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The search for pyvenv.cfg doesn't match PEP 405 #77483
Description
| BPO | 33302 |
|---|---|
| Nosy | @mattheww |
Note: these values reflect the state of the issue at the time it was migrated and might not reflect the current state.
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GitHub fields:
assignee = None
closed_at = None
created_at = <Date 2018-04-17.21:48:27.965>
labels = ['interpreter-core', 'type-bug', '3.7']
title = "The search for pyvenv.cfg doesn't match PEP 405"
updated_at = <Date 2018-04-17.21:48:27.965>
user = 'https://github.com/mattheww'bugs.python.org fields:
activity = <Date 2018-04-17.21:48:27.965>
actor = 'mattheww'
assignee = 'none'
closed = False
closed_date = None
closer = None
components = ['Interpreter Core']
creation = <Date 2018-04-17.21:48:27.965>
creator = 'mattheww'
dependencies = []
files = []
hgrepos = []
issue_num = 33302
keywords = []
message_count = 1.0
messages = ['315424']
nosy_count = 1.0
nosy_names = ['mattheww']
pr_nums = []
priority = 'normal'
resolution = None
stage = None
status = 'open'
superseder = None
type = 'behavior'
url = 'https://bugs.python.org/issue33302'
versions = ['Python 3.5', 'Python 3.6', 'Python 3.7']
Activity
mattheww commentedon Apr 17, 2018
PEP-405 says that the pyvenv.cfg file is found as follows:
« a pyvenv.cfg file is found either adjacent to the Python executable or one directory above it (if the executable is a symlink, it is not dereferenced), »
But in cpython if the executable is a symlink, it _is_ dereferenced before searching for pyvenv.cfg .
I've checked this behaviour with Python 3.5, 3.6, and today's 3.7 tip.
Looking in 3.7's getpath.c, calculate_path_impl() calls, in order:
It looks like the symlink resolution happens near the end of calculate_argv0_path().
I think this means that the 'home=' line in pyvenv.cfg files generated by the 'venv' module is irrelevant (and seems likely to confuse anyone who might try to construct a Python environment by imitating a built venv).
mattheww commentedon Sep 6, 2026
I think this was fixed by #29041 (for Python 3.11) and Python now behaves as PEP 405 said it should.