Why Does `package_data` Work for Binary Distributions but Not Source Distributions in `setuptools/distutils`?

Package Data Inclusion in setuptools/distutils

When packaging Python applications, it's often necessary to include additional data files in the distribution. In setuptools and distutils, the package_data option is intended for this purpose. However, some users encounter issues when attempting to include package data using this approach.

According to the documentation, the setup() function should be configured as follows to include package data:

setup(
   name='myapp',
   packages=find_packages(),
   package_data={
      'myapp': ['data/*.txt'],
   },
   include_package_data=True,
   zip_safe=False,
   install_requires=['distribute'],
)

This configuration specifies that files with the .txt extension should be included in the myapp/data directory when packaging the application. However, some users may find that this approach doesn't work.

The provided solution suggests that the issue lies in the behavior of package_data. It is noted that package_data only works when building binary packages (using setup.py bdist ...). However, it doesn't work when building source packages (using setup.py sdist ...).

Instead of relying on package_data, the recommendation is to use a MANIFEST.in file. The MANIFEST.in file provides a list of files that should be included in both binary and source distributions. This ensures that users can create both types of distributions and have the necessary data included.

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