A library which implements low-level functions that relate to packaging and distribution of Python

What is it?

Distlib is a library which implements low-level functions that relate to
packaging and distribution of Python software. It is intended to be used as the
basis for third-party packaging tools. The documentation is available at

https://distlib.readthedocs.io/

Main features

Distlib currently offers the following features:

The package distlib.database, which implements a database of installed
distributions, as defined by PEP 376, and distribution dependency graph
logic. Support is also provided for non-installed distributions (i.e.
distributions registered with metadata on an index like PyPI), including
the ability to scan for dependencies and building dependency graphs.
The package distlib.index, which implements an interface to perform
operations on an index, such as registering a project, uploading a
distribution or uploading documentation. Support is included for verifying
SSL connections (with domain matching) and signing/verifying packages using
GnuPG.
The package distlib.metadata, which implements distribution metadata as
defined by PEP 426, PEP 345, PEP 314 and PEP 241.
The package distlib.markers, which implements environment markers as
defined by PEP 426.
The package distlib.manifest, which implements lists of files used
in packaging source distributions.
The package distlib.locators, which allows finding distributions, whether
on PyPI (XML-RPC or via the “simple” interface), local directories or some
other source.
The package distlib.resources, which allows access to data files stored
in Python packages, both in the file system and in .zip files.
The package distlib.scripts, which allows installing of scripts with
adjustment of shebang lines and support for native Windows executable
launchers.
The package distlib.version, which implements version specifiers as
defined by PEP 440 / PEP 426, but also support for working with
“legacy” versions (setuptools/distribute) and semantic versions.
The package distlib.wheel, which provides support for building and
installing from the Wheel format for binary distributions (see PEP 427).
The package distlib.util, which contains miscellaneous functions and
classes which are useful in packaging, but which do not fit neatly into
one of the other packages in distlib.* The package implements enhanced
globbing functionality such as the ability to use ** in patterns to
specify recursing into subdirectories.

Python version and platform compatibility

Distlib is intended to be used on any Python version >= 2.7 and is tested on
Python versions 2.7 and 3.3-3.6 on Linux, Windows, and Mac OS X (not
all versions are tested on all platforms, but are expected to work correctly).

Project status

The project has reached a mature status in its development: there is a test
suite and it has been exercised on Windows, Ubuntu and Mac OS X. The project is
used by well-known projects such as pip and
caniusepython3.

Code of Conduct

Everyone interacting in the distlib project’s codebases, issue trackers, chat
rooms, and mailing lists is expected to follow the PyPA Code of Conduct.