[Python-checkins] cpython: "Refactor" docs for the new dir_fd, follow_symlinks, path-as-fd APIs: document

georg.brandl python-checkins at python.org
Sun Jun 24 11:46:05 CEST 2012


http://hg.python.org/cpython/rev/7c159cac73cd
changeset:   77683:7c159cac73cd
user:        Georg Brandl <georg at python.org>
date:        Sun Jun 24 11:45:20 2012 +0200
summary:
  "Refactor" docs for the new dir_fd, follow_symlinks, path-as-fd APIs: document the options at a central place and link to it.

files:
  Doc/library/os.rst |  938 ++++++++++++++------------------
  1 files changed, 410 insertions(+), 528 deletions(-)


diff --git a/Doc/library/os.rst b/Doc/library/os.rst
--- a/Doc/library/os.rst
+++ b/Doc/library/os.rst
@@ -823,13 +823,8 @@
    this module too (see :ref:`open-constants`).  In particular, on Windows adding
    :const:`O_BINARY` is needed to open files in binary mode.
 
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
@@ -1171,6 +1166,49 @@
 Files and Directories
 ---------------------
 
+On some Unix platforms, many of these functions support one or more of these
+features:
+
+.. _path_fd:
+
+* For some functions, the *path* argument can be not only a string giving a path
+  name, but also a file descriptor.  The function will then operate on the file
+  referred to by the descriptor.  (For POSIX systems, this will use the ``f...``
+  versions of the function.)
+
+  You can check whether or not *path* can be specified as a file descriptor on
+  your platform using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it
+  will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+
+  If the function also supports *dir_fd* or *follow_symlinks* arguments, it is
+  an error to specify one of those when supplying *path* as a file descriptor.
+
+.. _dir_fd:
+
+* For functions with a *dir_fd* parameter: If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it
+  should be a file descriptor referring to a directory, and the path to operate
+  on should be relative; path will then be relative to that directory.  If the
+  path is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.  (For POSIX systems, this will use the
+  ``f...at`` versions of the function.)
+
+  You can check whether or not *dir_fd* is supported on your platform using
+  :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise a
+  :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+
+.. _follow_symlinks:
+
+* For functions ith a *follow_symlinks* parameter: If *follow_symlinks* is
+  ``False``, and the last element of the path to operate on is a symbolic link,
+  the function will operate on the symbolic link itself instead of the file the
+  link points to.  (For POSIX systems, this will use the ``l...`` versions of
+  the function.)
+
+  You can check whether or not *follow_symlinks* is supported on your platform
+  using :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable, using it
+  will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+
+
+
 .. function:: access(path, mode, *, dir_fd=None, effective_ids=False, follow_symlinks=True)
 
    Use the real uid/gid to test for access to *path*.  Note that most operations
@@ -1182,13 +1220,8 @@
    :const:`False` if not. See the Unix man page :manpage:`access(2)` for more
    information.
 
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support specifying :ref:`paths relative to directory
+   descriptors <dir_fd>` and :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    If *effective_ids* is ``True``, :func:`access` will perform its access
    checks using the effective uid/gid instead of the real uid/gid.
@@ -1196,13 +1229,6 @@
    or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_effective_ids`.  If it is
    unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
 
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`access` will examine the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
    .. note::
@@ -1268,24 +1294,21 @@
 
    Change the current working directory to *path*.
 
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`working on a file descriptor <path_fd>`.  The
+   descriptor must refer to an opened directory, not an open file.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
       Added support for specifying *path* as a file descriptor
-      on some platforms, and the *dir_fd*, *effective_ids*, and
-      *follow_symlinks* parameters.
+      on some platforms.
 
 
 .. function:: fchdir(fd)
 
    Change the current working directory to the directory represented by the file
-   descriptor *fd*.  The descriptor must refer to an opened directory, not an open
-   file.  Equivalent to ``os.chdir(fd)``.
+   descriptor *fd*.  The descriptor must refer to an opened directory, not an
+   open file.  Equivalent to ``os.chdir(fd)``.
 
    Availability: Unix.
 
@@ -1322,12 +1345,7 @@
    * :data:`stat.SF_NOUNLINK`
    * :data:`stat.SF_SNAPSHOT`
 
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`follow_symlinks` will examine the symbolic link itself
-   instead of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be
-   supported on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available
-   using :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    Availability: Unix.
 
@@ -1367,37 +1385,17 @@
    * :data:`stat.S_IWOTH`
    * :data:`stat.S_IXOTH`
 
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`chmod` will examine the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   It is an error to use *dir_fd* or *follow_symlinks* when specifying
-   *path* as an open file descriptor.
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>`,
+   :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors <dir_fd>` and :ref:`not
+   following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
    .. note::
 
-      Although Windows supports :func:`chmod`, you can only  set the file's read-only
-      flag with it (via the ``stat.S_IWRITE``  and ``stat.S_IREAD``
-      constants or a corresponding integer value).  All other bits are
-      ignored.
+      Although Windows supports :func:`chmod`, you can only set the file's
+      read-only flag with it (via the ``stat.S_IWRITE`` and ``stat.S_IREAD``
+      constants or a corresponding integer value).  All other bits are ignored.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
       Added support for specifying *path* as an open file descriptor,
@@ -1406,31 +1404,12 @@
 
 .. function:: chown(path, uid, gid, *, dir_fd=None, follow_symlinks=True)
 
-   Change the owner and group id of *path* to the numeric *uid* and *gid*. To leave
-   one of the ids unchanged, set it to -1.
-
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`chown` will examine the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   It is an error to use *dir_fd* or *follow_symlinks* when specifying
-   *path* as an open file descriptor.
+   Change the owner and group id of *path* to the numeric *uid* and *gid*.  To
+   leave one of the ids unchanged, set it to -1.
+
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>`,
+   :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors <dir_fd>` and :ref:`not
+   following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    See :func:`shutil.chown` for a higher-level function that accepts names in
    addition to numeric ids.
@@ -1448,23 +1427,19 @@
    *path*. *attribute* can be bytes or str. If it is str, it is encoded
    with the filesystem encoding.
 
-   *path* may be specified as either a string or an open file descriptor.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`setxattr` will examine the symbolic link itself
-   instead of the file the link points to.  It is an error to use
-   *follow_symlinks* when specifying *path* as an open file descriptor.
-
-   Availability: Linux
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>` and
+   :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
+
+   Availability: Linux.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
 
 
 .. function:: lchflags(path, flags)
 
-   Set the flags of *path* to the numeric *flags*, like :func:`chflags`, but do not
-   follow symbolic links.
-   Equivalent to ``os.chflags(path, flags, follow_symlinks=False)``.
+   Set the flags of *path* to the numeric *flags*, like :func:`chflags`, but do
+   not follow symbolic links.  Equivalent to ``os.chflags(path, flags,
+   follow_symlinks=False)``.
 
    Availability: Unix.
 
@@ -1472,18 +1447,18 @@
 .. function:: lchmod(path, mode)
 
    Change the mode of *path* to the numeric *mode*. If path is a symlink, this
-   affects the symlink rather than the target. See the docs for :func:`chmod`
-   for possible values of *mode*.
-   Equivalent to ``os.chmod(path, mode, follow_symlinks=False)``.
+   affects the symlink rather than the target.  See the docs for :func:`chmod`
+   for possible values of *mode*.  Equivalent to ``os.chmod(path, mode,
+   follow_symlinks=False)``.
 
    Availability: Unix.
 
 
 .. function:: lchown(path, uid, gid)
 
-   Change the owner and group id of *path* to the numeric *uid* and *gid*. This
-   function will not follow symbolic links.
-   Equivalent to ``os.chown(path, uid, gid, follow_symlinks=False)``.
+   Change the owner and group id of *path* to the numeric *uid* and *gid*.  This
+   function will not follow symbolic links.  Equivalent to ``os.chown(path, uid,
+   gid, follow_symlinks=False)``.
 
    Availability: Unix.
 
@@ -1492,6 +1467,288 @@
 
    Create a hard link pointing to *src* named *dst*.
 
+   If either *src_dir_fd* or *dst_dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file
+   descriptor referring to a directory, and the corresponding path (*src* or
+   *dst*) should be relative; that path will then be relative to that directory.
+   (If *src* is absolute, *src_dir_fd* is ignored; the same goes for *dst* and
+   *dst_dir_fd*.)  *src_dir_fd* and *dst_dir_fd* may not be supported on your
+   platform; you can check whether or not they are available using
+   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If they are unavailable, using either will raise
+   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`not following symlinks
+   <follow_symlinks>`.
+
+   Availability: Unix, Windows.
+
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
+      Added Windows support.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      Added the *src_dir_fd*, *dst_dir_fd*, and *follow_symlinks* arguments.
+
+
+.. function:: listdir(path='.')
+
+   Return a list containing the names of the entries in the directory given by
+   *path* (default: ``'.'``).  The list is in arbitrary order.  It does not
+   include the special entries ``'.'`` and ``'..'`` even if they are present in
+   the directory.
+
+   This function can be called with a bytes or string argument, and returns
+   filenames of the same datatype.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`specifying an open file descriptor
+   <path_fd>` (referring to a directory).
+
+   Availability: Unix, Windows.
+
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
+      The *path* parameter became optional.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      Added support for specifying an open file descriptor for *path*.
+
+
+.. function:: listxattr(path=None, *, follow_symlinks=True)
+
+   Return a list of the extended filesystem attributes on *path*.  The
+   attributes in the list are represented as strings decoded with the filesystem
+   encoding.  If *path* is ``None``, :func:`listxattr` will examine the current
+   directory.
+
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>` and
+   :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
+
+   Availability: Linux.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+
+
+.. function:: lstat(path, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Perform the equivalent of an :c:func:`lstat` system call on the given path.
+   Similar to :func:`~os.stat`, but does not follow symbolic links.  On
+   platforms that do not support symbolic links, this is an alias for
+   :func:`~os.stat`.  (Equivalent to ``os.stat(path, follow_symlinks=False)``.)
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
+      Added support for Windows 6.0 (Vista) symbolic links.
+
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.3
+      Added the *dir_fd* parameter.
+
+
+.. function:: mkfifo(path, mode=0o666, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Create a FIFO (a named pipe) named *path* with numeric mode *mode*.
+   The current umask value is first masked out from the mode.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   FIFOs are pipes that can be accessed like regular files.  FIFOs exist until they
+   are deleted (for example with :func:`os.unlink`). Generally, FIFOs are used as
+   rendezvous between "client" and "server" type processes: the server opens the
+   FIFO for reading, and the client opens it for writing.  Note that :func:`mkfifo`
+   doesn't open the FIFO --- it just creates the rendezvous point.
+
+   Availability: Unix.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      The *dir_fd* argument.
+
+
+.. function:: mknod(filename, mode=0o600, device=0, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Create a filesystem node (file, device special file or named pipe) named
+   *filename*. *mode* specifies both the permissions to use and the type of node
+   to be created, being combined (bitwise OR) with one of ``stat.S_IFREG``,
+   ``stat.S_IFCHR``, ``stat.S_IFBLK``, and ``stat.S_IFIFO`` (those constants are
+   available in :mod:`stat`).  For ``stat.S_IFCHR`` and ``stat.S_IFBLK``,
+   *device* defines the newly created device special file (probably using
+   :func:`os.makedev`), otherwise it is ignored.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      The *dir_fd* argument.
+
+
+.. function:: major(device)
+
+   Extract the device major number from a raw device number (usually the
+   :attr:`st_dev` or :attr:`st_rdev` field from :c:type:`stat`).
+
+
+.. function:: minor(device)
+
+   Extract the device minor number from a raw device number (usually the
+   :attr:`st_dev` or :attr:`st_rdev` field from :c:type:`stat`).
+
+
+.. function:: makedev(major, minor)
+
+   Compose a raw device number from the major and minor device numbers.
+
+
+.. function:: mkdir(path, mode=0o777, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Create a directory named *path* with numeric mode *mode*.
+
+   On some systems, *mode* is ignored.  Where it is used, the current umask
+   value is first masked out.  If the directory already exists, :exc:`OSError`
+   is raised.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   It is also possible to create temporary directories; see the
+   :mod:`tempfile` module's :func:`tempfile.mkdtemp` function.
+
+   Availability: Unix, Windows.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      The *dir_fd* argument.
+
+
+.. function:: makedirs(path, mode=0o777, exist_ok=False)
+
+   .. index::
+      single: directory; creating
+      single: UNC paths; and os.makedirs()
+
+   Recursive directory creation function.  Like :func:`mkdir`, but makes all
+   intermediate-level directories needed to contain the leaf directory.  If
+   the target directory with the same mode as specified already exists,
+   raises an :exc:`OSError` exception if *exist_ok* is False, otherwise no
+   exception is raised.  If the directory cannot be created in other cases,
+   raises an :exc:`OSError` exception.  The default *mode* is ``0o777`` (octal).
+   On some systems, *mode* is ignored.  Where it is used, the current umask
+   value is first masked out.
+
+   .. note::
+
+      :func:`makedirs` will become confused if the path elements to create
+      include :data:`pardir`.
+
+   This function handles UNC paths correctly.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.2
+      The *exist_ok* parameter.
+
+
+.. function:: pathconf(path, name)
+
+   Return system configuration information relevant to a named file. *name*
+   specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the
+   name of a defined system value; these names are specified in a number of
+   standards (POSIX.1, Unix 95, Unix 98, and others).  Some platforms define
+   additional names as well.  The names known to the host operating system are
+   given in the ``pathconf_names`` dictionary.  For configuration variables not
+   included in that mapping, passing an integer for *name* is also accepted.
+
+   If *name* is a string and is not known, :exc:`ValueError` is raised.  If a
+   specific value for *name* is not supported by the host system, even if it is
+   included in ``pathconf_names``, an :exc:`OSError` is raised with
+   :const:`errno.EINVAL` for the error number.
+
+   Availability: Unix.
+
+
+.. data:: pathconf_names
+
+   Dictionary mapping names accepted by :func:`pathconf` and :func:`fpathconf` to
+   the integer values defined for those names by the host operating system.  This
+   can be used to determine the set of names known to the system. Availability:
+   Unix.
+
+
+.. function:: readlink(path, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Return a string representing the path to which the symbolic link points.  The
+   result may be either an absolute or relative pathname; if it is relative, it
+   may be converted to an absolute pathname using
+   ``os.path.join(os.path.dirname(path), result)``.
+
+   If the *path* is a string object, the result will also be a string object,
+   and the call may raise an UnicodeDecodeError. If the *path* is a bytes
+   object, the result will be a bytes object.
+
+   This function can also support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   Availability: Unix, Windows
+
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
+      Added support for Windows 6.0 (Vista) symbolic links.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      The *dir_fd* argument.
+
+
+.. function:: remove(path, *, dir_fd=None)
+
+   Remove (delete) the file *path*.  If *path* is a directory, :exc:`OSError` is
+   raised.  Use :func:`rmdir` to remove directories.
+
+   This function can support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
+
+   On Windows, attempting to remove a file that is in use causes an exception to
+   be raised; on Unix, the directory entry is removed but the storage allocated
+   to the file is not made available until the original file is no longer in use.
+
+   This function is identical to :func:`unlink`.
+
+   Availability: Unix, Windows.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+      The *dir_fd* argument.
+
+
+.. function:: removedirs(path)
+
+   .. index:: single: directory; deleting
+
+   Remove directories recursively.  Works like :func:`rmdir` except that, if the
+   leaf directory is successfully removed, :func:`removedirs`  tries to
+   successively remove every parent directory mentioned in  *path* until an error
+   is raised (which is ignored, because it generally means that a parent directory
+   is not empty). For example, ``os.removedirs('foo/bar/baz')`` will first remove
+   the directory ``'foo/bar/baz'``, and then remove ``'foo/bar'`` and ``'foo'`` if
+   they are empty. Raises :exc:`OSError` if the leaf directory could not be
+   successfully removed.
+
+
+.. function:: removexattr(path, attribute, *, follow_symlinks=True)
+
+   Removes the extended filesystem attribute *attribute* from *path*.
+   *attribute* should be bytes or str. If it is a string, it is encoded
+   with the filesystem encoding.
+
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>` and
+   :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
+
+   Availability: Linux.
+
+   .. versionadded:: 3.3
+
+
+.. function:: rename(src, dst, *, src_dir_fd=None, dst_dir_fd=None)
+
+   Rename the file or directory *src* to *dst*.  If *dst* is a directory,
+   :exc:`OSError` will be raised.  On Unix, if *dst* exists and is a file, it will
+   be replaced silently if the user has permission.  The operation may fail on some
+   Unix flavors if *src* and *dst* are on different filesystems.  If successful,
+   the renaming will be an atomic operation (this is a POSIX requirement).  On
+   Windows, if *dst* already exists, :exc:`OSError` will be raised even if it is a
+   file.
+
    If either *src_dir_fd* or *dst_dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a
    file descriptor referring to a directory, and the corresponding path
    (*src* or *dst*) should be relative; that path will then be relative to
@@ -1501,322 +1758,34 @@
    you can check whether or not they are available using :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.
    If they are unavailable, using either will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
 
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of *src* is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`link` will use the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   If you want cross-platform overwriting of the destination, use :func:`replace`.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
-   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
-      Added Windows support.
-
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      Added the *src_dir_fd*, *dst_dir_fd*, and *follow_symlinks* arguments.
-
-
-.. function:: listdir(path='.')
-
-   Return a list containing the names of the entries in the directory given by
-   *path* (default: ``'.'``).  The list is in arbitrary order.  It does not include the special
-   entries ``'.'`` and ``'..'`` even if they are present in the directory.
-
-   This function can be called with a bytes or string argument, and returns
-   filenames of the same datatype.
-
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   Availability: Unix, Windows.
-
-   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
-      The *path* parameter became optional.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      Added support for specifying an open file descriptor for *path*.
-
-.. function:: listxattr(path=None, *, follow_symlinks=True)
-
-   Return a list of the extended filesystem attributes on *path*.
-   The attributes in the list are represented as strings decoded
-   with the filesystem encoding.
-
-   *path* may be specified as either ``None``, a string, or an open file
-   descriptor.  If *path* is ``None``, :func:`listxattr` will examine the
-   current directory.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`listxattr` will examine the symbolic link itself
-   instead of the file the link points to.  It is an error to use
-   *follow_symlinks* when specifying *path* as an open file descriptor.
-
-   Availability: Linux
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-
-
-.. function:: lstat(path, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Perform the equivalent of an :c:func:`lstat` system call on the given path.
-   Similar to :func:`~os.stat`, but does not follow symbolic links.  On
-   platforms that do not support symbolic links, this is an alias for
-   :func:`~os.stat`.  (Equivalent to ``os.stat(path, follow_symlinks=False)``.)
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
-      Added support for Windows 6.0 (Vista) symbolic links.
-
-   .. versionchanged:: 3.3
-      Added the *dir_fd* parameter.
-
-
-.. function:: mkfifo(path, mode=0o666, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Create a FIFO (a named pipe) named *path* with numeric mode *mode*.
-   The current umask value is first masked out from the mode.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   FIFOs are pipes that can be accessed like regular files.  FIFOs exist until they
-   are deleted (for example with :func:`os.unlink`). Generally, FIFOs are used as
-   rendezvous between "client" and "server" type processes: the server opens the
-   FIFO for reading, and the client opens it for writing.  Note that :func:`mkfifo`
-   doesn't open the FIFO --- it just creates the rendezvous point.
-
-   Availability: Unix.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *dir_fd* argument.
-
-
-.. function:: mknod(filename, mode=0o600, device=0, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Create a filesystem node (file, device special file or named pipe) named
-   *filename*. *mode* specifies both the permissions to use and the type of node
-   to be created, being combined (bitwise OR) with one of ``stat.S_IFREG``,
-   ``stat.S_IFCHR``, ``stat.S_IFBLK``, and ``stat.S_IFIFO`` (those constants are
-   available in :mod:`stat`).  For ``stat.S_IFCHR`` and ``stat.S_IFBLK``,
-   *device* defines the newly created device special file (probably using
-   :func:`os.makedev`), otherwise it is ignored.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *dir_fd* argument.
-
-
-.. function:: major(device)
-
-   Extract the device major number from a raw device number (usually the
-   :attr:`st_dev` or :attr:`st_rdev` field from :c:type:`stat`).
-
-
-.. function:: minor(device)
-
-   Extract the device minor number from a raw device number (usually the
-   :attr:`st_dev` or :attr:`st_rdev` field from :c:type:`stat`).
-
-
-.. function:: makedev(major, minor)
-
-   Compose a raw device number from the major and minor device numbers.
-
-
-.. function:: mkdir(path, mode=0o777, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Create a directory named *path* with numeric mode *mode*.
-
-   On some systems, *mode* is ignored.  Where it is used, the current
-   umask value is first masked out.  If the directory already
-   exists, :exc:`OSError` is raised.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   It is also possible to create temporary directories; see the
-   :mod:`tempfile` module's :func:`tempfile.mkdtemp` function.
-
-   Availability: Unix, Windows.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *dir_fd* argument.
-
-
-.. function:: makedirs(path, mode=0o777, exist_ok=False)
-
-   .. index::
-      single: directory; creating
-      single: UNC paths; and os.makedirs()
-
-   Recursive directory creation function.  Like :func:`mkdir`, but makes all
-   intermediate-level directories needed to contain the leaf directory.  If
-   the target directory with the same mode as specified already exists,
-   raises an :exc:`OSError` exception if *exist_ok* is False, otherwise no
-   exception is raised.  If the directory cannot be created in other cases,
-   raises an :exc:`OSError` exception.  The default *mode* is ``0o777`` (octal).
-   On some systems, *mode* is ignored.  Where it is used, the current umask
-   value is first masked out.
+      The *src_dir_fd* and *dst_dir_fd* arguments.
+
+
+.. function:: renames(old, new)
+
+   Recursive directory or file renaming function. Works like :func:`rename`, except
+   creation of any intermediate directories needed to make the new pathname good is
+   attempted first. After the rename, directories corresponding to rightmost path
+   segments of the old name will be pruned away using :func:`removedirs`.
 
    .. note::
 
-      :func:`makedirs` will become confused if the path elements to create
-      include :data:`pardir`.
-
-   This function handles UNC paths correctly.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.2
-      The *exist_ok* parameter.
-
-
-.. function:: pathconf(path, name)
-
-   Return system configuration information relevant to a named file. *name*
-   specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the
-   name of a defined system value; these names are specified in a number of
-   standards (POSIX.1, Unix 95, Unix 98, and others).  Some platforms define
-   additional names as well.  The names known to the host operating system are
-   given in the ``pathconf_names`` dictionary.  For configuration variables not
-   included in that mapping, passing an integer for *name* is also accepted.
-
-   If *name* is a string and is not known, :exc:`ValueError` is raised.  If a
-   specific value for *name* is not supported by the host system, even if it is
-   included in ``pathconf_names``, an :exc:`OSError` is raised with
-   :const:`errno.EINVAL` for the error number.
-
-   Availability: Unix.
-
-
-.. data:: pathconf_names
-
-   Dictionary mapping names accepted by :func:`pathconf` and :func:`fpathconf` to
-   the integer values defined for those names by the host operating system.  This
-   can be used to determine the set of names known to the system. Availability:
-   Unix.
-
-
-.. function:: readlink(path, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Return a string representing the path to which the symbolic link points.  The
-   result may be either an absolute or relative pathname; if it is relative, it may
-   be converted to an absolute pathname using ``os.path.join(os.path.dirname(path),
-   result)``.
-
-   If the *path* is a string object, the result will also be a string object,
-   and the call may raise an UnicodeDecodeError. If the *path* is a bytes
-   object, the result will be a bytes object.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   Availability: Unix, Windows
-
-   .. versionchanged:: 3.2
-      Added support for Windows 6.0 (Vista) symbolic links.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *dir_fd* argument.
-
-
-.. function:: remove(path, *, dir_fd=None)
-
-   Remove (delete) the file *path*.  If *path* is a directory, :exc:`OSError`
-   is raised.  Use :func:`rmdir` to remove directories.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   On Windows, attempting to remove a file that is in use causes an exception to
-   be raised; on Unix, the directory entry is removed but the storage allocated
-   to the file is not made available until the original file is no longer in use.
-
-   This function is identical to :func:`unlink`.
-
-   Availability: Unix, Windows.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *dir_fd* argument.
-
-
-.. function:: removedirs(path)
-
-   .. index:: single: directory; deleting
-
-   Remove directories recursively.  Works like :func:`rmdir` except that, if the
-   leaf directory is successfully removed, :func:`removedirs`  tries to
-   successively remove every parent directory mentioned in  *path* until an error
-   is raised (which is ignored, because it generally means that a parent directory
-   is not empty). For example, ``os.removedirs('foo/bar/baz')`` will first remove
-   the directory ``'foo/bar/baz'``, and then remove ``'foo/bar'`` and ``'foo'`` if
-   they are empty. Raises :exc:`OSError` if the leaf directory could not be
-   successfully removed.
-
-
-.. function:: removexattr(path, attribute, *, follow_symlinks=True)
-
-   Removes the extended filesystem attribute *attribute* from *path*.
-   *attribute* should be bytes or str. If it is a string, it is encoded
-   with the filesystem encoding.
-
-   *path* may be specified as either a string or an open file descriptor.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`removexattr` will remove the attribute from the
-   symbolic link itself instead of the file the link points to.  It is an
-   error to use *follow_symlinks* when specifying *path* as an open file
-   descriptor.
-
-   Availability: Linux
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-
-
-.. function:: rename(src, dst, *, src_dir_fd=None, dst_dir_fd=None)
+      This function can fail with the new directory structure made if you lack
+      permissions needed to remove the leaf directory or file.
+
+
+.. function:: replace(src, dst, *, src_dir_fd=None, dst_dir_fd=None)
 
    Rename the file or directory *src* to *dst*.  If *dst* is a directory,
-   :exc:`OSError` will be raised.  On Unix, if *dst* exists and is a file, it will
-   be replaced silently if the user has permission.  The operation may fail on some
-   Unix flavors if *src* and *dst* are on different filesystems.  If successful,
-   the renaming will be an atomic operation (this is a POSIX requirement).  On
-   Windows, if *dst* already exists, :exc:`OSError` will be raised even if it is a
-   file.
+   :exc:`OSError` will be raised.  If *dst* exists and is a file, it will
+   be replaced silently if the user has permission.  The operation may fail
+   if *src* and *dst* are on different filesystems.  If successful,
+   the renaming will be an atomic operation (this is a POSIX requirement).
 
    If either *src_dir_fd* or *dst_dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a
    file descriptor referring to a directory, and the corresponding path
@@ -1827,44 +1796,6 @@
    you can check whether or not they are available using :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.
    If they are unavailable, using either will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
 
-   If you want cross-platform overwriting of the destination, use :func:`replace`.
-
-   Availability: Unix, Windows.
-
-   .. versionadded:: 3.3
-      The *src_dir_fd* and *dst_dir_fd* arguments.
-
-
-.. function:: renames(old, new)
-
-   Recursive directory or file renaming function. Works like :func:`rename`, except
-   creation of any intermediate directories needed to make the new pathname good is
-   attempted first. After the rename, directories corresponding to rightmost path
-   segments of the old name will be pruned away using :func:`removedirs`.
-
-   .. note::
-
-      This function can fail with the new directory structure made if you lack
-      permissions needed to remove the leaf directory or file.
-
-
-.. function:: replace(src, dst, *, src_dir_fd=None, dst_dir_fd=None)
-
-   Rename the file or directory *src* to *dst*.  If *dst* is a directory,
-   :exc:`OSError` will be raised.  If *dst* exists and is a file, it will
-   be replaced silently if the user has permission.  The operation may fail
-   if *src* and *dst* are on different filesystems.  If successful,
-   the renaming will be an atomic operation (this is a POSIX requirement).
-
-   If either *src_dir_fd* or *dst_dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a
-   file descriptor referring to a directory, and the corresponding path
-   (*src* or *dst*) should be relative; that path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *src* is absolute, *src_dir_fd* is ignored; the same
-   goes for *dst* and *dst_dir_fd*.)
-   *src_dir_fd* and *dst_dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not they are available using :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.
-   If they are unavailable, using either will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
    Availability: Unix, Windows
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
@@ -1876,13 +1807,8 @@
    empty, otherwise, :exc:`OSError` is raised.  In order to remove whole
    directory trees, :func:`shutil.rmtree` can be used.
 
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
@@ -1918,14 +1844,10 @@
    If :data:`XATTR_CREATE` is given and the attribute already exists, the
    attribute will not be created and ``ENODATA`` will be raised.
 
-   *path* may be specified as either a string or an open file descriptor.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`setxattr` will examine the symbolic link itself
-   instead of the file the link points to.  It is an error to use
-   *follow_symlinks* when specifying *path* as an open file descriptor.
-
-   Availability: Linux
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>` and
+   :ref:`not following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
+
+   Availability: Linux.
 
    .. note::
 
@@ -2002,30 +1924,17 @@
       If you need the exact timestamps you should always use
       :attr:`st_atime_ns`, :attr:`st_mtime_ns`, and :attr:`st_ctime_ns`.
 
-   For backward compatibility, the return value of :func:`~os.stat` is also accessible
-   as a tuple of at least 10 integers giving the most important (and portable)
-   members of the :c:type:`stat` structure, in the order :attr:`st_mode`,
-   :attr:`st_ino`, :attr:`st_dev`, :attr:`st_nlink`, :attr:`st_uid`,
-   :attr:`st_gid`, :attr:`st_size`, :attr:`st_atime`, :attr:`st_mtime`,
-   :attr:`st_ctime`. More items may be added at the end by some implementations.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`stat` will examine the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   It is an error to use *dir_fd* or *follow_symlinks* when specifying
-   *path* as an open file descriptor.
+   For backward compatibility, the return value of :func:`~os.stat` is also
+   accessible as a tuple of at least 10 integers giving the most important (and
+   portable) members of the :c:type:`stat` structure, in the order
+   :attr:`st_mode`, :attr:`st_ino`, :attr:`st_dev`, :attr:`st_nlink`,
+   :attr:`st_uid`, :attr:`st_gid`, :attr:`st_size`, :attr:`st_atime`,
+   :attr:`st_mtime`, :attr:`st_ctime`. More items may be added at the end by
+   some implementations.
+
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying an open file descriptor
+   <path_fd>`, :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>` and :ref:`not
+   following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    .. index:: module: stat
 
@@ -2094,10 +2003,7 @@
    read-only, and if :const:`ST_NOSUID` is set, the semantics of
    setuid/setgid bits are disabled or not supported.
 
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>`.
 
    .. versionchanged:: 3.2
       The :const:`ST_RDONLY` and :const:`ST_NOSUID` constants were added.
@@ -2132,17 +2038,17 @@
 .. data:: supports_effective_ids
 
    An object implementing collections.Set indicating which functions in the
-   :mod:`os` permit use of the *effective_id* parameter for :func:`os.access`.
+   :mod:`os` permit use of the *effective_ids* parameter for :func:`os.access`.
    If the local platform supports it, the collection will contain
    :func:`os.access`, otherwise it will be empty.
 
-   To check whether you can use the *effective_id* parameter for
+   To check whether you can use the *effective_ids* parameter for
    :func:`os.access`, use the ``in`` operator on ``supports_dir_fd``, like so::
 
        os.access in os.supports_effective_ids
 
-   Currently *effective_id* only works on UNIX platforms;
-   it does not work on Windows.
+   Currently *effective_ids* only works on Unix platforms; it does not work on
+   Windows.
 
    .. versionadded:: 3.3
 
@@ -2196,13 +2102,8 @@
    Symbolic link support was introduced in Windows 6.0 (Vista).  :func:`symlink`
    will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError` on Windows versions earlier than 6.0.
 
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
+   This function can support :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors
+   <dir_fd>`.
 
    .. note::
 
@@ -2247,7 +2148,7 @@
 .. function:: unlink(path, *, dir_fd=None)
 
    Remove (delete) the file *path*.  This function is identical to
-   :func:`remove`; the :func:`unlink` name is its traditional Unix
+   :func:`remove`; the ``unlink`` name is its traditional Unix
    name.  Please see the documentation for :func:`remove` for
    further information.
 
@@ -2287,28 +2188,9 @@
    use the *st_atime_ns* and *st_mtime_ns* fields from the :func:`os.stat`
    result object with the *ns* parameter to `utime`.
 
-   On some platforms, *path* may also be specified as an open file descriptor.
-   This functionality may not be supported on your platform; you can check
-   whether or not it is available using :data:`os.supports_fd`.  If it is
-   unavailable, using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *dir_fd* is not ``None``, it should be a file descriptor referring to a
-   directory, and *path* should be relative; path will then be relative to
-   that directory.  (If *path* is absolute, *dir_fd* is ignored.)
-   *dir_fd* may not be supported on your platform;
-   you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_dir_fd`.  If it is unavailable, using it will raise
-   a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   If *follow_symlinks* is ``False``, and the last element of the path is a
-   symbolic link, :func:`utime` will examine the symbolic link itself instead
-   of the file the link points to.  *follow_symlinks* may not be supported
-   on your platform; you can check whether or not it is available using
-   :data:`os.supports_follow_symlinks`.  If it is unavailable,
-   using it will raise a :exc:`NotImplementedError`.
-
-   It is an error to use *dir_fd* or *follow_symlinks* when specifying
-   *path* as an open file descriptor.
+   This function can support :ref:`specifying a file descriptor <path_fd>`,
+   :ref:`paths relative to directory descriptors <dir_fd>` and :ref:`not
+   following symlinks <follow_symlinks>`.
 
    Availability: Unix, Windows.
 
@@ -2362,9 +2244,9 @@
 
    .. note::
 
-      Be aware that setting *followlinks* to ``True`` can lead to infinite recursion if a
-      link points to a parent directory of itself. :func:`walk` does not keep track of
-      the directories it visited already.
+      Be aware that setting *followlinks* to ``True`` can lead to infinite
+      recursion if a link points to a parent directory of itself. :func:`walk`
+      does not keep track of the directories it visited already.
 
    .. note::
 

-- 
Repository URL: http://hg.python.org/cpython


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