PEP 773 -- A Python Installation Manager for Windows

[zooba]

Please consider PEP 773 -- A Python Installation Manager for Windows
https://peps.python.org/pep-0773/

• The PEP has been discussed in threads listed in its Post-History header
• The PEP was announced on Discuss (link in Post-History)
• The PEP includes all relevant Suggested Sections
• The PEP includes endorsements from the projects/groups/people it helps
• The PEP has a CODEOWNERS entry

No specific endorsements are listed in the PEP, as it primarily helps us (and specifically me right now, but eventually whoever takes over Windows releases after me). The discussion thread has a number of endorsements, including from the maintainer of uv, the maintainer of the cross-platform py tool, and a number of individual users. Arguably every open bug in the current installer is an endorsement, as they mostly can't be fixed in the current installer (without impacting other users).

There are two open issues and a number of rejected ideas that may still be feasible, if less than ideal. I'm expecting a PEP delegate will be assigned to dive deeper into these, rather than immediate acceptance by the SC, though acceptance with guidance would be fine.

I'm hoping to have confirmation on this before 3.14 beta, so that we can start the deprecation timeline with plenty of time for users to learn about it and adapt. The current implementation is ready for an alpha release, and as it is an installer it is impossible to validate further without broad testing. Modifications to the main cpython and release-tools repositories are also required to create real releases for proper testing (currently the implementation uses our NuGet packages, which omit some modules).

From a legal POV, this is a contribution from my employer to the PSF, and (if accepted) will be fully owned by the PSF. All apps published to the Microsoft Store will be fully owned and controlled by the PSF, as they already are today. (This statement may need polishing and adding to the PEP itself, though that likely forces me into "get custom legal advice from work lawyers" rather than "follow my standard guidelines" and may end up complicating things further.)

[zooba]

FYI, there is an open PR with minor textual tweaks at https://github.com/python/peps/pull/4249/files

I'm holding off on merging so I don't change anything since when I submitted the request. But it may help clarify any initial questions for you.