Setting Python2.5 to Run From The Command Line

[cyberslayer]

I have installed the python2.5 package on my system and I would like to know how to configure my system so that it will run the python2.5 interpreter when I type 'python' on the command line. Currently it seems to be set to run Python2.4 instead when I type 'python'. I noticed that there are python2.4 and python2.5 executables in /usr/bin and there is also a file named python which is a link to an executable. When I look under properties I can see that it is linked to python2.4 so I can see why typing python from the command line runs python2.4 and not python2.5 but I don't know how to change this. Could someone please tell me how to change the target of the python file?

Thanks

[jan247]

sudo rm /usr/bin/python
sudo ln -s /usr/bin/python2.5 /usr/bin/python

[asimon]

sudo rm /usr/bin/python
sudo ln -s /usr/bin/python2.5 /usr/bin/python

The debian way to do this is

$ sudo update-alternatives --config python

[cyberslayer]

Ok. Thanks for your help. It works now.

[kperkins]

The debian way to do this is

$ sudo update-alternatives --config python

Except when I try this, it says there are no alternatives for python--which I know is false, since I have 2.4 and 2.5 on my system.

[Wybiral]

Same here, I have 2.4 and 2.5 and it told me there were no alternatives either. I don't really mind as I rarely use python in the terminal, just thought I would point that out.

[po0f]

cyberslayer,

If you want to set it up for just one user, you can set an alias for it in ~/.bashrc:

alias python='/usr/bin/python2.5'

I really don't suggest changing /usr/bin/python to point to /usr/bin/python2.5, because I'm sure there's more than a couple of applications that will break if you do so.

[cyberslayer]

I really don't suggest changing /usr/bin/python to point to /usr/bin/python2.5, because I'm sure there's more than a couple of applications that will break if you do so.

Yes, I just found out that was a really bad idea. I thought that since I just wanted to use it to run my own programs in python2.5 it wouldn't be a problem but it turns out that if you change the symbolic link to python2.5 Add/Remove programs will not run correctly because it does not work with python2.5! It looks like this is because there is no AppInstall package in /usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages but there is in /usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages so python doesn't find the required AppInstall package when you try to run Add/Remove programs (probably could have just copied the required packages to /usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages from /usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages but I didn't try it). Anyway, I changed the symbolic link back to python2.4 and added the alias as po0f suggested and it works fine now.

Thanks

[dthury]

I think I've figured out how to get python2.5 "fully functional. Using the update-alternatives "hint" from an earlier response, I did a little research, and learned that "update-alternatives" for python MUST be configured (which it apparently is not, out of the box).

Like others above mentioned, I too experienced "update-alternatives --config python" returned "no alternatives". I then did the following (after su root; sudo before each command may work too):

update-alternatives --install /usr/lib/python  python /usr/lib/python2.4  10
update-alternatives --install /usr/lib/python  python /usr/lib/python2.5 1

I chose priorities 10 and 1 rather arbitrarily, thinking that Python 2.4 should be the higher/preferred version.

I now get the list of alternatives when I issue the

update-alternatives --config python,  or
update-alternatives --set python /usr/lib/python2.5

I make my preferred selection. invoke python, and get the selected version. This about the only tests I've done so far, so I don't yet know if there are any gotchas yet!!

Any comments?

[Tyler Oderkirk]

update-alternatives --install /usr/lib/python  python /usr/lib/python2.4  10
update-alternatives --install /usr/lib/python  python /usr/lib/python2.5 1

Hi dthury,

Did you mean to say this instead?

update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python  python /usr/lib/python2.4  10
update-alternatives --install /usr/bin/python  python /usr/lib/python2.5 1

/usr/lib/python is a directory of python libraries. /urs/bin/python is the symlink that we want the debian alternatives system to maintain for us I think.

-Tyler