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uv tools / uvx

uv is a fast Python package manager. Two features are especially useful for real teams:

  • uv tool install: install CLIs in an isolated, reproducible way
  • uvx: run a CLI without installing it globally

Learning goals​

  • Ship internal devtools without “pip install on your machine” problems
  • Pin CLI versions for reproducibility
  • Use uvx for one-off tools in CI and scripts

Install a CLI tool (isolated)​

bash
uv tool install ruff
ruff --version

This avoids polluting your global Python and reduces environment drift.

Run a tool without installing (uvx)​

bash
uvx ruff --version
uvx httpie --help

This is great for:

  • CI jobs
  • workshop instructions
  • running a tool once to validate something

Version pinning​

bash
uvx ruff==0.8.4 check .

Pin versions in docs and CI so your outputs stay stable across semesters.

Mini-lab (optional)​

Create a small course CLI tds:

  • tds lint runs ruff via uvx
  • tds docs-check validates links
  • publish it as a package (or keep it internal)

Where this fits​

This complements Python Packaging and PyPI Publishing by making “run the tool” frictionless.