I am using py2exe to compiling python scripts in executable files on Windows Xp/7/2000.
I am wondering if such executable scripts could freeze the operating system, and I have to reboot Windows.
I suppose such problems could occur if I try to manage driver library.
What do you think about?
Theoretically, yes. Windows is not the most stable OS out there, and programs sometime "freeze" it even without mucking with drivers and kernel-mode code. Python programs aren't any different in this respect, whether packed with py2exe or not, since Python programs on Windows easily have access to the same Windows APIs any other program can access.
However, I have a feeling you're not "just asking" if you have a specific application freezing the system, it's something that should be addressed for the specific case in hand. Unless the application does something really crazy, it's probably a bug in it that can be solved.
A Python program - regardless of whether iterpreted by the Python executable or in py2exe form - can do the same as any other program. That means that it should not be able to freeze a modern operating system unless it is run with superuser rights. However, programs (especially malicious and badly written ones) can significantly degrade user experience, for example by going fullscreen and refusing to show the desktop or starting lots of threads and processes.
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I made a (one file) scrip in python for my client, the program is a success and now it needs to be distributed to 12 of my client employees.
The script I made uses a lot of libraries (imports), some of then are not popular at all so here goes the question:
Is there a way to distribute my program already compiled in bytecode? So the users can run it by just simply doing "python myProgram.pyc" or just "myProgram.pyc" (if it has +x property), I know this is entirely possible in Java by compiling the libraries inside a JAR file, is there anything similar for python?
Please don't recommend me py2exe since is far away for what I want, either other similar tools, I just want to distribute a package with all the necessary libraries already pre-compiled in bytecode so the final users don't need to worry about installing libs, pip, github, custom stuff, or anything. Hope you can help me, if not I will have to port the whole project to Java.
If your client employees machine are Windows go for py2exe http://py2exe.org/
If Mac go for py2app https://pypi.python.org/pypi/py2app/
cx_Freeze http://cx-freeze.sourceforge.net/ is cross-platform and it should spit out executable that would run on any OS with Python installed.
PyInstaller http://www.pyinstaller.org/ is a good one too.
However, these methods do not compile and hence improve run-time performance improvements. Rather a way to distribute your script as a single executable with all the necessary modules.
You could use the compiled .pyc file with a wrapper around it for execution and package it as a single executable. However, performance improvements of doing so is debatable.
EDIT:
It's been long though, recently started with cython and it could be a plausible solution for this problem. If not all, defining the variable types should do that is asked in the question.
I have a program I've written in Python 2.7 on Windows, and I've been using py2exe with total success to make it into an exe (and associated files). However, a reasonable number of people who I want to use it are on Linux/OSX, and while some have been able to make the Windows version work with Wine, others have not been so successful. I've looked thoroughly into py2installer, py2app, freeze and others, but if I understand correctly (I am new to Python and very new to compiling) you need to run them on the system you want to compile them for, i.e. you can only compile for Linux on Linux and OSX on OSX. I don't want to distribute just the raw files because I want the source code to be obfuscated as it is inside a .exe, amd obviously not everyone has Python.
So, my question is: is there any way to compile for OSX or Linux, in Python, while on a Windows machine? And if not, what do you think the best alternative solution might be?
Code obfuscation is really not 'pythonic'. Even when packed into an .exe file, it's basically just the python interpreter and you source code (well, the .pyc files) zipped into one file. It is not as much as cross-compiling as it is about using a python package which does the thing you want (e.g, pack you code in a specific way) on linux.
Freeze will do this for you.
Most linux dists come with python built-in.
Get your linux box running! It's fun, useful, and you can always say 'On My Machine It Works!'. You can compile your code there / test your exe on Wine.
If for some reason you still can't get it to run, post a question!
Get Virtualbox, install Ubuntu in it, and build it "natively" in for Linux. These things work really well, and cross compilation is just asking for trouble. You're going to eventually need Linux to answer the support questions you'll get from these customers anyway! :(
I want to create a GUI application which should work on Windows and Mac. For this I've chosen Python.
The problem is on Mac OS X.
There are 2 tools to generate an ".app" for Mac: py2app and pyinstaller.
py2app is pretty good, but it adds the source code in the package. I
don't want to share the code with the final users.
Pyinstaller generates UNIX executable, so how to run it on Mac? I
created a bundles with this executable, but the resulted ".app" is
not working.
The questions are:
How to configure py2app to include the source code in the
executable, so the final users will not have access to my program?
How to convert UNIX executable to Mac ".app" ?
Is there a way to compile Python code with GCC ?
In Windows it's easy, I created an "exe" file from Python code and
it works. Is it possible to create a single file "app" for Mac ?
P.S. I use two computers (Windows and for Mac), Python 2.7, wxPython, py2exe, py2app and pyinstaller.
Also, I have checked out these sites:
http://svn.pythonmac.org/py2app/py2app/trunk/doc/index.html
http://www.pyinstaller.org/export/develop/project/doc/Manual.html?format=raw
http://www.pyinstaller.org/wiki/Features/MacOsCompatibility
http://www.stackoverflow.com/questions/2933/an-executable-python-app
How to configure py2app to include the source code in the executable,
so the final users will not have access to my program?
Unless you very seriously hack the python interpreter (and include the mangled version) there is no really good way to hide the source from a moderately skilled and determined user. I strongly believe this is true on Windows also. Basically, whether you include true source or bytecode, a pretty clean version of the source can be recovered. More importantly, in my opinion, unless you include the actual source code (as opposed to bytecode, you will introduce a possible dependency on the interpreter version).
How to convert UNIX executable to Mac ".app" ?
What do you mean by a UNIX executable? A Darwin (OS X) binary [which isn't actually UNIX]? That can be done using the kinds of tools you already mentioned, but it must be done carefully to avoid library dependencies.
If all you want it a simple wrapper to put a command-line binary into a window, it's pretty easy to accomplish and the free XCode suite has several examples that would serve (depending on what output
you wan to deliver, if any).
Is there a way to compile Python code with GCC ?
GCC does not compile Python. It's a different language (although there tools in the gcc family rthat support multiple language front-ends, but not Python). There are tools that attempt to translate Python into C, and then you can compile that into a true binary, but this only works for programs that avoid certain types of construct, and the process (and restrictions) need to apply your libraries as well.
One project to allow this is Cython. It works well for some types
of code, mostly numerical code, but it is not trivial to install and
exploit, very especially if you want to produce something that runs on multiple
different computers.
In Windows it's easy, I created an "exe" file from Python code and it
works. Is it possible to create a single file "app" for Mac ?
I would have to say I am skeptical -- very skeptical -- about this. Just like the OS X case, the exe almost certainly has the source code trivially accessible within it.
One fairly easy trick is to encrypt the source code and then decrypt it on the fly, but this
seems to me like more trouble than it's worth.
PyInstaller will automatically create bundles under Mac OSX for windowed executables. When running ypinstaller.py, make sure to pass the option "--windowed".
This feature is documented in the website of pyinstaller
If you're not completely committed to wxPython (and for anyone else looking for a cross platform Python GUI framework), I recommend you check out Kivy. It's cross platform, GPU accelerated, and it will do the app packaging for you. It's easy to jump into, has a well thought-out architecture, and gives you an incredible amount of flexibility in terms of the interface. It's the best way I've found to make a cross platform Python GUI app.
cxFreeze was the choice.
I use it pack my python program to a Mac OS X app. Which works like a charm.
Automator was already mentioned as a quick and simple solution for Pythons scripts that are contained in a single file, but since the Automator UI has so many options, and it is not obvious how to actually do it, I'll provide step-by-step instructions (verified to work on Yosemite):
In Automator select File > New and pick Application as document type.
Next, make sure Actions tab is selected on the left, and then in the search box type run. Among other options you'll see Run Shell Script — doubleclick it, and an editor window will appear in the right panel.
From the Shell dropdown menu select /usr/bin/python.
Paste your Python code into the edit window and then pick File > Save.
By default, the app will be saved under $HOME/Applications and will appear in Spotlight.
If you want to be able to set your own icon and have some fancy features, like task bar icons with a menu, log windows etc, then have a look at Platypus — an open-source app for creating MacOS native bundles.
2: You can't "convert" it, but you can move the executable to App.app/Contents/MacOS/something in a .app file, with CFBundleExecutable set to "something". This would not generally be recommended.
A motivated person could probably reconstruct usable source code from the Python bytecode in your app, so you might reconsider your opposition to py2app. If you don't trust your final users, why are you doing business with them?
Having used py2exe for windows users so they wouldn't have to deal with library versions, I've torn apart the compiled programs, they include the python bytecode files. While you can make it a violation of the license to look inside those, the fact is that if a computer can execute them, I can read them. It is possible to compile python programs with gcc, via a C preprocessor (try looking for 2c.py on google), I don't know if any of them support GCC. Again, you don't gain any security through using them, but you can get a significant speed improvement.
I haven't tried it with big Python projects, but for my own scripts, the easiest way I found was to use Automator
You can interactively create an app project with Run Shell Script action, then paste in your script in its editor, select your shell program (/usr/bin/python), finally save the project. And you have yourself a Mac native app.
Automator can also be driven by AppleScript. So you can pipeline this py-2-app conversion process to your build scripts.
I've never tested a GUI program with it so I don't know if you'll be happy with it. But I'd give it a try since you may wonder how well all the cited 3rd-party python modules/applications are maintained, and how long they are gonna last. Coming bundled with OS X, Automator will likely stay, unless Apple got REALLY tired of it.
cxFreeze is best solution available, first create your program or application using python and than make setup file for your application, and than build the app using build command python setup.py build, according to your requirement you need to make some changes.
The only way is py2app. You have no other way. Sorry.
The research you did seems very solid and you did not miss anything.
Does anyone use a scripting language only solution to produce a binary (.exe) to produce a commercial desktop application for windows or mac? e.g. Java, python etc. If so how do you distribute your app and does using a scripting language cause any problems with the installation?
I'm asking about users that can download an application and install it, they don't know about setting path variables, or changing there JAVA_HOME. The assumption for the PC are users with a consumer PC with windows (XP/Vista/7), not power users. (Or alternatively a mac type solution would be interesting to hear about to)
I have done this in a couple ways. One was to use Python and py2exe, and the other was to use Idle, a Lua-based "compilable" language, using InnoSetup to create installers.
I have had no problems with either, though I haven't used Idle for anything of any significant complexity --- its main advantage is the small size of the executable produced. With py2exe, you have to be careful to get all the dependencies included in the package, and I recommend testing it thoroughly on a clean installation of Windows before releasing. For example, when I used PyGTK with py2exe, I had to be very careful to get the theming files included in the package. It was not evident at first that I had missed them, since PyGTK found them in the installed version on the development machine.
I also had to be careful about installation paths, permissions, and startup directories, as well as licensing of the libraries I used, but that's nothing you wouldn't have to be concerned with in a more traditional compiled language. Other than the relatively large size of the installer, I've been very happy with py2exe and InnoSetup, and I'd recommend it.
Does anyone use anything else for shrink wrap apps on windows? e.g. Java, python etc.
Yes. I assume you're not really asking about Java, since that is so wide-spread. I can count quite a few Java applications that I use, and I don't operate in the "Enterprise" environment.
There are tools that allow you to ship Python code without shipping actual .py files and without needing the to actually have Python installed, so there are solutions for that as well. Since such tools exist I assume people do ship Python applications.
If so how do you distribute your app and does using a scripting language cause any problems with the installation?
What scripting language?
I have started on a personal python application that runs on the desktop. I am using wxPython as a GUI toolkit. Should there be a demand for this type of application, I would possibly like to commercialize it.
I have no knowledge of deploying "real-life" Python applications, though I have used py2exe in the past with varied success. How would I obfuscate the code? Can I somehow deploy only the bytecode?
An ideal solution would not jeopardize my intellectual property (source code), would not require a direct installation of Python (though I'm sure it will need to have some embedded interpreter), and would be cross-platform (Windows, Mac, and Linux). Does anyone know of any tools or resources in this area?
Thanks.
You can distribute the compiled Python bytecode (.pyc files) instead of the source. You can't prevent decompilation in Python (or any other language, really). You could use an obfuscator like pyobfuscate to make it more annoying for competitors to decipher your decompiled source.
As Alex Martelli says in this thread, if you want to keep your code a secret, you shouldn't run it on other people's machines.
IIRC, the last time I used cx_Freeze it created a DLL for Windows that removed the necessity for a native Python installation. This is at least worth checking out.
Wow, there are a lot of questions in there:
It is possible to run the bytecode (.pyc) file directly from the Python interpreter, but I haven't seen any bytecode obfuscation tools available.
I'm not aware of any "all in one" deployment solution, but:
For Windows you could use NSIS(http://nsis.sourceforge.net/Main_Page). The problem here is that while OSX/*nix comes with python, Windows doesn't. If you're not willing to build a binary with py2exe, I'm not sure what the licensing issues would be surrounding distribution of the Python runtime environment (not to mention the technical ones).
You could package up the OS X distribution using the "bundle" format, and *NIX has it's own conventions for installing software-- typically a "make install" script.
Hope that was helpful.
Maybe IronPython can provide something for you? I bet those .exe/.dll-files can be pretty locked down. Not sure how such features work on mono, thus no idea how this works on Linux/OS X...
I have been using py2exe with good success on Windows. The code needs to be modified a bit so that the code analysis picks up all modules needed, but apart from that, it works.
As for Linux, there are several important distribution formats:
DEB (Debian, Ubuntu and other derivatives)
RPM (RedHat, Fedora, openSuSE)
DEBs aren't particularly difficult to make, especially when you're already using distutils/setuptools. Some hints are given in the policy document, examples for packaging Python applications can be found in the repository.
I don't have any experience with RPM, but I'm sure there are enough examples to be found.
Try to use scraZ obfuscator (http://scraZ.me).
This is obfuscator for bytecode, not for source code.
Free version have good, but not perfect obfuscation methods.
PRO version have very very strong protection for bytecode.
(after bytecode obfuscation a decompilation is impossible)