How to write Python code that is able to properly require a minimal python version?

Question

I would like to see if there is any way of requiring a minimal python version.

I have several python modules that are requiring Python 2.6 due to the new exception handl

Answer 1

Starting with version 9.0.0 pip supports Requires-Python field in distribution's metadata which can be written by setuptools starting with version 24-2-0. This feature is available through python_requires keyword argument to setup function.

Example (in setup.py):

setup(
...
   python_requires='>=2.5,<2.7',
...

)

To take advantage of this feature one has to package the project/script first if not already done. This is very easy in typical case and should be done nonetheless as it allows users to easily install, use and uninstall given project/script. Please see Python Packaging User Guide for details.

Answer 2

import sys
if sys.hexversion < 0x02060000:
    sys.exit("Python 2.6 or newer is required to run this program.")

import module_requiring_26

Also the cool part about this is that it can be included inside the __init__ file or the module.

Answer 3

Rather than indexing you could always do this,

import platform
if platform.python_version() not in ('2.6.6'):
    raise RuntimeError('Not right version')