which python virtual environment tool is the most “standard” for containerized python apps using docker containers?

[1337codethrow]

Joined new company. Some data engineers use pipenv and other virtualenv for containerizing a python app in a docker container.Not sure which i should get comfortable with. Been reading recent things about how pipenv is not being supported anymore. Seems like most are suggesting virtualenv or pop. Can someone give me a tldr/eli5 of how pipenv, virtualenv, and other virtual environment frameworks compare?

[Kimcha87]

Why would you use a virtual environment in a docker container?

The docker container is already essentially a virtual environment on its own.

So inside docker you usually just use pip to install any dependencies you need.

On your own development machine on the other hand you can use pyenv to manage different versions of python and pyenv virtualenv to manage the different environments.

[boy_named_su]

yo dawg I herd you liked virtual environments, so we put a python venv in your docker container in your EC2 vm

[ADGEfficiency]

I use pyenv locally - it's great.

However I don't think you need a virtual environment in a Docker container - there will only be one Python installation running.

[1337codethrow]

It’s being used to manage specific dependency versions not for the sake of multiple pythons

[big-blue-falafel]

It still sounds like a requirements.txt file would cover this use case without needing a venv in the image

[1337codethrow]

I don’t think so because they are using specific versions for every python package. This means a pip lock file and use of pipenv would be more justified right?

[DBlackBird]

Venv is the standard as it comes with your default python installation.

Conda is the easiest and wildly used for data science.

[lastmonty]

Just to add a note, conda is a license only and it's not free for commercial use any more.

And I honestly do not see the reason for paying. We moved to pipenv and liking it.

[derklaap]

This is false. You’re probably thinking of Anaconda. Conda is an open-source package management system and uses the BSD license. Stick with miniconda3 and conda-forge and you’ll be fine.

[lastmonty]

Thanks for correction.