Python - Packaging & Distribution

Overview

Estimated time: 45–60 minutes

Package your project with pyproject.toml, build wheels, version consistently, and publish safely to PyPI with basic supply-chain safeguards.

Learning Objectives

• Structure a project with src-layout and pyproject.toml.
• Build wheels and perform editable installs.
• Publish to TestPyPI/PyPI with tokens; understand constraints and hashes.

Prerequisites

• Python - Concurrency & Parallelism

Minimal pyproject.toml (setuptools)

[build-system]
requires = ["setuptools>=68", "wheel"]
build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"

[project]
name = "my_package"
version = "0.1.0"
description = "Example"
authors = [{name="Your Name"}]
readme = "README.md"
requires-python = ">=3.11"

Build & install

pip install build
python -m build
pip install -e .

Publish

pip install twine
# Upload to TestPyPI first
python -m twine upload --repository testpypi dist/*

Common Pitfalls

• Publishing without testing install from a clean environment.
• Missing long_description/README causing poor package page rendering.

Checks for Understanding

1. Why build wheels instead of source-only dists?
2. What repository should you target for trial uploads?

Exercises

1. Convert a simple project to pyproject.toml and build a wheel.
2. Upload to TestPyPI and install from a fresh virtual environment.