PythonBuild - google/syzygy GitHub Wiki

At build time, we effectively create a new python deployment in the Debug/Release directory (through virtualenv magic) and stock it with the external modules we rely on.

Our modules and scripts are then built to eggs which are placed in the Debug/Release directory. To use the scripts or modules, after building them, you can do something like this:

> Debug\py\Scripts\easy_install benchmark-chrome```

This will install the benchmark module and its dependencies to the python installation.
To subsequently use the script, you can do:

Debug\py\Scripts\benchmark ```

During development, it may be easier to install the scripts and modules in the python environment using development mode. Development mode leaves the scripts in-place, but uses setuptools magic to munge the python installation's path to include them.

There's a little helper script in the syzygy directory called "develop_py.bat", which will install all our modules and scripts in develop mode, or you can do this per-module by hand with incantations like this:

> Debug\py\Scripts\activate
(py) > python scripts\benchmark\setup.py develop
(py) > python scripts\benchmark\benchmark.py <parameters>

The "activate" invocation will change your path, so that the correct python interpreter is the default, and the "develop" command to setup.py will install the benchmark module in development mode - e.g. in-place to the interpreter.

For any future scripts we create, please make sure you write a setup.py. Use setuptools, and add build configuration to make sure they're built to egg on the continuous builder, as otherwise they tend to bitrot.

It's easy to use Eclipse's PyDev with this setup. Build the "virtualenv" target in the Syzygy solution file, then invoke the "develop_py.bat" script. Next, setup a new python interpreter in the PyDev preferences by pointing it at the python instance "Debug\py\scripts\python.exe". You probably want to select all the paths suggested, save perhaps for the module/script you're going to work on. After this you can create a PyDev project that includes the files you're going to work on, and PyDev should be able to resolve all the system and Syzygy modules you use.