# `importlib.resources` – Package resource reading, opening and access

Source code: Lib/importlib/resources/__init__.py

New in version 3.7.

This module leverages Python’s import system to provide access to resources within packages.

“Resources” are file-like resources associated with a module or package in Python. The resources may be contained directly in a package, within a subdirectory contained in that package, or adjacent to modules outside a package. Resources may be text or binary. As a result, Python module sources (.py) of a package and compilation artifacts (pycache) are technically de-facto resources of that package. In practice, however, resources are primarily those non-Python artifacts exposed specifically by the package author.

Resources can be opened or read in either binary or text mode.

Resources are roughly akin to files inside directories, though it’s important to keep in mind that this is just a metaphor. Resources and packages do not have to exist as physical files and directories on the file system: for example, a package and its resources can be imported from a zip file using `zipimport`.

Note

This module provides functionality similar to pkg_resources Basic Resource Access without the performance overhead of that package. This makes reading resources included in packages easier, with more stable and consistent semantics.

The standalone backport of this module provides more information on using importlib.resources and migrating from pkg_resources to importlib.resources.

`Loaders` that wish to support resource reading should implement a `get_resource_reader(fullname)` method as specified by `importlib.resources.abc.ResourceReader`.

importlib.resources.Anchor

  Represents an anchor for resources, either a `module object` or a module name as a string. Defined as `Union[str, ModuleType]`.

importlib.resources.files(anchor: Anchor | None = None)

  Returns a `Traversable` object representing the resource container (think directory) and its resources (think files). A Traversable may contain other containers (think subdirectories).

  anchor is an optional `Anchor`. If the anchor is a package, resources are resolved from that package. If a module, resources are resolved adjacent to that module (in the same package or the package root). If the anchor is omitted, the caller’s module is used.

  New in version 3.9.

  Changed in version 3.12: “package” parameter was renamed to “anchor”. “anchor” can now be a non-package module and if omitted will default to the caller’s module. “package” is still accepted for compatibility but will raise a DeprecationWarning. Consider passing the anchor positionally or using `importlib_resources >= 5.10` for a compatible interface on older Pythons.

importlib.resources.as_file(traversable)

  Given a `Traversable` object representing a file or directory, typically from `importlib.resources.files()`, return a context manager for use in a `with` statement. The context manager provides a `pathlib.Path` object.

  Exiting the context manager cleans up any temporary file or directory created when the resource was extracted from e.g. a zip file.

  Use `as_file` when the Traversable methods (`read_text`, etc) are insufficient and an actual file or directory on the file system is required.

  New in version 3.9.

  Changed in version 3.12: Added support for `traversable` representing a directory.