Python Standalone Builds

This project produces self-contained, highly-portable Python distributions. These Python distributions contain a fully-usable, full-featured Python installation as well as their build artifacts (object files, libraries, etc).

The included build artifacts can be recombined by downstream repackagers to derive a custom Python distribution, possibly without certain features like SQLite and OpenSSL. This is useful for embedding Python in a larger binary, where a full Python is often not needed and where interfacing with the Python C API is desirable. (See the PyOxidizer sister project for such a downstream repackager.)

The Python distributions are built in a manner to minimize run-time dependencies. This includes limiting the CPU instructions that can be used and limiting the set of shared libraries required at run-time. The goal is for the produced distribution to work on any system for the targeted architecture.

Contents:

• Building
  • Linux
  • macOS
  • Windows
  • Using sccache to Speed up Builds
• Running Distributions
  • Extracting Distributions
  • Runtime Requirements
  • Licensing
  • Reconsuming Build Artifacts
• Behavior Quirks
  • Backscape Key Doesn’t work in Python REPL
  • Tcl/tk Support Files
  • No tix on macOS
  • No pip.exe on Windows
  • Windows Static Distributions are Extremely Brittle
  • Linking Static Library on macOS
  • Use of libedit on Linux
  • Static Linking of musl libc Prevents Extension Module Library Loading
  • Static Linking of libX11 / Incompatibility with PyQt on Linux
• Technical Notes
  • How It Works
  • Setup.local Hackery
  • Dependency Notes
  • Upgrading CPython
• Distribution Archives
  • PYTHON.json File
• Project Status
  • Target Notes
  • Test Failures
  • Test Skips

Indices and tables

• Index

• Search Page