Exepy "Ex-eh-pie"

A straightforward tool for packaging your Python projects into standalone Windows executable files. Inspired by PyInstaller, Exepy offers an alternative built with Golang.

Why Exepy?

• Effortless Distribution: Share your Python applications with anyone, even users without Python installed. Exepy handles all dependencies for you.
• Offline Compatibility: Your packaged executables can be configured to work without needing an active internet connection, as all required libraries can be bundled within.
• Unrestricted Use: Exepy's permissive licensing (MIT) allows you to copy, modify, and distribute your packaged projects for both personal and commercial purposes with minimal limitations.

Getting Started

1. Download Exepy: Obtain the latest release.
2. Structure Your Project:
   • Script Folder: Place all your Python code into a designated folder named "payload".
   • Requirements: List your project's dependencies in a requirements.txt file. If you haven't already, use pip freeze > requirements.txt to generate this file. Place it in the scripts directory.
   • Configuration: Fine-tune Exepy's behavior with a settings.json file (explained below).
3. Build Your Executable: Run the Exepy binary, and it will prepare your Python environment and bundle it with your scripts into a single, ready-to-distribute executable file.

Customization (settings.json)

Exepy offers flexibility through its settings.json file. Here's a breakdown of the options:

• pythonDownloadURL: The URL to download the Python interpreter.
• pipDownloadURL: The URL to download the pip package manager.
• pythonDownloadFile: The name of the Python interpreter download file.
• pythonExtractDir: The directory to extract the Python interpreter to.
• scriptExtractDir: The directory to extract the scripts to.
• pthFile: The name of the .pth file inside the Python distribution.
• pythonInteriorZip: The name of the interior zip file inside the Python distribution.
• installerRequirements: Additional requirements for the installer to bundle with the executable.
• requirementsFile: The name of the requirements file in the scripts dir.
• scriptDir: The directory containing the scripts.
• setupScript: The script to run before the main script. (optional)
• mainScript: The main script to run your Python program.
• filesToCopyToRoot: A list of files to copy to the root of the executable.
• runAfterInstall: Whether to run the main script after installation or to instruct users to run the corresponding run.bat file.

Example Default Configuration:

{
  "pythonDownloadURL": "",
  "pipDownloadURL": "",
  "pythonDownloadFile": "python code-3.11.7-embed-amd64.zip",
  "pythonExtractDir": "python-embed",
  "scriptExtractDir": "scripts",
  "pthFile": "python311._pth",
  "pythonInteriorZip": "python311.zip",
  "installerRequirements": "",
  "requirementsFile": "requirements.txt",
  "scriptDir": "scripts",
  "setupScript": "",
  "mainScript": "main.py",
  "filesToCopyToRoot": ["requirements.txt", "readme.md", "license.md"],
  "runAfterInstall": false
}

Community and Support

• Project Repository: https://github.com/IRSS-UBC/Exepy