Noticed this while packaging 3.6.8 for deadsnakes (ubuntu ppa)

This patch: https://github.com/python/cpython/pull/11251

Requires a version of sphinx where `sphinx.util.logging.getLogger` is available.  It appears that the first version which that was available was 1.6: https://github.com/sphinx-doc/sphinx/commit/6d4e6454093953943e79d4db6efeb17390870e62#diff-db360b033c6011189d978db1a4b7dcb7

For example, on ubuntu xenial (16.04) the newest packaged version of python3-sphinx available is 1.3.6 (released 2016-02) which satisfies the "minimum version": https://github.com/python/cpython/blob/3c6b436a57893dd1fae4e072768f41a199076252/Doc/conf.py#L36-L37

I hacked around it in this case by just using `logging.getLogger`: https://github.com/deadsnakes/python3.6/commit/9ba2234f35087a4bf67e3aecf2bd8dd0e3f67186

I'm not sure what the right answer is here, bumping the minimum version will make it _harder_ for packagers -- though I understand continuing to support old (2 years ago) things can be cumbersome.

oops, pressed the button too quickly, meant to mention that sphinx 1.6 was released 2017-05

We need Ned's approval to fix anything in 3.6 now. Typically we do consider build issues, and this one is fairly innocent (the affected code should only be used on Windows, but the import may trigger elsewhere).

I'd be happy to take a patch to use logging when the sphinx one is not found. We more or less enforce a newer version of Sphinx on the platforms where it matters, but for those restricted by their distros we can pretty easily help out.

I would view this as a build regression in 3.6.8 so I would accept a fix for the 3.6 branch.

If I add a patch which is essentially:


try:  # sphinx>=1.6
    from sphinx.util.logging import getLogger
except ImportError:  # sphinx<1.6
    from logging import getLogger

will that be fine?

and should I open that against 3.7 to be backported or just against 3.6 (I also ran into the same issue when backporting 3.7.2 for xenial -- but there I adjusted the minimum sphinx version: https://github.com/deadsnakes/python3.7/commit/c27b89bc7032d0b072b46c7425e5b32788f1c0fd )

I think we're okay to increase the minimum version on the active branches.

I assume that means I should only target 3.6 -- does the patch look like the right approach? I can make a PR

Julien (@mdk) is the doc builds expert.

The patch (try/except) to make https://github.com/python/cpython/pull/11251/files work with what Doc/conf.py says about minimum sphinx version (1.2) is OK for me.

No need to apply it on 3.7 which needs_sphinx 1.6.6 according to its Doc/conf.py.

I also had to update the patch for sphinx.util.status_iterator which was also introduced in sphinx 1.6

New changeset 9bacdce451618a5f0bf62cb1b6f966ebde0492c6 by Ned Deily (Anthony Sottile) in branch '3.6':
[3.6] bpo-35605: Fix documentation build for sphinx<1.6 (GH-11368)
https://github.com/python/cpython/commit/9bacdce451618a5f0bf62cb1b6f966ebde0492c6

I agree that this can go into 3.6. Thanks, everyone!

New changeset 869652b426bb34a30ce7b39f0a0ac242ed5b1016 by Julien Palard in branch '2.7':
[2.7] bpo-35605: Fix documentation build for sphinx<1.6 (GH-12413)
https://github.com/python/cpython/commit/869652b426bb34a30ce7b39f0a0ac242ed5b1016

This has regressed again -- I'll make another patch

Your PR is against 3.6 - is that intentional?

yes, as was the original PR

Thanks for the additional PR.  Accepted for post-3.6.9 (PR 14576, commit a6d97e200863e7e5fc60bbc8f121b86a2098ef2d - message AWOL?)