optimize

The optimize function removes unnecessary files from PyInstaller build output based on spec file patterns to reduce application size.

Function Signature

def optimize(base_path: str, spec_file: str) -> None:

Optimizes PyInstaller build output by removing unnecessary files and directories based on patterns defined in a spec file. This significantly reduces the final application size by removing unused Qt libraries, translations, and other bloat.

The function provides a rich terminal interface with real-time progress tracking, showing:

Current processing status
Space saved
Files and directories removed
Processing time

Parameters

Prop

Type

Spec File Format

The spec file uses a simple text format with the following rules:

Include patterns: Files/directories to remove (one per line)
Exclude patterns: Files to keep (prefixed with !)
Comments: Lines starting with # are ignored
Empty lines: Ignored

Pattern Examples

# Remove all Qt3D libraries
PySide6/Qt63D*

# Remove Qt Charts
PySide6/Qt6Charts*

# Remove translations but keep English
PySide6/translations/qtwebengine_locales/*.pak
!PySide6/translations/qtwebengine_locales/en-US.pak

# Remove QML files
PySide6/qml

# Remove debug resources
PySide6/resources/qtwebengine_devtools_resources.pak

Platform-Specific Spec Files

Different platforms have different optimization patterns:

Windows: windows_optimize.spec
macOS: macos_optimize.spec
Linux: linux_optimize.spec

Usage Examples

Basic Usage

from pyloid_builder.optimize import optimize

# Optimize Windows build
optimize('./dist/MyApp/_internal', './src/build/windows_optimize.spec')

# Optimize macOS app bundle
optimize('./dist/MyApp.app', './src/build/macos_optimize.spec')

Complete Build Script

from pyloid_builder.pyinstaller import pyinstaller
from pyloid_builder.optimize import optimize
from pyloid.utils import get_platform

# Configuration
main_script = './src-pyloid/main.py'
name = 'pyloid-app'
dist_path = './dist'
work_path = './build'

# Platform-specific settings
if get_platform() == 'windows':
    icon = './src-pyloid/icons/icon.ico'
    optimize_spec = './src-pyloid/build/windows_optimize.spec'
    internal_path = f'{dist_path}/{name}/_internal'
elif get_platform() == 'macos':
    icon = './src-pyloid/icons/icon.icns'
    optimize_spec = './src-pyloid/build/macos_optimize.spec'
    internal_path = f'{dist_path}/{name}.app'
else:  # linux
    icon = './src-pyloid/icons/icon.png'
    optimize_spec = './src-pyloid/build/linux_optimize.spec'
    internal_path = f'{dist_path}/{name}/_internal'

# Build with PyInstaller
pyinstaller(
    main_script,
    [
        f'--name={name}',
        f'--distpath={dist_path}',
        f'--workpath={work_path}',
        '--clean',
        '--noconfirm',
        '--onedir',
        '--windowed',
        '--add-data=./src-pyloid/icons/:./src-pyloid/icons/',
        '--add-data=./dist-front/:./dist-front/',
        f'--icon={icon}',
    ],
)

# Optimize the build
optimize(internal_path, optimize_spec)

Error Handling

The function may raise the following exceptions:

FileNotFoundError: When spec file is not found
FileNotFoundError: When target directory doesn't exist
OSError: When file/directory removal fails

All errors are displayed in the terminal with detailed messages.