python_analysis_include.md

Understanding python.analysis.include in Pylance

Pylance is a fast, feature-rich language support extension for Python in Visual Studio Code, powered by the Pyright static type checker. It provides advanced type checking, IntelliSense, code navigation, and other language features to enhance your Python development experience.

One of Pylance's capabilities is to analyze your project's codebase to provide accurate IntelliSense and code navigation features. However, in large projects or when you want to focus Pylance's features on specific directories, you may need to customize which files and directories Pylance includes in its workspace.

This guide explains what python.analysis.include is, how it affects Pylance's behavior, and how you can use it to control which parts of your codebase are included in the workspace.

What Is python.analysis.include?

The python.analysis.include setting in Pylance allows you to specify paths to directories or files that Pylance should consider as part of your workspace for its features. By customizing this setting, you can control which parts of your codebase Pylance monitors, which can help manage performance and focus on relevant code sections, especially in large projects.

Key Points

• Default Behavior: By default, Pylance includes everything in the editor's workspace root directory when analyzing your code. This means all files and subdirectories are considered part of the workspace.

• Customizing include Overrides Defaults: If you customize python.analysis.include, Pylance's automatic inclusion of the entire workspace is overridden. You need to explicitly specify all directories and files you want to include in the analysis, including the workspace root if desired.

• Wildcard Support: Paths specified in python.analysis.include can include wildcard characters:

  • **: Matches any directory or multiple levels of directories.
  • *: Matches any sequence of zero or more characters.
  • ?: Matches a single character.

• Interaction with exclude: The python.analysis.exclude setting specifies paths to directories or files that Pylance should ignore, even if they are included in include. Paths specified in exclude take precedence over those in include. This allows you to fine-tune which parts of your included directories should be ignored.

How to Use python.analysis.include

You can modify the python.analysis.include setting in your VS Code settings, either globally (User settings) or for your workspace.

Modifying the Setting

1. Open the Settings:

   • In Visual Studio Code, open the settings by selecting Settings from the gear icon in the lower-left corner.

2. Search for the Setting:

   • In the search bar at the top of the Settings pane, type python.analysis.include.

3. Modify the Setting:

   • Add the paths to the directories or files you want Pylance to include. For example:

     "python.analysis.include": ["src/**/*", "scripts/**/*"]

Alternatively, you can edit your settings.json file directly:

1. Open Settings (JSON):

   • Open the Command Palette and select Preferences: Open Settings (JSON).

2. Add the Setting:

   • Add or modify the following line in your settings.json file:

     "python.analysis.include": ["src/**/*", "scripts/**/*"]

Using Wildcards

• ** (Double Asterisk): Matches any directory or multiple levels of directories. For example,src/**includes all files and subdirectories undersrc.

• * (Asterisk): Matches any sequence of zero or more characters within a single directory level. For example, src/* includes all immediate subdirectories and files under src.

• ? (Question Mark): Matches any single character. For example, src/fil?.py matches src/file.py and src/filx.py.

Examples

1. Including Specific Directories

Suppose your workspace has the following structure:

my_project/
├── src/
│   ├── module1/
│   ├── module2/
├── tests/
├── scripts/
├── build/
├── .git/

To include only the src and scripts directories in Pylance's analysis:

"python.analysis.include": ["src/**/*", "scripts/**/*"]

2. Including Files with Specific Patterns

To include only Python files in the src directory:

"python.analysis.include": ["src/**/*.py"]

3. Including the Workspace Root

If you customize python.analysis.include and still want to include the entire workspace root, you need to specify it explicitly:

"python.analysis.include": ["**/*"]

4. Combining include and exclude

To include all files in the src directory but exclude temporary files:

{
    "python.analysis.include": ["src/**/*"],
    "python.analysis.exclude": ["src/temp/**/*"]
}

When and Why to Use python.analysis.include

Managing Performance in Large Projects

In large projects, Pylance's analysis of the entire codebase can consume significant resources and may affect performance. By limiting the analysis to specific directories using python.analysis.include, you can improve performance by reducing the scope of files Pylance needs to process.

Focusing on Relevant Code Sections

When working on a particular module or component of your project, you might want Pylance to focus its analysis on that specific part. Customizing python.analysis.include allows you to include only the directories relevant to your current work.

Avoiding Analysis of Generated or External Code

Your project may contain directories with generated code, build artifacts, or external dependencies that you don't want Pylance to analyze. By specifying the directories to include, you can prevent Pylance from analyzing these parts of your codebase.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What happens if I customize python.analysis.include but forget to include the workspace root?

A: If you set python.analysis.include without including the workspace root (e.g., "**/*"), Pylance will only analyze the paths you specified. This means any files not under the specified paths will be ignored in the analysis. If you want to include the entire workspace root along with additional paths, you should explicitly include it:

"python.analysis.include": ["**/*", "/additional/path/**/*"]

Q: Do paths in python.analysis.include support wildcards?

A: Yes, paths can include wildcard characters

Q: How does python.analysis.include interact with python.analysis.exclude?

A: Paths specified in python.analysis.exclude take precedence over those in python.analysis.include. This means you can include a broad set of directories and then use exclude to remove specific subdirectories or files from the analysis.

Q: Can I use python.analysis.include to include files outside of my workspace?

A: Yes, you can specify absolute paths or paths relative to the workspace. This is useful if you want Pylance to analyze code in directories outside of your current workspace, such as shared libraries or dependencies located elsewhere on your system.

Q: Why is Pylance not recognizing my files even after setting python.analysis.include?

A: If Pylance isn't recognizing your files, ensure that:

• The paths specified in python.analysis.include are correct and match the actual directory structure.
• You haven't overridden the default include paths without including the workspace root (if needed).
• There are no conflicting settings in python.analysis.exclude that might be excluding the files you want to include.

Related Documentation

For additional guidance on managing large workspaces, refer to the Opening Large Workspaces in VS Code guide.

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For more information on Pylance settings and customization, refer to the Pylance Settings and Customization documentation.

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This document was generated with the assistance of AI and has been reviewed by humans for accuracy and completeness.