Python ModuleNotFoundError when not in working directory; getcwd finds module

Question

When I try to run a python file with python3.6 src/main.py (the working directory is one above src) there's this error when importing another module from path src:

from src import another_module

ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'src'

When I do

print(os.getcwd())
print(os.listdir(os.getcwd()))

I get what's expected:

path/to/working/directory

['src']

The import works when I run the script with PyCharm, but I need to run it outside PyCharm.

John Gordon · Answer 1 · 2020-01-06T20:25:02.213

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When you run a python script on the command line, the script's directory (which may not be the same as your shell current working directory) is added to the path.

So, since src/ is already in your path, you can just say import another_module.

edited Jan 06 '20 at 20:25

answered Jan 06 '20 at 20:13

John Gordon

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Interesting, but then it doesn't work in PyCharm anymore (since the working directory is properly set on PyCharm; the working directory is *not* 'src'). Is there a way to make it work in both? – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:23

score 1 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 06 '20 at 20:15

1

To make src a package, make an empty file named src/__init__.py

answered Jan 06 '20 at 20:15

nicolas

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`__init__.py` is not required in Python 3. – John Gordon Jan 06 '20 at 20:16
I still got the same error: `print(os.getcwd()) print(os.listdir(os.getcwd())) print(os.listdir('src')) from src import my_module path/to/working/directory` >['src'] >['__pycache__', 'my_module.py', '__init__.py'] > >Traceback (most recent call last): > File "src/main.py", line 12, in > from src import time_functions as time >ModuleNotFoundError: No module named 'src' – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:21
The doc for [Packages](https://docs.python.org/3/tutorial/modules.html) shows how the directory structure should look like. And `__init__.py` is still required for python3. – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 20:22
@Raphael: where are you executing those python statements from? A file in your top directory? – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 20:25
My mistake; I overlooked that you were making `src` a _package_, and not just an _importable module_. – John Gordon Jan 06 '20 at 20:26
@JohnGordon: Regarding implicit `__init__.py` in python3, you are right according to [this question](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/37139786/is-init-py-not-required-for-packages-in-python-3-3). – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 21:29

Raphael · Accepted Answer · 2020-01-06T20:37:25.697

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Solved by creating another file run.py in the working directory that calls src/main.py and running run.py from the command line instead of src/main.py.

edited Jan 06 '20 at 20:37

answered Jan 06 '20 at 20:27

Raphael

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But it's weird that `print(os.listdir(os.getcwd()))` finds the module and the import command doesn't. – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:30
how did you call `src/main.py` (in `run.py`)? – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 20:33
@nicolas `from src import main` then `main.main()` – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:34
And you don't have a file `__init__.py`? – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 20:35
@nicolas No, I don't. – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:37
IDK, nothing makes sense. – Raphael Jan 06 '20 at 20:43
John was correct, python3 has an implicit `__init__.py` so it makes sense now. Your `run.py` works, but it seems to contain what you mentioned in your initial question, which failed with `ModuleNotFoundError` (i.e. `from scr import main`). So I am not completely sure what you tried. – nicolas Jan 06 '20 at 21:27
After an hour of googling, a variation of this is the ONLY thing that solved my dreaded `ModuleNotFoundError: No module named` error – Mote Zart Jun 10 '22 at 04:02

score -1 · Answer 4 · answered Jul 27 '20 at 09:01

In launch.json, add the following line to your deployment:

"env": {"PYTHONPATH": "${workspaceRoot}"}

This seems to force Python to evaluate imports relative to the ${workingSpaceRoot} folder; allowing you to use a fully qualified name: from src import ...

The default behavior is to evaluate namespaces relatively. So, your original statement: from src import ... is actually looking in src/src/....

(Credit to @g4th who posted this solution on another StackOverflow page.)

This applies to what tricks `VSCode` does before run. Nobody asks for advice about VSCode here. — Mikaelblomkvistsson, Jul 18 '23 at 12:21

Python ModuleNotFoundError when not in working directory; getcwd finds module

4 Answers4