   syntax: strip comments (as long as ``#``  is your comment character), skip blank
1579   lines, join adjacent lines by escaping the newline (ie. backslash at end of
1580   line), strip leading and/or trailing whitespace.  All of these are optional and
1581   independently controllable.
1582
1583   The class provides a :meth:`warn` method so you can generate  warning messages
1584   that report physical line number, even if the  logical line in question spans
1585   multiple physical lines.  Also  provides :meth:`unreadline` for implementing
1586   line-at-a-time lookahead.
1587
1588   :class:`TextFile` instances are create with either *filename*, *file*, or both.
1589   :exc:`RuntimeError` is raised if both are ``None``. *filename* should be a
1590   string, and *file* a file object (or something that provides :meth:`readline`
1591   and :meth:`close`  methods).  It is recommended that you supply at least
1592   *filename*,  so that :class:`TextFile` can include it in warning messages.  If
1593   *file* is not supplied, :class:`TextFile` creates its own using the
1594   :func:`open` built-in function.
1595
1596   The options are all boolean, and affect the values returned by :meth:`readline`
1597
1598   .. tabularcolumns:: |l|L|l|
1599
1600   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1601   | option name      | description                    | default |
1602   +==================+================================+=========+
1603   | *strip_comments* | strip from ``'#'`` to          | true    |
1604   |                  | end-of-line, as well as any    |         |
1605   |                  | whitespace leading up to the   |         |
1606   |                  | ``'#'``\ ---unless it is       |         |
1607   |                  | escaped by a backslash         |         |
1608   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1609   | *lstrip_ws*      | strip leading whitespace from  | false   |
1610   |                  | each line before returning it  |         |
1611   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1612   | *rstrip_ws*      | strip trailing whitespace      | true    |
1613   |                  | (including line terminator!)   |         |
1614   |                  | from each line before          |         |
1615   |                  | returning it.                  |         |
1616   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1617   | *skip_blanks*    | skip lines that are empty      | true    |
1618   |                  | \*after\* stripping comments   |         |
1619   |                  | and whitespace.  (If both      |         |
1620   |                  | lstrip_ws and rstrip_ws are    |         |
1621   |                  | false, then some lines may     |         |
1622   |                  | consist of solely whitespace:  |         |
1623   |                  | these will \*not\* be skipped, |         |
1624   |                  | even if *skip_blanks* is       |         |
1625   |                  | true.)                         |         |
1626   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1627   | *join_lines*     | if a backslash is the last     | false   |
1628   |                  | non-newline character on a     |         |
1629   |                  | line after stripping comments  |         |
1630   |                  | and whitespace, join the       |         |
1631   |                  | following line to it to form   |         |
1632   |                  | one logical line; if N         |         |
1633   |                  | consecutive lines end with a   |         |
1634   |                  | backslash, then N+1 physical   |         |
1635   |                  | lines will be joined to form   |         |
1636   |                  | one logical line.              |         |
1637   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1638   | *collapse_join*  | strip leading whitespace from  | false   |
1639   |                  | lines that are joined to their |         |
1640   |                  | predecessor; only matters if   |         |
1641   |                  | ``(join_lines and not          |         |
1642   |                  | lstrip_ws)``                   |         |
1643   +------------------+--------------------------------+---------+
1644
1645   Note that since *rstrip_ws* can strip the trailing newline, the semantics of
1646   :meth:`readline` must differ from those of the built-in file object's
1647   :meth:`readline` method!  In particular, :meth:`readline`  returns ``None`` for
1648   end-of-file: an empty string might just be a  blank line (or an all-whitespace
1649   line), if *rstrip_ws* is true  but *skip_blanks* is not.
1650
1651
1652   .. method:: TextFile.open(filename)
1653
1654      Open a new file *filename*.  This overrides any *file* or *filename*
1655      constructor arguments.
1656
1657
1658   .. method:: TextFile.close()
1659
1660      Close the current file and forget everything we know about it (including the
1661      filename and the current line number).
1662
1663
1664   .. method:: TextFile.warn(msg[,line=None])
1665
1666      Print (to stderr) a warning message tied to the current logical line in the
1667      current file.  If the current logical line in the file spans multiple physical
1668      lines, the warning refers to the whole range, such as ``"lines 3-5"``.  If
1669      *line* is supplied,  it overrides the current line number; it may be a list or
1670      tuple  to indicate a range of physical lines, or an integer for a  single
1671      physical line.
1672
1673
1674   .. method:: TextFile.readline()
1675
1676      Read and return a single logical line from the current file (or from an internal
1677      buffer if lines have previously been "unread" with :meth:`unreadline`).  If the
1678      *join_lines* option  is true, this may involve reading multiple physical lines
1679      concatenated into a single string.  Updates the current line number,  so calling
1680      :meth:`warn` after :meth:`readline` emits a warning  about the physical line(s)
1681      just read.  Returns ``None`` on end-of-file,  since the empty string can occur
1682      if *rstrip_ws* is true but  *strip_blanks* is not.
1683
1684
1685   .. method:: TextFile.readlines()
1686
1687      Read and return the list of all logical lines remaining in the current file.
1688      This updates the current line number to the last line of the file.
1689
1690
1691   .. method:: TextFile.unreadline(line)
1692
1693      Push *line* (a string) onto an internal buffer that will be checked by future
1694      :meth:`readline` calls.  Handy for implementing a parser with line-at-a-time
1695      lookahead. Note that lines that are "unread" with :meth:`unreadline` are not
1696      subsequently re-cleansed (whitespace  stripped, or whatever) when read with
1697      :meth:`readline`. If multiple calls are made to :meth:`unreadline` before a call
1698      to :meth:`readline`, the lines will be returned most in most recent first order.
1699
1700
1701:mod:`distutils.version` --- Version number classes
1702===================================================
1703
1704.. module:: distutils.version
1705   :synopsis: Implements classes that represent module version numbers.
1706
1707
1708.. % todo
1709.. % \section{Distutils Commands}
1710.. %
1711.. % This part of Distutils implements the various Distutils commands, such
1712.. % as \code{build}, \code{install} \&c. Each command is implemented as a
1713.. % separate module, with the command name as the name of the module.
1714
1715
1716:mod:`distutils.cmd` --- Abstract base class for Distutils commands
1717===================================================================
1718
1719.. module:: distutils.cmd
1720   :synopsis: Provides the abstract base class :class:`~distutils.cmd.Command`. This class
1721              is subclassed by the modules in the distutils.command subpackage.
1722
1723
1724This module supplies the abstract base class :class:`Command`.
1725
1726
1727.. class:: Command(dist)
1728
1729   Abstract base class for defining command classes, the "worker bees" of the
1730   Distutils.  A useful analogy for command classes is to think of them as
1731   subroutines with local variables called *options*.  The options are declared
1732   in :meth:`initialize_options` and defined (given their final values) in
1733   :meth:`finalize_options`, both of which must be defined by every command
1734   class.  The distinction between the two is necessary because option values
1735   might come from the outside world (command line, config file, ...), and any
1736   options dependent on other options must be computed after these outside
1737   influences have been processed --- hence :meth:`finalize_options`.  The body
1738   of the subroutine, where it does all its work based on the values of its
1739   options, is the :meth:`run` method, which must also be implemented by every
1740   command class.
1741
1742   The class constructor takes a single argument *dist*, a
1743   :class:`~distutils.core.Distribution` instance.
1744
1745
1746Creating a new Distutils command
1747================================
1748
1749This section outlines the steps to create a new Distutils command.
1750
1751A new command lives in a module in the :mod:`distutils.command` package. There
1752is a sample template in that directory called :file:`command_template`.  Copy
1753this file to a new module with the same name as the new command you're
1754implementing.  This module should implement a class with the same name as the
1755module (and the command).  So, for instance, to create the command
1756``peel_banana`` (so that users can run ``setup.py peel_banana``), you'd copy
1757:file:`command_template` to :file:`distutils/command/peel_banana.py`, then edit
1758it so that it's implementing the class :class:`peel_banana`, a subclass of
1759:class:`distutils.cmd.Command`.
1760
1761Subclasses of :class:`Command` must define the following methods.
1762
1763.. method:: Command.initialize_options()
1764
1765   Set default values for all the options that this command supports.  Note that
1766   these defaults may be overridden by other commands, by the setup script, by
1767   config files, or by the command-line.  Thus, this is not the place to code
1768   dependencies between options; generally, :meth:`initialize_options`
1769   implementations are just a bunch of ``self.foo = None`` assignments.
1770
1771
1772.. method:: Command.finalize_options()
1773
1774   Set final values for all the options that this command supports. This is
1775   always called as late as possible, ie.  after any option assignments from the
1776   command-line or from other commands have been done.  Thus, this is the place
1777   to code option dependencies: if *foo* depends on *bar*, then it is safe to
1778   set *foo* from *bar* as long as *foo* still has the same value it was
1779   assigned in :meth:`initialize_options`.
1780
1781
1782.. method:: Command.run()
1783
1784   A command's raison d'etre: carry out the action it exists to perform, controlled
1785   by the options initialized in :meth:`initialize_options`, customized by other
1786   commands, the setup script, the command-line, and config files, and finalized in
1787   :meth:`finalize_options`.  All terminal output and filesystem interaction should
1788   be done by :meth:`run`.
1789
1790
1791.. attribute:: Command.sub_commands
1792
1793   *sub_commands* formalizes the notion of a "family" of commands,
1794   e.g. ``install`` as the parent with sub-commands ``install_lib``,
1795   ``install_headers``, etc.  The parent of a family of commands defines
1796   *sub_commands* as a class attribute; it's a list of 2-tuples ``(command_name,
1797   predicate)``, with *command_name* a string and *predicate* a function, a
1798   string or ``None``.  *predicate* is a method of the parent command that
1799   determines whether the corresponding command is applicable in the current
1800   situation.  (E.g. ``install_headers`` is only applicable if we have any C
1801   header files to install.)  If *predicate* is ``None``, that command is always
1802   applicable.
1803
1804   *sub_commands* is usually defined at the *end* of a class, because
1805   predicates can be methods of the class, so they must already have been
1806   defined.  The canonical example is the :command:`install` command.
1807
1808
1809:mod:`distutils.command` --- Individual Distutils commands
1810==========================================================
1811
1812.. module:: distutils.command
1813   :synopsis: Contains one module for each standard Distutils command.
1814
1815
1816.. % \subsubsection{Individual Distutils commands}
1817.. % todo
1818
1819
1820:mod:`distutils.command.bdist` --- Build a binary installer
1821===========================================================
1822
1823.. module:: distutils.command.bdist
1824   :synopsis: Build a binary installer for a package
1825
1826
1827.. % todo
1828
1829
1830:mod:`distutils.command.bdist_packager` --- Abstract base class for packagers
1831=============================================================================
1832
1833.. module:: distutils.command.bdist_packager
1834   :synopsis: Abstract base class for packagers
1835
1836
1837.. % todo
1838
1839
1840:mod:`distutils.command.bdist_dumb` --- Build a "dumb" installer
1841================================================================
1842
1843.. module:: distutils.command.bdist_dumb
1844   :synopsis: Build a "dumb" installer - a simple archive of files
1845
1846
1847.. % todo
1848
1849
1850:mod:`distutils.command.bdist_msi` --- Build a Microsoft Installer binary package
1851=================================================================================
1852
1853.. module:: distutils.command.bdist_msi
1854   :synopsis: Build a binary distribution as a Windows MSI file
1855
1856.. class:: bdist_msi
1857
1858.. deprecated:: 3.9
1859   Use bdist_wheel (wheel packages) instead.
1860
1861   Builds a `Windows Installer`_ (.msi) binary package.
1862
1863   .. _Windows Installer: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/cc185688(VS.85).aspx
1864
1865   In most cases, the ``bdist_msi`` installer is a better choice than the
1866   ``bdist_wininst`` installer, because it provides better support for
1867   Win64 platforms, allows administrators to perform non-interactive
1868   installations, and allows installation through group policies.
1869
1870
1871:mod:`distutils.command.bdist_rpm` --- Build a binary distribution as a Redhat RPM and SRPM
1872===========================================================================================
1873
1874.. module:: distutils.command.bdist_rpm
1875   :synopsis: Build a binary distribution as a Redhat RPM and SRPM
1876
1877
1878.. % todo
1879
1880
1881:mod:`distutils.command.bdist_wininst` --- Build a Windows installer
1882====================================================================
1883
1884.. module:: distutils.command.bdist_wininst
1885   :synopsis: Build a Windows installer
1886
1887.. deprecated:: 3.8
1888   Use bdist_wheel (wheel packages) instead.
1889
1890
1891.. % todo
1892
1893
1894:mod:`distutils.command.sdist` --- Build a source distribution
1895==============================================================
1896
1897.. module:: distutils.command.sdist
1898   :synopsis: Build a source distribution
1899
1900
1901.. % todo
1902
1903
1904:mod:`distutils.command.build` --- Build all files of a package
1905===============================================================
1906
1907.. module:: distutils.command.build
1908   :synopsis: Build all files of a package
1909
1910
1911.. % todo
1912
1913
1914:mod:`distutils.command.build_clib` --- Build any C libraries in a package
1915==========================================================================
1916
1917.. module:: distutils.command.build_clib
1918   :synopsis: Build any C libraries in a package
1919
1920
1921.. % todo
1922
1923
1924:mod:`distutils.command.build_ext` --- Build any extensions in a package
1925========================================================================
1926
1927.. module:: distutils.command.build_ext
1928   :synopsis: Build any extensions in a package
1929
1930
1931.. % todo
1932
1933
1934:mod:`distutils.command.build_py` --- Build the .py/.pyc files of a package
1935===========================================================================
1936
1937.. module:: distutils.command.build_py
1938   :synopsis: Build the .py/.pyc files of a package
1939
1940
1941.. class:: build_py
1942
1943.. class:: build_py_2to3
1944
1945   Alternative implementation of build_py which also runs the
1946   2to3 conversion library on each .py file that is going to be
1947   installed. To use this in a setup.py file for a distribution
1948   that is designed to run with both Python 2.x and 3.x, add::
1949
1950     try:
1951         from distutils.command.build_py import build_py_2to3 as build_py
1952     except ImportError:
1953         from distutils.command.build_py import build_py
1954
1955   to your setup.py, and later::
1956
1957      cmdclass = {'build_py': build_py}
1958
1959   to the invocation of setup().
1960
1961
1962:mod:`distutils.command.build_scripts` --- Build the scripts of a package
1963=========================================================================
1964
1965.. module:: distutils.command.build_scripts
1966   :synopsis: Build the scripts of a package
1967
1968
1969.. % todo
1970
1971
1972:mod:`distutils.command.clean` --- Clean a package build area
1973=============================================================
1974
1975.. module:: distutils.command.clean
1976   :synopsis: Clean a package build area
1977
1978This command removes the temporary files created by :command:`build`
1979and its subcommands, like intermediary compiled object files.  With
1980the ``--all`` option, the complete build directory will be removed.
1981
1982Extension modules built :ref:`in place <distutils-build-ext-inplace>`
1983will not be cleaned, as they are not in the build directory.
1984
1985
1986:mod:`distutils.command.config` --- Perform package configuration
1987=================================================================
1988
1989.. module:: distutils.command.config
1990   :synopsis: Perform package configuration
1991
1992
1993.. % todo
1994
1995
1996:mod:`distutils.command.install` --- Install a package
1997======================================================
1998
1999.. module:: distutils.command.install
2000   :synopsis: Install a package
2001
2002
2003.. % todo
2004
2005
2006:mod:`distutils.command.install_data` --- Install data files from a package
2007===========================================================================
2008
2009.. module:: distutils.command.install_data
2010   :synopsis: Install data files from a package
2011
2012
2013.. % todo
2014
2015
2016:mod:`distutils.command.install_headers` --- Install C/C++ header files from a package
2017======================================================================================
2018
2019.. module:: distutils.command.install_headers
2020   :synopsis: Install C/C++ header files from a package
2021
2022
2023.. % todo
2024
2025
2026:mod:`distutils.command.install_lib` --- Install library files from a package
2027=============================================================================
2028
2029.. module:: distutils.command.install_lib
2030   :synopsis: Install library files from a package
2031
2032
2033.. % todo
2034
2035
2036:mod:`distutils.command.install_scripts` --- Install script files from a package
2037================================================================================
2038
2039.. module:: distutils.command.install_scripts
2040   :synopsis: Install script files from a package
2041
2042
2043.. % todo
2044
2045
2046:mod:`distutils.command.register` --- Register a module with the Python Package Index
2047=====================================================================================
2048
2049.. module:: distutils.command.register
2050   :synopsis: Register a module with the Python Package Index
2051
2052
2053The ``register`` command registers the package with the Python Package  Index.
2054This is described in more detail in :pep:`301`.
2055
2056.. % todo
2057
2058
2059:mod:`distutils.command.check` --- Check the meta-data of a package
2060===================================================================
2061
2062.. module:: distutils.command.check
2063   :synopsis: Check the meta-data of a package
2064
2065
2066The ``check`` command performs some tests on the meta-data of a package.
2067For example, it verifies that all required meta-data are provided as
2068the arguments passed to the :func:`setup` function.
2069
2070.. % todo
2071