dpkg-buildpackage with cookiecutter invalid or non-existing path to the source directory: debian/sampleproject

Question

Hello I'm trying to create a deb package from a python project with virtualenv and to do it I'm using cookiecutter. I've never created a deb package in my life and so I'm following the guide listed here but i had some problems trying to build the package with dpkg-buildpackage -us -uc (i'm on ubuntu 21.10 and i use python 3.9.7), first of all it was warned the lack of a file (failed to run pyversions) but i managed to solve the problem by installing python 2.7 but unfortunately i found myself an error that I have really searched everywhere but I could not find anything and the error in question is:

dh_auto_configure: error: invalid or non-existing path to the source directory: debian/sampleproject-0.1
make: *** [debian/rules:43: build] Errore 255
dpkg-buildpackage: Errore: debian/rules build subprocess returned exit status 2

that is, it expects the presence of a directory that has not been created

the situation tree is:

.
├── debian
│ ├── changelog
│ ├── compat
│ ├── control
│ ├── cookiecutter.json
│ ├── copyright
│ ├── rules
│ ├── sampleproject.debhelper.log
│ ├── sampleproject.links
│ ├── sampleproject.postinst
│ ├── sampleproject.triggers
│ └── source
│ ├── format
│ └── options
├── sampleproject
│ ├── __init__.py
│ └── sample.py
├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_all.deb
├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_amd64.buildinfo
├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_amd64.changes
└── setup.py

while the sample.py code (a simple test program) is:

from randstr import randstr

def main():
    print("Hello Worls")
    print(randstr())
    
if __name__ == "__main__":
    main()

however init.py I cannot understand its usefulness and it is an empty file while everything else is generated by answering the questions with:

cookiecutter https://github.com/Springerle/dh-virtualenv-mold.git

which I installed with pip install cookiecutter.

I hope someone will help me because there is hardly any information about these things.

Answer 1

In your debian/rules

replace:

dh $@ --with python-virtualenv --sourcedir $(SDIST_DIR)

with:

dh $@ --buildsystem=pybuild --with python3 $(DH_VENV_ARGS)

and from your setup.py remove install_requires. I believe dh-virtual finds requirements.txt itself.

run your build command again and remember to install required libraries. You will probably need to install python and python-setuptools (I know you running python3) to get the python versions in perl modules and you will need to add them in your control file.

Answer 2

Struggling like you however one thing is certain, your tutorial is too old and there a new way to package the Python application.

You should definitely read the Debian Python Policy and especially the §4.3 which explains that the required structure is more this one:

.
└── debian
  ├── python3-sampleproject
  │ ├── __init__.py
  │ ├── setup.py
  │ └── sample.py
  ├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_all.deb
  ├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_amd64.buildinfo
  ├── sampleproject-build-deps_0.1_amd64.changes
  ├── changelog
  ├── compat
  ├── control
  ├── cookiecutter.json
  ├── copyright
  ├── rules
  ├── sampleproject.debhelper.log
  ├── sampleproject.links
  ├── sampleproject.postinst
  ├── sampleproject.triggers
  └── source
    ├── format
    └── options

Also what would be the best is to use dh_make -p <your_package>_1.0 --python --createorig to ensure the latest version of packaging Python files.

After that the best way I found was to have a look to the way Debian itself packaged their Python application.

This one is a good (simple) example : https://salsa.debian.org/python-team/packages/python-untangle/-/tree/debian/main/debian

Good luck