Which linux distribution is best for Python web development?

Question

Which linux distribution is best for Python web development?

Background:

I am currently developing Windows, and that is fine, but I want to port my core Python development to Linux. I am sure that most distributions will work fine, but does anyone have reason to believe that one distribution is better than another?

Answer 1

Significant distribution does not matter since Python is present and largely self-sufficient for almost all Linux distributions.

If you want to focus on development, I would recommend Ubuntu. Ubuntu is arguably one of the most “user-friendly” distributions that makes system administration simple, so you can focus on the development tasks you want to solve.

If you have a Linux environment that is designed for your code (e.g. RedHat or something else), go to the desktop distribution that matches your target environment (e.g. Fedora for RedHat, Gentoo for Gentoo, Ubuntu for Ubuntu Server, and etc.)

Otherwise, they all fit.

Answer 2

You must have Python 2.6. Otherwise, it is a matter of choice.

One tip: never install anything as root (e.g. python setup.py install ). Install things only with the distribution package manager and use virtualenv as a user to install other packages.

Ubuntu has a virtual package, and it can even be used without installation.

Answer 3

Using a distribution with the latest stable versions of Python, you can test your code with these versions. Today it is very easy for developers to test their code with several versions of Python.

Gentoo probably gives you maximum flexibility while using multiple versions of Python at the same time:

  (2.5) 2.5.4-r4 (2.6) 2.6.6-r2 or 2.6.7-r2 (2.7) 2.7.2-r3 (3.1) 3.1.4-r3 (3.2) 3.2.2 

This prevents you from testing some older versions that are very popular on Debian based systems, for example.

pythonbrew allows you to compile and install multiple versions of Python in your home directory, no root access is required.

This is a quick test of your code with multiple versions of Python thanks tox '. By default, tox will find your system python (s), but you can, for example, install custom interpreters that you create with pythonbrew.

Here you can use tox.ini with Jenkins, for continuous integration. With this installation, you can install jenkins, then su-jenkins, and use pythonbrew to install all versions of Python that you want to test.

 [tox] envlist = py267,py271,py272 [testenv] #You may need to change this. Are your tests here? changedir=tests #You can also use nose, etc., see documentation deps=pytest commands=py.test --junitxml=junit-{envname}.xml [testenv:py272] basepython=/var/lib/jenkins/.pythonbrew/pythons/Python-2.7.2/bin/python2.7 [testenv:py271] basepython=/var/lib/jenkins/.pythonbrew/pythons/Python-2.7.1/bin/python2.7 [testenv:py267] basepython=/var/lib/jenkins/.pythonbrew/pythons/Python-2.6.7/bin/python2.6 

It's easy, and it doesn't matter which Linux distribution you use.

For more information on setting up Jenkins, see the Tox website.

Answer 4

I use RHEL and was very pleased, so I would say Fedora would be fine. I use Debian at home, and it's great (headless, so there is no network).

However, I think you should probably just choose one based on what your company is using, or any number of non-Python reasons. I don't think you will find the Python tool available for any Linux distributions.

Answer 5

Most major distributions will include Python and Apache, so this is really a matter of choice. If you are new to Linux, I would suggest either Ubuntu or Fedora. Both are great for new users and have great community support.

Answer 6

As other answers have already been mentioned, the Python 2.6 interpreter will be available in all recent releases of Linux distributions. This should not affect your choice.

However, choosing an IDE may eliminate some of the possibilities. You need to make sure that the distribution you choose has a package for the latest version of your IDE and that it is updated quite often.

As an example, I would like to use Eclipse with PyDev to develop Python applications on any OS, but the official Ubuntu repositories only had Eclipse 3.2 (from 2006) until October last year, when they finally upgraded to 3.5 in the latest distribution.

Answer 7

I work with Python on Cento 5.4 and Fedora 12, and I'm very happy.

I also use the Eclipse IDE for python and other languages ​​without any major problems.

Answer 8

Any desktop distribution such as Ubuntu, OpenSUSE, Fedora, ... is fine, but if you want to always have the latest versions, I recommend ArchLinux.

Answer 9

I think I remember the podcast with Guido Van Rossum and its python developers for key developers in those days, and one of the Python kernel developers now uses Canonical to take care of python integration for the ubuntu distribution. So this explains why ubuntu is a much more pythonic distribution compared to another distribution.

On the other hand, gentoo linux distro also has built-in python in its Portage package management system. Therefore, gentoo and ubuntu, I would say, are good for the python development system, and each of them represents both ends of the spectrum.