web2py win binary: don't know if its wanted

[Niphlod]

Hi All,
    in the restricted env I have to live at work (corporate windows-based, can't install python, can't install apache, don't reaaaally want to fiddle with IIS), I'm taking much more care of the windows binary than ever ^_^

Also, I bashed Massimo's a few times saying that the binary he rebuilds lead to an unusual smaller library.zip than the one obtained by running py2exe.

After a few rounds, I discovered that by default py2exe packages exactly two copies of gluon (and gluon/contrib) as duplicate files into library.zip .
It may be due to circular imports (and/or from gluon.something import something vs import something).

To sum up, tomorrow I'll test a build obtained by a slightly modified setup_exe.py that eliminates the issue de-compressing and re-compressing library.zip, and I'll then send a PR if it all works out.
It's clearly an hack, and to be fair, py2exe is slightly unpredictable (and seems a bit "old").
That's reason one to look for alternatives.

Reason 2: I tried unsuccessfully to build web2py including something more "speedy" than rocket to be served in.

After a little bit of thought, seemed that on windows the best option was gevent (has even SSL support!).

But....gevent + py2exe is like asking for disaster.

So, I started looking at bbfreeze. Yes, it's a little bit undocumented, but the source code is quite understandable .
One or two hacks later, web2py was working fine with no need for workarounds, packed with bbfreeze.
Bonus points, I could successfully package gevent in it, so I can serve web2py apps with gevent.pywsgi! (roughly, 3x performance speedup, and a solid 15x just serving static files). In addition to the "default" two binaries, I created a third one stripping out anyserver to serve only on gevent (web2py_gevent.exe)

Now, 3 questions:
- is anyone contrary in shifting to bbfreeze for building the windows binary (less hackish, not 5 years old, etc) ? The current Makefile doesn't need to change, bbfreeze ships library.zip too.
- does anyone like the idea of a 3x performance speedup on windows ?
- is this worth it ?

[Massimo DiPierro]

I do not oppose as long as you commit to maintain this and we do not lose ssl support.

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[Niphlod]

It's just the usual web2py.exe plus web2py_gevent.exe, packaged with bbfreeze instead of py2exe (web2py.exe still uses rocket, launches scheduler and so on, while web2py_gevent.exe just launches the webserver).

Leaving out gevent, it's just the same archive, packaged with one "more modern" tool instead of the usual one.

I won't commit to maintain it (just formally, I don't want to be a SPOF nor the only developer with the knowhow in building binaries): I'm going to put on web2pyslices.com the complete steps from a clean Windows installation (what python to install, what libraries, how to download the source, what to launch) so the entire community will be able to.

[Massimo Di Pierro]

This is great! I may include it in the current build process as long as I can update it without a windows machine.

[Tim Richardson]

I use rocket on a couple of intranet deployments on a windows server because IIS is not in use, I don't want to get involved with it and I don't really want to put a big webserver on this small business server. But intranet apps have a habit of growing, particularly when it is so easy to add functionality. So something which is comparably hassle free but much faster is great. SSL is a must. I'd be really grateful. 

But where does such a performance boost come from? 

[Niphlod]

On Wednesday, October 9, 2013 12:48:13 PM UTC+2, Tim Richardson wrote:

I use rocket on a couple of intranet deployments on a windows server because IIS is not in use, I don't want to get involved with it and I don't really want to put a big webserver on this small business server. But intranet apps have a habit of growing, particularly when it is so easy to add functionality. So something which is comparably hassle free but much faster is great. SSL is a must. I'd be really grateful. 

But where does such a performance boost come from? 

I assume from the fact that threading in Windows is even slower than "usual" linux-based (c)python. On the same hardware spec, python 2.7.3 on ubuntu 12.10 vs python 2.7.3 on Win 7 shows that Windows is slower by a solid 60%. Gevent on Windows seems to use a good implementation that is still slower than gevent on linux, but is a huge gain compared to the "normal" threading on win.

[Massimo DiPierro]

Where is it? I cannot find it.

On Oct 8, 2013, at 1:43 AM, Niphlod wrote:

[Niphlod]

you can't because I'm still testing gevent.
However, I made some docs on how to build the binary with bbfreeze and in the weekend I'll post the results of the "experiment".

[Niphlod]

ok, all tests went fine both with builds with bbfreeze AND packing bbfreeze + a gevented server.
In agreement with Massimo, I'm starting a little "contest" both to test the new binaries and to involve the community.
Stay tuned for the winner :D

[Niphlod]

As said here https://groups.google.com/d/msg/web2py/DZ0jANyOSSw/rIsR6r8xGGkJ , @Brian M won the contest.

Following releases of web2py will ship the bbfreeze-packed version of web2py.

I have to figure out an additional detail before sending the PR: as for the previous "plan" I'd like web2py binaries to include a "faster" webserver (on Windows rocket is not **that** performant).
I coded a little script to have a gevented webserver fully-featured (address, port AND SSL support) named web2py_on_gevent.py. That one is going to be built along with the usual web2py.exe and web2py_no_console.exe and will exclusively run the webserver (no GUI, no scheduler, etc etc etc).

And here's the hard part.....where should I put that ?
ideas I had:
in extras/build_web2py  --> needed to build the windows binary with bbfreeze, but it's not windows-specific....
in handlers --> it's a handler in the sense it's an adapter to run on gevent, but it's not a handler like every other handler on that folder
....

?

 

[Michele Comitini]

I think any other OS would benefit from gevent based server even for testing.  I am for handlers.

Since a while ago, for my tests, I dropped rocket because I need to handle more than a request at a time. I use gunicorn like this: 

gunicorn -w 10 -t 1000 gluon.main:wsgibase

The difference is huge in favor of gunicorn.

mic

2013/10/20 Niphlod <nip...@gmail.com>

[Massimo DiPierro]

What's Brian full name?

[Niphlod]

Brian Meredyk

[Niphlod]

/handlers/web2py_on_gevent.py then ? Everybody on board ?

[Niphlod]

I sent the PR. Someone willing to copy the slice to the book ?

[Tim Richardson]

I will since I want to know how to do it :) Two birds...

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[Massimo DiPierro]

Thank you Tim.

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