From d2ce6d708a9eaac4e546744ca4da359ee6901ebc Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Petr Viktorin Date: Thu, 6 Nov 2025 11:49:44 +0100 Subject: [PATCH] gh-139707: Add docs for optional modules (GH-140171) Co-authored-by: Stan Ulbrych <89152624+StanFromIreland@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: Hugo van Kemenade <1324225+hugovk@users.noreply.github.com> Co-authored-by: Emma Smith Co-authored-by: Author: Terry Jan Reedy Co-authored-by: Victor Stinner --- Doc/glossary.rst | 9 ++ Doc/includes/optional-module.rst | 9 ++ Doc/library/bz2.rst | 2 + Doc/library/compression.zstd.rst | 2 + Doc/library/ctypes.rst | 2 + Doc/library/curses.rst | 2 + Doc/library/ensurepip.rst | 2 + Doc/library/gzip.rst | 2 + Doc/library/idle.rst | 4 + Doc/library/lzma.rst | 2 + Doc/library/readline.rst | 2 + Doc/library/sqlite3.rst | 4 +- Doc/library/ssl.rst | 5 +- Doc/library/tarfile.rst | 8 ++ Doc/library/tkinter.rst | 2 + Doc/library/turtle.rst | 2 + Doc/library/zipfile.rst | 10 ++ Doc/library/zlib.rst | 6 +- Doc/using/configure.rst | 206 +++++++++++++++++++++---------- Doc/using/unix.rst | 12 +- 20 files changed, 216 insertions(+), 77 deletions(-) create mode 100644 Doc/includes/optional-module.rst diff --git a/Doc/glossary.rst b/Doc/glossary.rst index c0ca0be304eb..a4066d42927f 100644 --- a/Doc/glossary.rst +++ b/Doc/glossary.rst @@ -1025,6 +1025,15 @@ Glossary applied to all scopes, only those relying on a known set of local and nonlocal variable names are restricted to optimized scopes. + optional module + An :term:`extension module` that is part of the :term:`standard library`, + but may be absent in some builds of :term:`CPython`, + usually due to missing third-party libraries or because the module + is not available for a given platform. + + See :ref:`optional-module-requirements` for a list of optional modules + that require third-party libraries. + package A Python :term:`module` which can contain submodules or recursively, subpackages. Technically, a package is a Python module with a diff --git a/Doc/includes/optional-module.rst b/Doc/includes/optional-module.rst new file mode 100644 index 000000000000..262e73f2eaa0 --- /dev/null +++ b/Doc/includes/optional-module.rst @@ -0,0 +1,9 @@ +This is an :term:`optional module`. +If it is missing from your copy of CPython, +look for documentation from your distributor (that is, +whoever provided Python to you). +If you are the distributor, see :ref:`optional-module-requirements`. + +.. Similar notes appear in the docs of the modules: + - zipfile + - tarfile diff --git a/Doc/library/bz2.rst b/Doc/library/bz2.rst index ebe2e43febae..12650861c0fb 100644 --- a/Doc/library/bz2.rst +++ b/Doc/library/bz2.rst @@ -25,6 +25,8 @@ The :mod:`bz2` module contains: * The :func:`compress` and :func:`decompress` functions for one-shot (de)compression. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + (De)compression of files ------------------------ diff --git a/Doc/library/compression.zstd.rst b/Doc/library/compression.zstd.rst index a901403621b8..89b6fe540f5b 100644 --- a/Doc/library/compression.zstd.rst +++ b/Doc/library/compression.zstd.rst @@ -33,6 +33,8 @@ The :mod:`!compression.zstd` module contains: * The :class:`CompressionParameter`, :class:`DecompressionParameter`, and :class:`Strategy` classes for setting advanced (de)compression parameters. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + Exceptions ---------- diff --git a/Doc/library/ctypes.rst b/Doc/library/ctypes.rst index d8dac24c8ab5..9c0b246c0954 100644 --- a/Doc/library/ctypes.rst +++ b/Doc/library/ctypes.rst @@ -14,6 +14,8 @@ data types, and allows calling functions in DLLs or shared libraries. It can be used to wrap these libraries in pure Python. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. _ctypes-ctypes-tutorial: diff --git a/Doc/library/curses.rst b/Doc/library/curses.rst index e60197ddd89a..057d338edda9 100644 --- a/Doc/library/curses.rst +++ b/Doc/library/curses.rst @@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ Linux and the BSD variants of Unix. .. include:: ../includes/wasm-mobile-notavail.rst +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. note:: Whenever the documentation mentions a *character* it can be specified diff --git a/Doc/library/ensurepip.rst b/Doc/library/ensurepip.rst index fa102c4a0801..165b9a9f8231 100644 --- a/Doc/library/ensurepip.rst +++ b/Doc/library/ensurepip.rst @@ -30,6 +30,8 @@ when creating a virtual environment) or after explicitly uninstalling needed to bootstrap ``pip`` are included as internal parts of the package. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. seealso:: :ref:`installing-index` diff --git a/Doc/library/gzip.rst b/Doc/library/gzip.rst index 4bdcec66088d..cb36be42a83f 100644 --- a/Doc/library/gzip.rst +++ b/Doc/library/gzip.rst @@ -11,6 +11,8 @@ This module provides a simple interface to compress and decompress files just like the GNU programs :program:`gzip` and :program:`gunzip` would. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + The data compression is provided by the :mod:`zlib` module. The :mod:`gzip` module provides the :class:`GzipFile` class, as well as the diff --git a/Doc/library/idle.rst b/Doc/library/idle.rst index 10ec7f0a6f14..52e3726a0f5a 100644 --- a/Doc/library/idle.rst +++ b/Doc/library/idle.rst @@ -37,6 +37,10 @@ IDLE has the following features: * configuration, browsers, and other dialogs +The IDLE application is implemented in the :mod:`idlelib` package. + +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + Menus ----- diff --git a/Doc/library/lzma.rst b/Doc/library/lzma.rst index 69f7cb8d48d7..8a4f68f35025 100644 --- a/Doc/library/lzma.rst +++ b/Doc/library/lzma.rst @@ -23,6 +23,8 @@ module. Note that :class:`LZMAFile` and :class:`bz2.BZ2File` are *not* thread-safe, so if you need to use a single :class:`LZMAFile` instance from multiple threads, it is necessary to protect it with a lock. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. exception:: LZMAError diff --git a/Doc/library/readline.rst b/Doc/library/readline.rst index f649fce5efc3..75db832c546b 100644 --- a/Doc/library/readline.rst +++ b/Doc/library/readline.rst @@ -26,6 +26,8 @@ Readline library in general. .. include:: ../includes/wasm-mobile-notavail.rst +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. note:: The underlying Readline library API may be implemented by diff --git a/Doc/library/sqlite3.rst b/Doc/library/sqlite3.rst index 9d56e81dee10..3b1a9c2f6eef 100644 --- a/Doc/library/sqlite3.rst +++ b/Doc/library/sqlite3.rst @@ -31,7 +31,9 @@ PostgreSQL or Oracle. The :mod:`!sqlite3` module was written by Gerhard Häring. It provides an SQL interface compliant with the DB-API 2.0 specification described by :pep:`249`, and -requires SQLite 3.15.2 or newer. +requires the third-party `SQLite `_ library. + +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst This document includes four main sections: diff --git a/Doc/library/ssl.rst b/Doc/library/ssl.rst index e0d85c852fa6..fa0a52347204 100644 --- a/Doc/library/ssl.rst +++ b/Doc/library/ssl.rst @@ -18,8 +18,9 @@ This module provides access to Transport Layer Security (often known as "Secure Sockets Layer") encryption and peer authentication facilities for network sockets, both client-side and server-side. This module uses the OpenSSL -library. It is available on all modern Unix systems, Windows, macOS, and -probably additional platforms, as long as OpenSSL is installed on that platform. +library. + +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst .. note:: diff --git a/Doc/library/tarfile.rst b/Doc/library/tarfile.rst index c4614bf28a4a..5ff8502bbe21 100644 --- a/Doc/library/tarfile.rst +++ b/Doc/library/tarfile.rst @@ -21,6 +21,14 @@ Some facts and figures: * reads and writes :mod:`gzip`, :mod:`bz2`, :mod:`compression.zstd`, and :mod:`lzma` compressed archives if the respective modules are available. + .. + The following paragraph should be similar to ../includes/optional-module.rst + + If any of these :term:`optional modules ` are missing from + your copy of CPython, look for documentation from your distributor (that is, + whoever provided Python to you). + If you are the distributor, see :ref:`optional-module-requirements`. + * read/write support for the POSIX.1-1988 (ustar) format. * read/write support for the GNU tar format including *longname* and *longlink* diff --git a/Doc/library/tkinter.rst b/Doc/library/tkinter.rst index 22e08c45d01e..81177533be84 100644 --- a/Doc/library/tkinter.rst +++ b/Doc/library/tkinter.rst @@ -36,6 +36,8 @@ details that are unchanged. Most documentation you will find online still uses the old API and can be woefully outdated. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + .. seealso:: * `TkDocs `_ diff --git a/Doc/library/turtle.rst b/Doc/library/turtle.rst index b687231bd489..58b99e0d4417 100644 --- a/Doc/library/turtle.rst +++ b/Doc/library/turtle.rst @@ -29,6 +29,8 @@ introduced in Logo `_, developed by Wally Feurzeig, Seymour Papert and Cynthia Solomon in 1967. +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst + Get started =========== diff --git a/Doc/library/zipfile.rst b/Doc/library/zipfile.rst index f6ec33640b60..5a8bbc8c1aed 100644 --- a/Doc/library/zipfile.rst +++ b/Doc/library/zipfile.rst @@ -23,6 +23,16 @@ decryption of encrypted files in ZIP archives, but it currently cannot create an encrypted file. Decryption is extremely slow as it is implemented in native Python rather than C. +.. + The following paragraph should be similar to ../includes/optional-module.rst + +Handling compressed archives requires :term:`optional modules ` +such as :mod:`zlib`, :mod:`bz2`, :mod:`lzma`, and :mod:`compression.zstd`. +If any of them are missing from your copy of CPython, +look for documentation from your distributor (that is, +whoever provided Python to you). +If you are the distributor, see :ref:`optional-module-requirements`. + The module defines the following items: .. exception:: BadZipFile diff --git a/Doc/library/zlib.rst b/Doc/library/zlib.rst index b961f7113d36..ce0a22b9456d 100644 --- a/Doc/library/zlib.rst +++ b/Doc/library/zlib.rst @@ -8,9 +8,9 @@ -------------- For applications that require data compression, the functions in this module -allow compression and decompression, using the zlib library. The zlib library -has its own home page at https://www.zlib.net. zlib 1.2.2.1 is the minium -supported version. +allow compression and decompression, using the `zlib library `_. + +.. include:: ../includes/optional-module.rst zlib's functions have many options and often need to be used in a particular order. This documentation doesn't attempt to cover all of the permutations; diff --git a/Doc/using/configure.rst b/Doc/using/configure.rst index 1f773a3a547c..cdadbe514174 100644 --- a/Doc/using/configure.rst +++ b/Doc/using/configure.rst @@ -4,10 +4,13 @@ Configure Python .. highlight:: sh + +.. _build-requirements: + Build Requirements ================== -Features and minimum versions required to build CPython: +To build CPython, you will need: * A `C11 `_ compiler. `Optional C11 features @@ -22,83 +25,136 @@ Features and minimum versions required to build CPython: * Support for threads. -To build optional modules: - -* `libbz2 `_ for the :mod:`bz2` module. - -* `libb2 `_ (:ref:`BLAKE2 `) - for the :mod:`hashlib` module. - -* `libffi `_ 3.3.0 is the recommended - minimum version for the :mod:`ctypes` module. - -* ``liblzma`` for the :mod:`lzma` module. - -* `libmpdec `_ 2.5.0 - for the :mod:`decimal` module. - -* ``libncurses`` or ``libncursesw`` for the :mod:`curses` module. - -* ``libpanel`` or ``libpanelw`` for the :mod:`curses.panel` module. - -* `libreadline `_ or - `libedit `_ - for the :mod:`readline` module. - -* `libuuid `_ for the :mod:`uuid` module. - -* `OpenSSL `_ 1.1.1 is the minimum version and - OpenSSL 3.0.18 is the recommended minimum version for the - :mod:`ssl` and :mod:`hashlib` extension modules. +.. versionchanged:: 3.5 + On Windows, Visual Studio 2015 or later is now required. -* `SQLite `_ 3.15.2 for the :mod:`sqlite3` extension module. +.. versionchanged:: 3.6 + Selected C99 features, like ```` and ``static inline`` functions, + are now required. -* `Tcl/Tk `_ 8.5.12 for the :mod:`tkinter` module. +.. versionchanged:: 3.7 + Thread support is now required. -* `zlib `_ 1.2.2.1 is the minimum version for the - :mod:`zlib` module. +.. versionchanged:: 3.11 + C11 compiler, IEEE 754 and NaN support are now required. + On Windows, Visual Studio 2017 or later is required. -* `zstd `_ 1.4.5 is the minimum version for - the :mod:`compression.zstd` module. +See also :pep:`7` "Style Guide for C Code" and :pep:`11` "CPython platform +support". -For a full list of dependencies required to build all modules and how to install -them, see the -`devguide `_. -* Autoconf 2.72 and aclocal 1.16.5 are required to regenerate the - :file:`configure` script. +.. _optional-module-requirements: + +Requirements for optional modules +--------------------------------- + +Some :term:`optional modules ` of the standard library +require third-party libraries installed for development +(for example, header files must be available). + +Missing requirements are reported in the ``configure`` output. +Modules that are missing due to missing dependencies are listed near the end +of the ``make`` output, +sometimes using an internal name, for example, ``_ctypes`` for :mod:`ctypes` +module. + +If you distribute a CPython interpreter without optional modules, +it's best practice to advise users, who generally expect that +standard library modules are available. + +Dependencies to build optional modules are: + +.. list-table:: + :header-rows: 1 + :align: left + + * - Dependency + - Minimum version + - Python module + * - `libbz2 `_ + - + - :mod:`bz2` + * - `libffi `_ + - 3.3.0 recommended + - :mod:`ctypes` + * - `liblzma `_ + - + - :mod:`lzma` + * - `libmpdec `_ + - 2.5.0 + - :mod:`decimal` [1]_ + * - `libreadline `_ or + `libedit `_ [2]_ + - + - :mod:`readline` + * - `libuuid `_ + - + - ``_uuid`` [3]_ + * - `ncurses `_ [4]_ + - + - :mod:`curses` + * - `OpenSSL `_ + - | 3.0.18 recommended + | (1.1.1 minimum) + - :mod:`ssl`, :mod:`hashlib` [5]_ + * - `SQLite `_ + - 3.15.2 + - :mod:`sqlite3` + * - `Tcl/Tk `_ + - 8.5.12 + - :mod:`tkinter`, :ref:`IDLE `, :mod:`turtle` + * - `zlib `_ + - 1.2.2.1 + - :mod:`zlib`, :mod:`gzip`, :mod:`ensurepip` + * - `zstd `_ + - 1.4.5 + - :mod:`compression.zstd` + +.. [1] If *libmpdec* is not available, the :mod:`decimal` module will use + a pure-Python implementation. + See :option:`--with-system-libmpdec` for details. +.. [2] See :option:`--with-readline` for choosing the backend for the + :mod:`readline` module. +.. [3] The :mod:`uuid` module uses ``_uuid`` to generate "safe" UUIDs. + See the module documentation for details. +.. [4] The :mod:`curses` module requires the ``libncurses`` or ``libncursesw`` + library. + The :mod:`curses.panel` module additionally requires the ``libpanel`` or + ``libpanelw`` library. +.. [5] If OpenSSL is not available, the :mod:`hashlib` module will use + bundled implementations of several hash functions. + See :option:`--with-builtin-hashlib-hashes` for *forcing* usage of OpenSSL. + +Note that the table does not include all optional modules; in particular, +platform-specific modules like :mod:`winreg` are not listed here. + +.. seealso:: + + * The `devguide `_ + includes a full list of dependencies required to build all modules and + instructions on how to install them on common platforms. + * :option:`--with-system-expat` allows building with an external + `libexpat `_ library. + * :ref:`configure-options-for-dependencies` .. versionchanged:: 3.1 - Tcl/Tk version 8.3.1 is now required. + Tcl/Tk version 8.3.1 is now required for :mod:`tkinter`. .. versionchanged:: 3.5 - On Windows, Visual Studio 2015 or later is now required. - Tcl/Tk version 8.4 is now required. - -.. versionchanged:: 3.6 - Selected C99 features are now required, like ```` and ``static - inline`` functions. + Tcl/Tk version 8.4 is now required for :mod:`tkinter`. .. versionchanged:: 3.7 - Thread support and OpenSSL 1.0.2 are now required. + OpenSSL 1.0.2 is now required for :mod:`hashlib` and :mod:`ssl`. .. versionchanged:: 3.10 - OpenSSL 1.1.1 is now required. - Require SQLite 3.7.15. + OpenSSL 1.1.1 is now required for :mod:`hashlib` and :mod:`ssl`. + SQLite 3.7.15 is now required for :mod:`sqlite3`. .. versionchanged:: 3.11 - C11 compiler, IEEE 754 and NaN support are now required. - On Windows, Visual Studio 2017 or later is required. - Tcl/Tk version 8.5.12 is now required for the :mod:`tkinter` module. + Tcl/Tk version 8.5.12 is now required for :mod:`tkinter`. .. versionchanged:: 3.13 - Autoconf 2.71, aclocal 1.16.5 and SQLite 3.15.2 are now required. - -.. versionchanged:: 3.14 - Autoconf 2.72 is now required. - -See also :pep:`7` "Style Guide for C Code" and :pep:`11` "CPython platform -support". + SQLite 3.15.2 is now required for :mod:`sqlite3`. Generated files @@ -127,8 +183,19 @@ The container is optional, the following command can be run locally:: autoreconf -ivf -Werror -The generated files can change depending on the exact ``autoconf-archive``, -``aclocal`` and ``pkg-config`` versions. +The generated files can change depending on the exact versions of the +tools used. +The container that CPython uses has +`Autoconf `_ 2.72, +``aclocal`` from `Automake `_ 1.16.5, +and `pkg-config `_ 1.8.1. + +.. versionchanged:: 3.13 + Autoconf 2.71 and aclocal 1.16.5 and are now used to regenerate + :file:`configure`. + +.. versionchanged:: 3.14 + Autoconf 2.72 is now used to regenerate :file:`configure`. .. _configure-options: @@ -409,6 +476,8 @@ Linker options Name for machine-dependent library files. +.. _configure-options-for-dependencies: + Options for third-party dependencies ------------------------------------ @@ -431,12 +500,6 @@ Options for third-party dependencies C compiler and linker flags for ``gdbm``. -.. option:: LIBB2_CFLAGS -.. option:: LIBB2_LIBS - - C compiler and linker flags for ``libb2`` (:ref:`BLAKE2 `), - used by :mod:`hashlib` module, overriding ``pkg-config``. - .. option:: LIBEDIT_CFLAGS .. option:: LIBEDIT_LIBS @@ -902,6 +965,13 @@ Libraries options .. versionchanged:: 3.13 Default to using the installed ``mpdecimal`` library. + .. versionchanged:: 3.15 + + A bundled copy of the library will no longer be selected + implicitly if an installed ``mpdecimal`` library is not found. + In Python 3.15 only, it can still be selected explicitly using + ``--with-system-libmpdec=no`` or ``--without-system-libmpdec``. + .. deprecated-removed:: 3.13 3.16 A copy of the ``mpdecimal`` library sources will no longer be distributed with Python 3.16. diff --git a/Doc/using/unix.rst b/Doc/using/unix.rst index 9ec4e3419321..a9950ef75254 100644 --- a/Doc/using/unix.rst +++ b/Doc/using/unix.rst @@ -84,11 +84,17 @@ On FreeBSD and OpenBSD Building Python =============== +.. seealso:: + + If you want to contribute to CPython, refer to the + `devguide `_, + which includes build instructions and other tips on setting up environment. + If you want to compile CPython yourself, first thing you should do is get the `source `_. You can download either the -latest release's source or just grab a fresh `clone -`_. (If you want -to contribute patches, you will need a clone.) +latest release's source or grab a fresh `clone +`_. +You will also need to install the :ref:`build requirements `. The build process consists of the usual commands:: -- 2.47.3