Distributing Python Modules¶
| Authors: | Greg Ward, Anthony Baxter |
|---|---|
| Email: | distutils-sig@python.org |
| Release: | 3.0 |
| Date: | August 10, 2025 |
This document describes the Python Distribution Utilities (“Distutils”) from the module developer’s point of view, describing how to use the Distutils to make Python modules and extensions easily available to a wider audience with very little overhead for build/release/install mechanics.
- An Introduction to Distutils
- Writing the Setup Script
- Writing the Setup Configuration File
- Creating a Source Distribution
- Creating Built Distributions
- Registering with the Package Index
- Uploading Packages to the Package Index
- Examples
- Extending Distutils
- Command Reference
- API Reference
distutils.core— Core Distutils functionalitydistutils.ccompiler— CCompiler base classdistutils.unixccompiler— Unix C Compilerdistutils.msvccompiler— Microsoft Compilerdistutils.bcppcompiler— Borland Compilerdistutils.cygwincompiler— Cygwin Compilerdistutils.emxccompiler— OS/2 EMX Compilerdistutils.mwerkscompiler— Metrowerks CodeWarrior supportdistutils.archive_util— Archiving utilitiesdistutils.dep_util— Dependency checkingdistutils.dir_util— Directory tree operationsdistutils.file_util— Single file operationsdistutils.util— Miscellaneous other utility functionsdistutils.dist— The Distribution classdistutils.extension— The Extension classdistutils.debug— Distutils debug modedistutils.errors— Distutils exceptionsdistutils.fancy_getopt— Wrapper around the standard getopt moduledistutils.filelist— The FileList classdistutils.log— Simple PEP 282-style loggingdistutils.spawn— Spawn a sub-processdistutils.sysconfig— System configuration informationdistutils.text_file— The TextFile classdistutils.version— Version number classesdistutils.cmd— Abstract base class for Distutils commandsdistutils.command— Individual Distutils commandsdistutils.command.bdist— Build a binary installerdistutils.command.bdist_packager— Abstract base class for packagersdistutils.command.bdist_dumb— Build a “dumb” installerdistutils.command.bdist_msi— Build a Microsoft Installer binary packagedistutils.command.bdist_rpm— Build a binary distribution as a Redhat RPM and SRPMdistutils.command.bdist_wininst— Build a Windows installerdistutils.command.sdist— Build a source distributiondistutils.command.build— Build all files of a packagedistutils.command.build_clib— Build any C libraries in a packagedistutils.command.build_ext— Build any extensions in a packagedistutils.command.build_py— Build the .py/.pyc files of a packagedistutils.command.build_scripts— Build the scripts of a packagedistutils.command.clean— Clean a package build areadistutils.command.config— Perform package configurationdistutils.command.install— Install a packagedistutils.command.install_data— Install data files from a packagedistutils.command.install_headers— Install C/C++ header files from a packagedistutils.command.install_lib— Install library files from a packagedistutils.command.install_scripts— Install script files from a packagedistutils.command.register— Register a module with the Python Package Index- Creating a new Distutils command