1 :mod:`py_compile` --- Compile Python source files 2 ================================================= 3 4 .. module:: py_compile 5 :synopsis: Generate byte-code files from Python source files. 6 .. sectionauthor:: Fred L. Drake, Jr. <fdrake (a] acm.org> 7 .. documentation based on module docstrings 8 9 .. index:: pair: file; byte-code 10 11 **Source code:** :source:`Lib/py_compile.py` 12 13 -------------- 14 15 The :mod:`py_compile` module provides a function to generate a byte-code file 16 from a source file, and another function used when the module source file is 17 invoked as a script. 18 19 Though not often needed, this function can be useful when installing modules for 20 shared use, especially if some of the users may not have permission to write the 21 byte-code cache files in the directory containing the source code. 22 23 24 .. exception:: PyCompileError 25 26 Exception raised when an error occurs while attempting to compile the file. 27 28 29 .. function:: compile(file[, cfile[, dfile[, doraise]]]) 30 31 Compile a source file to byte-code and write out the byte-code cache file. The 32 source code is loaded from the file named *file*. The byte-code is written to 33 *cfile*, which defaults to *file* ``+`` ``'c'`` (``'o'`` if optimization is 34 enabled in the current interpreter). If *dfile* is specified, it is used as the 35 name of the source file in error messages instead of *file*. If *doraise* is 36 true, a :exc:`PyCompileError` is raised when an error is encountered while 37 compiling *file*. If *doraise* is false (the default), an error string is 38 written to ``sys.stderr``, but no exception is raised. 39 40 41 .. function:: main([args]) 42 43 Compile several source files. The files named in *args* (or on the command 44 line, if *args* is not specified) are compiled and the resulting bytecode is 45 cached in the normal manner. This function does not search a directory 46 structure to locate source files; it only compiles files named explicitly. 47 If ``'-'`` is the only parameter in args, the list of files is taken from 48 standard input. 49 50 .. versionchanged:: 2.7 51 Added support for ``'-'``. 52 53 When this module is run as a script, the :func:`main` is used to compile all the 54 files named on the command line. The exit status is nonzero if one of the files 55 could not be compiled. 56 57 .. versionchanged:: 2.6 58 Added the nonzero exit status when module is run as a script. 59 60 61 .. seealso:: 62 63 Module :mod:`compileall` 64 Utilities to compile all Python source files in a directory tree. 65 66
