Manifest

The manifest file will list files which are not included in the build by default.

Note: By default, distutils will include the following files in your release package:

  • README.txt

  • setup.py

  • The .py files needed by the multi-file modules listed in the packages parameter.

  • The individual .py files listed in the py_modules parameter.

Syntax

Taking this sample sample/python/distutils/simple-booking-engine/MANIFEST.in file.

include LICENSE
recursive-include docs *.html *.css *.png *.gif

Sample from a Django project:

include LICENSE
include MANIFEST.in
include README.rst
recursive-include docs *
recursive-include simple-booking-engine/templates *

Note:

  • The first line is self-explanatory; include the LICENSE file from the project’s root directory.

  • The second line is a bit more complicated; the recursive-include command takes a directory name and one or more filenames. The filenames aren’t limited to specific files; they can include wildcards.