6.1 Location and names of config files

The names and locations of the configuration files vary slightly across platforms. On Unix, the three configuration files (in the order they are processed) are:
Type of file  Location and filename  Notes 
system prefix/lib/pythonver/distutils/pydistutils.cfg (1)
personal $HOME/.pydistutils.cfg (2)
local setup.cfg (3)

On Windows, the configuration files are:
Type of file  Location and filename  Notes 
system prefix\Lib\distutils\pydistutils.cfg (4)
personal %HOME\pydistutils.cfg (5)
local setup.cfg (3)

And on MacOS, they are:
Type of file  Location and filename  Notes 
system prefix:Lib:distutils:pydistutils.cfg (6)
personal N/A  
local setup.cfg (3)

Notes:

(1)
Strictly speaking, the system-wide configuration file lives in the directory where the Distutils are installed; under Python 1.6 and later on Unix, this is as shown. For Python 1.5.2, the Distutils will normally be installed to prefix/lib/site-packages/python1.5/distutils, so the system configuration file should be put there under Python 1.5.2.
(2)
On Unix, if the HOME environment variable is not defined, the user's home directory will be determined with the getpwuid() function from the standard pwd module.
(3)
I.e., in the current directory (usually the location of the setup script).
(4)
(See also note (1).) Under Python 1.6 and later, Python's default ``installation prefix'' is C:\Python, so the system configuration file is normally C:\Python\Lib\distutils\pydistutils.cfg. Under Python 1.5.2, the default prefix was C:\Program Files\Python, and the Distutils were not part of the standard library--so the system configuration file would be C:\Program Files\Python\distutils\pydistutils.cfg in a standard Python 1.5.2 installation under Windows.
(5)
On Windows, if the HOME environment variable is not defined, no personal configuration file will be found or used. (In other words, the Distutils make no attempt to guess your home directory on Windows.)
(6)
(See also notes (1) and (4).) The default installation prefix is just Python:, so under Python 1.6 and later this is normallyPython:Lib:distutils:pydistutils.cfg. (The Distutils don't work very well with Python 1.5.2 under MacOS. ** true? **)

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