Difference between IDE Settings and CLI Execution for Python Projects

When running Python projects in an IDE like IDEA, options like:

Add content roots to PYTHONPATH
Add source roots to PYTHONPATH

make worries about module imports disappear. There’s also a setting for the working directory, making things work smoothly even with rough configurations.

However, for actual service deployment, it often needs to be executed via the CLI (Command Line Interface). This is the case when registering a service on a Linux system or running specific scripts as cron jobs.

When the client must execute from a specific directory, the program needs to be aware of that directory. While the IDE automatically handles these settings, the CLI does not.

Therefore, developers need to use methods like sys.path.append() to explicitly specify the current working directory.

Thus, it’s necessary to explicitly write and pass the current working directory using sys.path.append().

import os, sys

pwd = os.getcwd()
sys.path.append(pwd)

This allows the program to reference the specified directory and find the necessary files. Explicitly setting the working directory is an important step to ensure the program runs correctly in the CLI.

When developing Python projects, it’s crucial to consider the differences between settings in the IDE and the execution environment in the CLI. The IDE makes development convenient, but it’s important to remember that writing code considering the environment where it will actually be deployed and run is even more crucial.

Fin