Changes/Disable Python 2 Dist RPM Generators and Freeze Python 2 Macros

Remove Python2 RPM Macros

Summary

The python2-rpm-macros package (contains /usr/lib/rpm/macros.d/macros.python2) will be removed from Fedora 34 and further. The python2 RPM macros will ceases to exist. Python 2 packages are not allowed any more. Around a dozen of packages use the macros in Fedora and will need to be adjusted either by expanding them or by no longer using Python 2.

Owner

• Name: Miro Hrončok
• Email: mhroncok@redhat.com

Current status

• Targeted release: Fedora 34
• Last updated: 2021-01-14
• FESCo issue: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
• Tracker bug: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>
• Release notes tracker: <will be assigned by the Wrangler>

Detailed Description

Python 2 is upstream dead, usage in Fedora packages is forbidden, except for several package with an explicit FESCo approved exception. The Python Maintenance team no longer wishes to support the pythn2 RPM macros from python2-rpm-macros//usr/lib/rpm/macros.d/macros.python2 and hence decided to remove the package. The following macros will be undefined:

%{python2_sitelib}
%{python2_sitearch}
%{python2_version}
%{python2_version_nodots}
%{python2_platform}
%{py2_shbang_opts}
%{py2_shbang_opts_nodash}
%{py2_shebang_flags}
%py2_shebang_fix
%py2_build
%py2_build_egg
%py2_build_wheel
%py2_install
%py2_install_egg
%py2_install_wheel

The following macros will remain defined for the time being to not break packages that are using Python 2 as build-time only dependency (which is also not allowed, but happens more often):

%{__python2}
%{python2}

The Python 2 section of Python packaging guidelines will be removed.

python2.7 will no longer require python2-rpm-macros and python3-rpm-generators.

Packages that used to use those macros in Fedora will need to be adapted to expand the macros or switch to Python 3. In January 2021, we have:

• several Python 2 trac plugins, but trac uses Python 3 now
• several Python 2 sugar packages, but they already don't build or install as sugar uses Python 3 now
• 14 other affected packages in Fedora (some of them co-owned by Python Maint):
  • avahi
  • gimp-layer-via-copy-cut
  • gimp-resynthesizer
  • chromium
  • NFStest
  • offlineimap
  • pygobject2
  • pygtk2
  • python-psutil
  • python-six
  • python2-cairo
  • python2-dns
  • python2-numpy
  • python2-setuptools

The removed macros and migration plan:

%{python2_sitelib}

Affected Fedora packages:

• avahi
• NFStest
• offlineimap
• python2-dns
• python2-setuptools
• python-six

Migration plan if not possible to switch to Python 3 / retire: Use %{_prefix}/lib/python2.7/site-packages.

%{python2_sitearch}

Affected Fedora packages:

• chromium
• offlineimap
• pygobject2
• pygtk2
• python2-cairo
• python2-numpy
• python-psutil

Migration plan if not possible to switch to Python 3 / retire: Use %{_libdir}/python2.7/site-packages.

%{python2_version}

Affected Fedora packages:

• offlineimap
• pygtk2
• python2-numpy
• python2-setuptools

Migration plan if not possible to switch to Python 3 / retire: Use 2.7.

%{python2_version_nodots}

No affected Fedora packages.

Migration plan: Use 27.

%{python2_platform}

No affected Fedora packages.

Migration plan: Use a glob like linux-*.

%{py2_shbang_opts}, %{py2_shbang_opts_nodash}, %{py2_shebang_flags}, %py2_shebang_fix

Affected Fedora packages:

• gimp-layer-via-copy-cut
• gimp-resynthesizer
• offlineimap

All use pathfix.py -pni "%{__python2} %{py2_shbang_opts}" ...

Migration plan: pathfix.py -pni "%{_bindir}/python2" -kas ...

%py2_build, %py2_install

Affected Fedora packages:

• NFStest
• offlineimap
• python2-cairo
• python2-dns
• python2-setuptools
• python-psutil
• python-six

Migration plan:

%build
%set_build_flags
python2 setup.py build

%install
python2 setup.py install --skip-build --root %{buildroot}

Note: Add additional sleep 1 after/before the build if you also build for Python 3.

%py2_build_egg, %py2_build_wheel, %py2_install_egg, %py2_install_wheel

No affected Fedora packages. There are no build dependencies in Fedora to build a wheel or install it.

Migration plan for egg: Please don't use this!

%build
%set_build_flags
python2 setup.py bdist_egg

%install
python2 -m easy_install -m --prefix %{buildroot}%{_prefix} -Z <path_to_egg>

Benefit to Fedora

We tried to keep the macros as similar to their Python 3 counterparts as possible, but we have decided that it is not worth it for 14 packages. We want to discourage building Python 2 packages. We want to remove the package from RHEL 9 as well.

Scope

• Proposal owners:

• Other developers: N/A (not a System Wide Change)

• Release engineering: #Releng issue number (a check of an impact with Release Engineering is needed)

• Policies and guidelines: N/A (not a System Wide Change)

• Trademark approval: N/A (not needed for this Change)

• Alignment with Objectives:

Upgrade/compatibility impact

N/A (not a System Wide Change)

How To Test

N/A (not a System Wide Change)

Dependencies

N/A (not a System Wide Change)

Contingency Plan

• Contingency mechanism: (What to do? Who will do it?) N/A (not a System Wide Change)
• Contingency deadline: N/A (not a System Wide Change)
• Blocks release? N/A (not a System Wide Change), Yes/No
• Blocks product? product

Documentation

N/A (not a System Wide Change)