diff -r 83540d7b7366 Lib/test/test_venv.py
--- a/Lib/test/test_venv.py	Sun Oct 12 10:25:33 2014 +1000
+++ b/Lib/test/test_venv.py	Sat Oct 11 21:35:22 2014 -0700
@@ -102,7 +102,11 @@
         else:
             executable = sys.executable
         path = os.path.dirname(executable)
-        self.assertIn('home = %s' % path, data)
+        self.assertIn('home = ', data)
+        homestart = data.index('home = ') + len('home = ')
+        homeend = data.find(os.linesep, homestart)
+        homeend = len(data) if homeend == -1 else homeend
+        self.assertTrue(os.path.samefile(path, data[homestart:homeend]))
         fn = self.get_env_file(self.bindir, self.exe)
         if not os.path.exists(fn):  # diagnostics for Windows buildbot failures
             bd = self.get_env_file(self.bindir)
diff -r 83540d7b7366 Mac/Tools/pythonw.c
--- a/Mac/Tools/pythonw.c	Sun Oct 12 10:25:33 2014 +1000
+++ b/Mac/Tools/pythonw.c	Sat Oct 11 21:35:22 2014 -0700
@@ -163,24 +163,11 @@
          * Note: don't call 'realpath', that will
          * erase symlink information, and that
          * breaks "pyvenv --symlink"
-         *
-         * It is nice to have the directory name
-         * as a cleaned up absolute path though,
-         * therefore call realpath on dirname(path)
          */
         char* slash = strrchr(path, '/');
         if (slash) {
-            char  replaced;
-            replaced = slash[1];
-            slash[1] = 0;
-            if (realpath(path, real_path) == NULL) {
-                err(1, "realpath: %s", path);
-            }
-            slash[1] = replaced;
-            if (strlcat(real_path, slash, sizeof(real_path)) > sizeof(real_path)) {
-                errno = EINVAL;
-                err(1, "realpath: %s", path);
-            }
+            strncpy(real_path, path, sizeof(real_path));
+            real_path[sizeof(real_path)-1] = 0;
 
         } else {
             if (realpath(".", real_path) == NULL) {