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python-3.7.4-docs-html/_sources/library/profile.rst.txt
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.. _profile:
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********************
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The Python Profilers
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********************
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**Source code:** :source:`Lib/profile.py` and :source:`Lib/pstats.py`
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--------------
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.. _profiler-introduction:
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Introduction to the profilers
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=============================
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.. index::
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single: deterministic profiling
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single: profiling, deterministic
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:mod:`cProfile` and :mod:`profile` provide :dfn:`deterministic profiling` of
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Python programs. A :dfn:`profile` is a set of statistics that describes how
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often and for how long various parts of the program executed. These statistics
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can be formatted into reports via the :mod:`pstats` module.
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The Python standard library provides two different implementations of the same
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profiling interface:
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1. :mod:`cProfile` is recommended for most users; it's a C extension with
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reasonable overhead that makes it suitable for profiling long-running
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programs. Based on :mod:`lsprof`, contributed by Brett Rosen and Ted
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Czotter.
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2. :mod:`profile`, a pure Python module whose interface is imitated by
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:mod:`cProfile`, but which adds significant overhead to profiled programs.
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If you're trying to extend the profiler in some way, the task might be easier
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with this module. Originally designed and written by Jim Roskind.
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.. note::
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The profiler modules are designed to provide an execution profile for a given
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program, not for benchmarking purposes (for that, there is :mod:`timeit` for
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reasonably accurate results). This particularly applies to benchmarking
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Python code against C code: the profilers introduce overhead for Python code,
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but not for C-level functions, and so the C code would seem faster than any
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Python one.
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.. _profile-instant:
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Instant User's Manual
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=====================
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This section is provided for users that "don't want to read the manual." It
|
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provides a very brief overview, and allows a user to rapidly perform profiling
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on an existing application.
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To profile a function that takes a single argument, you can do::
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import cProfile
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import re
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cProfile.run('re.compile("foo|bar")')
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|
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(Use :mod:`profile` instead of :mod:`cProfile` if the latter is not available on
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your system.)
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|
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The above action would run :func:`re.compile` and print profile results like
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the following::
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197 function calls (192 primitive calls) in 0.002 seconds
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Ordered by: standard name
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ncalls tottime percall cumtime percall filename:lineno(function)
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1 0.000 0.000 0.001 0.001 <string>:1(<module>)
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1 0.000 0.000 0.001 0.001 re.py:212(compile)
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1 0.000 0.000 0.001 0.001 re.py:268(_compile)
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1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 sre_compile.py:172(_compile_charset)
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1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 sre_compile.py:201(_optimize_charset)
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4 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 sre_compile.py:25(_identityfunction)
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3/1 0.000 0.000 0.000 0.000 sre_compile.py:33(_compile)
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|
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The first line indicates that 197 calls were monitored. Of those calls, 192
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were :dfn:`primitive`, meaning that the call was not induced via recursion. The
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next line: ``Ordered by: standard name``, indicates that the text string in the
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far right column was used to sort the output. The column headings include:
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|
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ncalls
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for the number of calls.
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|
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tottime
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for the total time spent in the given function (and excluding time made in
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calls to sub-functions)
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|
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percall
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is the quotient of ``tottime`` divided by ``ncalls``
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|
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cumtime
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is the cumulative time spent in this and all subfunctions (from invocation
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till exit). This figure is accurate *even* for recursive functions.
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|
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percall
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is the quotient of ``cumtime`` divided by primitive calls
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|
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filename:lineno(function)
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provides the respective data of each function
|
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|
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When there are two numbers in the first column (for example ``3/1``), it means
|
||||
that the function recursed. The second value is the number of primitive calls
|
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and the former is the total number of calls. Note that when the function does
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not recurse, these two values are the same, and only the single figure is
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printed.
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|
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Instead of printing the output at the end of the profile run, you can save the
|
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results to a file by specifying a filename to the :func:`run` function::
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|
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import cProfile
|
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import re
|
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cProfile.run('re.compile("foo|bar")', 'restats')
|
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|
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The :class:`pstats.Stats` class reads profile results from a file and formats
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them in various ways.
|
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|
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The file :mod:`cProfile` can also be invoked as a script to profile another
|
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script. For example::
|
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|
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python -m cProfile [-o output_file] [-s sort_order] (-m module | myscript.py)
|
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|
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``-o`` writes the profile results to a file instead of to stdout
|
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|
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``-s`` specifies one of the :func:`~pstats.Stats.sort_stats` sort values to sort
|
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the output by. This only applies when ``-o`` is not supplied.
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|
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``-m`` specifies that a module is being profiled instead of a script.
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|
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.. versionadded:: 3.7
|
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Added the ``-m`` option.
|
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|
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The :mod:`pstats` module's :class:`~pstats.Stats` class has a variety of methods
|
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for manipulating and printing the data saved into a profile results file::
|
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|
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import pstats
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from pstats import SortKey
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p = pstats.Stats('restats')
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p.strip_dirs().sort_stats(-1).print_stats()
|
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|
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The :meth:`~pstats.Stats.strip_dirs` method removed the extraneous path from all
|
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the module names. The :meth:`~pstats.Stats.sort_stats` method sorted all the
|
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entries according to the standard module/line/name string that is printed. The
|
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:meth:`~pstats.Stats.print_stats` method printed out all the statistics. You
|
||||
might try the following sort calls::
|
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|
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p.sort_stats(SortKey.NAME)
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p.print_stats()
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|
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The first call will actually sort the list by function name, and the second call
|
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will print out the statistics. The following are some interesting calls to
|
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experiment with::
|
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|
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p.sort_stats(SortKey.CUMULATIVE).print_stats(10)
|
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|
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This sorts the profile by cumulative time in a function, and then only prints
|
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the ten most significant lines. If you want to understand what algorithms are
|
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taking time, the above line is what you would use.
|
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|
||||
If you were looking to see what functions were looping a lot, and taking a lot
|
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of time, you would do::
|
||||
|
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p.sort_stats(SortKey.TIME).print_stats(10)
|
||||
|
||||
to sort according to time spent within each function, and then print the
|
||||
statistics for the top ten functions.
|
||||
|
||||
You might also try::
|
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|
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p.sort_stats(SortKey.FILENAME).print_stats('__init__')
|
||||
|
||||
This will sort all the statistics by file name, and then print out statistics
|
||||
for only the class init methods (since they are spelled with ``__init__`` in
|
||||
them). As one final example, you could try::
|
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|
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p.sort_stats(SortKey.TIME, SortKey.CUMULATIVE).print_stats(.5, 'init')
|
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|
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This line sorts statistics with a primary key of time, and a secondary key of
|
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cumulative time, and then prints out some of the statistics. To be specific, the
|
||||
list is first culled down to 50% (re: ``.5``) of its original size, then only
|
||||
lines containing ``init`` are maintained, and that sub-sub-list is printed.
|
||||
|
||||
If you wondered what functions called the above functions, you could now (``p``
|
||||
is still sorted according to the last criteria) do::
|
||||
|
||||
p.print_callers(.5, 'init')
|
||||
|
||||
and you would get a list of callers for each of the listed functions.
|
||||
|
||||
If you want more functionality, you're going to have to read the manual, or
|
||||
guess what the following functions do::
|
||||
|
||||
p.print_callees()
|
||||
p.add('restats')
|
||||
|
||||
Invoked as a script, the :mod:`pstats` module is a statistics browser for
|
||||
reading and examining profile dumps. It has a simple line-oriented interface
|
||||
(implemented using :mod:`cmd`) and interactive help.
|
||||
|
||||
:mod:`profile` and :mod:`cProfile` Module Reference
|
||||
=======================================================
|
||||
|
||||
.. module:: cProfile
|
||||
.. module:: profile
|
||||
:synopsis: Python source profiler.
|
||||
|
||||
Both the :mod:`profile` and :mod:`cProfile` modules provide the following
|
||||
functions:
|
||||
|
||||
.. function:: run(command, filename=None, sort=-1)
|
||||
|
||||
This function takes a single argument that can be passed to the :func:`exec`
|
||||
function, and an optional file name. In all cases this routine executes::
|
||||
|
||||
exec(command, __main__.__dict__, __main__.__dict__)
|
||||
|
||||
and gathers profiling statistics from the execution. If no file name is
|
||||
present, then this function automatically creates a :class:`~pstats.Stats`
|
||||
instance and prints a simple profiling report. If the sort value is specified,
|
||||
it is passed to this :class:`~pstats.Stats` instance to control how the
|
||||
results are sorted.
|
||||
|
||||
.. function:: runctx(command, globals, locals, filename=None, sort=-1)
|
||||
|
||||
This function is similar to :func:`run`, with added arguments to supply the
|
||||
globals and locals dictionaries for the *command* string. This routine
|
||||
executes::
|
||||
|
||||
exec(command, globals, locals)
|
||||
|
||||
and gathers profiling statistics as in the :func:`run` function above.
|
||||
|
||||
.. class:: Profile(timer=None, timeunit=0.0, subcalls=True, builtins=True)
|
||||
|
||||
This class is normally only used if more precise control over profiling is
|
||||
needed than what the :func:`cProfile.run` function provides.
|
||||
|
||||
A custom timer can be supplied for measuring how long code takes to run via
|
||||
the *timer* argument. This must be a function that returns a single number
|
||||
representing the current time. If the number is an integer, the *timeunit*
|
||||
specifies a multiplier that specifies the duration of each unit of time. For
|
||||
example, if the timer returns times measured in thousands of seconds, the
|
||||
time unit would be ``.001``.
|
||||
|
||||
Directly using the :class:`Profile` class allows formatting profile results
|
||||
without writing the profile data to a file::
|
||||
|
||||
import cProfile, pstats, io
|
||||
from pstats import SortKey
|
||||
pr = cProfile.Profile()
|
||||
pr.enable()
|
||||
# ... do something ...
|
||||
pr.disable()
|
||||
s = io.StringIO()
|
||||
sortby = SortKey.CUMULATIVE
|
||||
ps = pstats.Stats(pr, stream=s).sort_stats(sortby)
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||||
ps.print_stats()
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print(s.getvalue())
|
||||
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||||
.. method:: enable()
|
||||
|
||||
Start collecting profiling data.
|
||||
|
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.. method:: disable()
|
||||
|
||||
Stop collecting profiling data.
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: create_stats()
|
||||
|
||||
Stop collecting profiling data and record the results internally
|
||||
as the current profile.
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: print_stats(sort=-1)
|
||||
|
||||
Create a :class:`~pstats.Stats` object based on the current
|
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profile and print the results to stdout.
|
||||
|
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.. method:: dump_stats(filename)
|
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|
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Write the results of the current profile to *filename*.
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||||
|
||||
.. method:: run(cmd)
|
||||
|
||||
Profile the cmd via :func:`exec`.
|
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|
||||
.. method:: runctx(cmd, globals, locals)
|
||||
|
||||
Profile the cmd via :func:`exec` with the specified global and
|
||||
local environment.
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: runcall(func, *args, **kwargs)
|
||||
|
||||
Profile ``func(*args, **kwargs)``
|
||||
|
||||
Note that profiling will only work if the called command/function actually
|
||||
returns. If the interpreter is terminated (e.g. via a :func:`sys.exit` call
|
||||
during the called command/function execution) no profiling results will be
|
||||
printed.
|
||||
|
||||
.. _profile-stats:
|
||||
|
||||
The :class:`Stats` Class
|
||||
========================
|
||||
|
||||
Analysis of the profiler data is done using the :class:`~pstats.Stats` class.
|
||||
|
||||
.. module:: pstats
|
||||
:synopsis: Statistics object for use with the profiler.
|
||||
|
||||
.. class:: Stats(*filenames or profile, stream=sys.stdout)
|
||||
|
||||
This class constructor creates an instance of a "statistics object" from a
|
||||
*filename* (or list of filenames) or from a :class:`Profile` instance. Output
|
||||
will be printed to the stream specified by *stream*.
|
||||
|
||||
The file selected by the above constructor must have been created by the
|
||||
corresponding version of :mod:`profile` or :mod:`cProfile`. To be specific,
|
||||
there is *no* file compatibility guaranteed with future versions of this
|
||||
profiler, and there is no compatibility with files produced by other
|
||||
profilers, or the same profiler run on a different operating system. If
|
||||
several files are provided, all the statistics for identical functions will
|
||||
be coalesced, so that an overall view of several processes can be considered
|
||||
in a single report. If additional files need to be combined with data in an
|
||||
existing :class:`~pstats.Stats` object, the :meth:`~pstats.Stats.add` method
|
||||
can be used.
|
||||
|
||||
Instead of reading the profile data from a file, a :class:`cProfile.Profile`
|
||||
or :class:`profile.Profile` object can be used as the profile data source.
|
||||
|
||||
:class:`Stats` objects have the following methods:
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: strip_dirs()
|
||||
|
||||
This method for the :class:`Stats` class removes all leading path
|
||||
information from file names. It is very useful in reducing the size of
|
||||
the printout to fit within (close to) 80 columns. This method modifies
|
||||
the object, and the stripped information is lost. After performing a
|
||||
strip operation, the object is considered to have its entries in a
|
||||
"random" order, as it was just after object initialization and loading.
|
||||
If :meth:`~pstats.Stats.strip_dirs` causes two function names to be
|
||||
indistinguishable (they are on the same line of the same filename, and
|
||||
have the same function name), then the statistics for these two entries
|
||||
are accumulated into a single entry.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: add(*filenames)
|
||||
|
||||
This method of the :class:`Stats` class accumulates additional profiling
|
||||
information into the current profiling object. Its arguments should refer
|
||||
to filenames created by the corresponding version of :func:`profile.run`
|
||||
or :func:`cProfile.run`. Statistics for identically named (re: file, line,
|
||||
name) functions are automatically accumulated into single function
|
||||
statistics.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: dump_stats(filename)
|
||||
|
||||
Save the data loaded into the :class:`Stats` object to a file named
|
||||
*filename*. The file is created if it does not exist, and is overwritten
|
||||
if it already exists. This is equivalent to the method of the same name
|
||||
on the :class:`profile.Profile` and :class:`cProfile.Profile` classes.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: sort_stats(*keys)
|
||||
|
||||
This method modifies the :class:`Stats` object by sorting it according to
|
||||
the supplied criteria. The argument can be either a string or a SortKey
|
||||
enum identifying the basis of a sort (example: ``'time'``, ``'name'``,
|
||||
``SortKey.TIME`` or ``SortKey.NAME``). The SortKey enums argument have
|
||||
advantage over the string argument in that it is more robust and less
|
||||
error prone.
|
||||
|
||||
When more than one key is provided, then additional keys are used as
|
||||
secondary criteria when there is equality in all keys selected before
|
||||
them. For example, ``sort_stats(SortKey.NAME, SortKey.FILE)`` will sort
|
||||
all the entries according to their function name, and resolve all ties
|
||||
(identical function names) by sorting by file name.
|
||||
|
||||
For the string argument, abbreviations can be used for any key names, as
|
||||
long as the abbreviation is unambiguous.
|
||||
|
||||
The following are the valid string and SortKey:
|
||||
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| Valid String Arg | Valid enum Arg | Meaning |
|
||||
+==================+=====================+======================+
|
||||
| ``'calls'`` | SortKey.CALLS | call count |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'cumulative'`` | SortKey.CUMULATIVE | cumulative time |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'cumtime'`` | N/A | cumulative time |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'file'`` | N/A | file name |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'filename'`` | SortKey.FILENAME | file name |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'module'`` | N/A | file name |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'ncalls'`` | N/A | call count |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'pcalls'`` | SortKey.PCALLS | primitive call count |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'line'`` | SortKey.LINE | line number |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'name'`` | SortKey.NAME | function name |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'nfl'`` | SortKey.NFL | name/file/line |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'stdname'`` | SortKey.STDNAME | standard name |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'time'`` | SortKey.TIME | internal time |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
| ``'tottime'`` | N/A | internal time |
|
||||
+------------------+---------------------+----------------------+
|
||||
|
||||
Note that all sorts on statistics are in descending order (placing most
|
||||
time consuming items first), where as name, file, and line number searches
|
||||
are in ascending order (alphabetical). The subtle distinction between
|
||||
``SortKey.NFL`` and ``SortKey.STDNAME`` is that the standard name is a
|
||||
sort of the name as printed, which means that the embedded line numbers
|
||||
get compared in an odd way. For example, lines 3, 20, and 40 would (if
|
||||
the file names were the same) appear in the string order 20, 3 and 40.
|
||||
In contrast, ``SortKey.NFL`` does a numeric compare of the line numbers.
|
||||
In fact, ``sort_stats(SortKey.NFL)`` is the same as
|
||||
``sort_stats(SortKey.NAME, SortKey.FILENAME, SortKey.LINE)``.
|
||||
|
||||
For backward-compatibility reasons, the numeric arguments ``-1``, ``0``,
|
||||
``1``, and ``2`` are permitted. They are interpreted as ``'stdname'``,
|
||||
``'calls'``, ``'time'``, and ``'cumulative'`` respectively. If this old
|
||||
style format (numeric) is used, only one sort key (the numeric key) will
|
||||
be used, and additional arguments will be silently ignored.
|
||||
|
||||
.. For compatibility with the old profiler.
|
||||
|
||||
.. versionadded:: 3.7
|
||||
Added the SortKey enum.
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: reverse_order()
|
||||
|
||||
This method for the :class:`Stats` class reverses the ordering of the
|
||||
basic list within the object. Note that by default ascending vs
|
||||
descending order is properly selected based on the sort key of choice.
|
||||
|
||||
.. This method is provided primarily for compatibility with the old
|
||||
profiler.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: print_stats(*restrictions)
|
||||
|
||||
This method for the :class:`Stats` class prints out a report as described
|
||||
in the :func:`profile.run` definition.
|
||||
|
||||
The order of the printing is based on the last
|
||||
:meth:`~pstats.Stats.sort_stats` operation done on the object (subject to
|
||||
caveats in :meth:`~pstats.Stats.add` and
|
||||
:meth:`~pstats.Stats.strip_dirs`).
|
||||
|
||||
The arguments provided (if any) can be used to limit the list down to the
|
||||
significant entries. Initially, the list is taken to be the complete set
|
||||
of profiled functions. Each restriction is either an integer (to select a
|
||||
count of lines), or a decimal fraction between 0.0 and 1.0 inclusive (to
|
||||
select a percentage of lines), or a string that will interpreted as a
|
||||
regular expression (to pattern match the standard name that is printed).
|
||||
If several restrictions are provided, then they are applied sequentially.
|
||||
For example::
|
||||
|
||||
print_stats(.1, 'foo:')
|
||||
|
||||
would first limit the printing to first 10% of list, and then only print
|
||||
functions that were part of filename :file:`.\*foo:`. In contrast, the
|
||||
command::
|
||||
|
||||
print_stats('foo:', .1)
|
||||
|
||||
would limit the list to all functions having file names :file:`.\*foo:`,
|
||||
and then proceed to only print the first 10% of them.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: print_callers(*restrictions)
|
||||
|
||||
This method for the :class:`Stats` class prints a list of all functions
|
||||
that called each function in the profiled database. The ordering is
|
||||
identical to that provided by :meth:`~pstats.Stats.print_stats`, and the
|
||||
definition of the restricting argument is also identical. Each caller is
|
||||
reported on its own line. The format differs slightly depending on the
|
||||
profiler that produced the stats:
|
||||
|
||||
* With :mod:`profile`, a number is shown in parentheses after each caller
|
||||
to show how many times this specific call was made. For convenience, a
|
||||
second non-parenthesized number repeats the cumulative time spent in the
|
||||
function at the right.
|
||||
|
||||
* With :mod:`cProfile`, each caller is preceded by three numbers: the
|
||||
number of times this specific call was made, and the total and
|
||||
cumulative times spent in the current function while it was invoked by
|
||||
this specific caller.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. method:: print_callees(*restrictions)
|
||||
|
||||
This method for the :class:`Stats` class prints a list of all function
|
||||
that were called by the indicated function. Aside from this reversal of
|
||||
direction of calls (re: called vs was called by), the arguments and
|
||||
ordering are identical to the :meth:`~pstats.Stats.print_callers` method.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. _deterministic-profiling:
|
||||
|
||||
What Is Deterministic Profiling?
|
||||
================================
|
||||
|
||||
:dfn:`Deterministic profiling` is meant to reflect the fact that all *function
|
||||
call*, *function return*, and *exception* events are monitored, and precise
|
||||
timings are made for the intervals between these events (during which time the
|
||||
user's code is executing). In contrast, :dfn:`statistical profiling` (which is
|
||||
not done by this module) randomly samples the effective instruction pointer, and
|
||||
deduces where time is being spent. The latter technique traditionally involves
|
||||
less overhead (as the code does not need to be instrumented), but provides only
|
||||
relative indications of where time is being spent.
|
||||
|
||||
In Python, since there is an interpreter active during execution, the presence
|
||||
of instrumented code is not required to do deterministic profiling. Python
|
||||
automatically provides a :dfn:`hook` (optional callback) for each event. In
|
||||
addition, the interpreted nature of Python tends to add so much overhead to
|
||||
execution, that deterministic profiling tends to only add small processing
|
||||
overhead in typical applications. The result is that deterministic profiling is
|
||||
not that expensive, yet provides extensive run time statistics about the
|
||||
execution of a Python program.
|
||||
|
||||
Call count statistics can be used to identify bugs in code (surprising counts),
|
||||
and to identify possible inline-expansion points (high call counts). Internal
|
||||
time statistics can be used to identify "hot loops" that should be carefully
|
||||
optimized. Cumulative time statistics should be used to identify high level
|
||||
errors in the selection of algorithms. Note that the unusual handling of
|
||||
cumulative times in this profiler allows statistics for recursive
|
||||
implementations of algorithms to be directly compared to iterative
|
||||
implementations.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. _profile-limitations:
|
||||
|
||||
Limitations
|
||||
===========
|
||||
|
||||
One limitation has to do with accuracy of timing information. There is a
|
||||
fundamental problem with deterministic profilers involving accuracy. The most
|
||||
obvious restriction is that the underlying "clock" is only ticking at a rate
|
||||
(typically) of about .001 seconds. Hence no measurements will be more accurate
|
||||
than the underlying clock. If enough measurements are taken, then the "error"
|
||||
will tend to average out. Unfortunately, removing this first error induces a
|
||||
second source of error.
|
||||
|
||||
The second problem is that it "takes a while" from when an event is dispatched
|
||||
until the profiler's call to get the time actually *gets* the state of the
|
||||
clock. Similarly, there is a certain lag when exiting the profiler event
|
||||
handler from the time that the clock's value was obtained (and then squirreled
|
||||
away), until the user's code is once again executing. As a result, functions
|
||||
that are called many times, or call many functions, will typically accumulate
|
||||
this error. The error that accumulates in this fashion is typically less than
|
||||
the accuracy of the clock (less than one clock tick), but it *can* accumulate
|
||||
and become very significant.
|
||||
|
||||
The problem is more important with :mod:`profile` than with the lower-overhead
|
||||
:mod:`cProfile`. For this reason, :mod:`profile` provides a means of
|
||||
calibrating itself for a given platform so that this error can be
|
||||
probabilistically (on the average) removed. After the profiler is calibrated, it
|
||||
will be more accurate (in a least square sense), but it will sometimes produce
|
||||
negative numbers (when call counts are exceptionally low, and the gods of
|
||||
probability work against you :-). ) Do *not* be alarmed by negative numbers in
|
||||
the profile. They should *only* appear if you have calibrated your profiler,
|
||||
and the results are actually better than without calibration.
|
||||
|
||||
|
||||
.. _profile-calibration:
|
||||
|
||||
Calibration
|
||||
===========
|
||||
|
||||
The profiler of the :mod:`profile` module subtracts a constant from each event
|
||||
handling time to compensate for the overhead of calling the time function, and
|
||||
socking away the results. By default, the constant is 0. The following
|
||||
procedure can be used to obtain a better constant for a given platform (see
|
||||
:ref:`profile-limitations`). ::
|
||||
|
||||
import profile
|
||||
pr = profile.Profile()
|
||||
for i in range(5):
|
||||
print(pr.calibrate(10000))
|
||||
|
||||
The method executes the number of Python calls given by the argument, directly
|
||||
and again under the profiler, measuring the time for both. It then computes the
|
||||
hidden overhead per profiler event, and returns that as a float. For example,
|
||||
on a 1.8Ghz Intel Core i5 running Mac OS X, and using Python's time.process_time() as
|
||||
the timer, the magical number is about 4.04e-6.
|
||||
|
||||
The object of this exercise is to get a fairly consistent result. If your
|
||||
computer is *very* fast, or your timer function has poor resolution, you might
|
||||
have to pass 100000, or even 1000000, to get consistent results.
|
||||
|
||||
When you have a consistent answer, there are three ways you can use it::
|
||||
|
||||
import profile
|
||||
|
||||
# 1. Apply computed bias to all Profile instances created hereafter.
|
||||
profile.Profile.bias = your_computed_bias
|
||||
|
||||
# 2. Apply computed bias to a specific Profile instance.
|
||||
pr = profile.Profile()
|
||||
pr.bias = your_computed_bias
|
||||
|
||||
# 3. Specify computed bias in instance constructor.
|
||||
pr = profile.Profile(bias=your_computed_bias)
|
||||
|
||||
If you have a choice, you are better off choosing a smaller constant, and then
|
||||
your results will "less often" show up as negative in profile statistics.
|
||||
|
||||
.. _profile-timers:
|
||||
|
||||
Using a custom timer
|
||||
====================
|
||||
|
||||
If you want to change how current time is determined (for example, to force use
|
||||
of wall-clock time or elapsed process time), pass the timing function you want
|
||||
to the :class:`Profile` class constructor::
|
||||
|
||||
pr = profile.Profile(your_time_func)
|
||||
|
||||
The resulting profiler will then call ``your_time_func``. Depending on whether
|
||||
you are using :class:`profile.Profile` or :class:`cProfile.Profile`,
|
||||
``your_time_func``'s return value will be interpreted differently:
|
||||
|
||||
:class:`profile.Profile`
|
||||
``your_time_func`` should return a single number, or a list of numbers whose
|
||||
sum is the current time (like what :func:`os.times` returns). If the
|
||||
function returns a single time number, or the list of returned numbers has
|
||||
length 2, then you will get an especially fast version of the dispatch
|
||||
routine.
|
||||
|
||||
Be warned that you should calibrate the profiler class for the timer function
|
||||
that you choose (see :ref:`profile-calibration`). For most machines, a timer
|
||||
that returns a lone integer value will provide the best results in terms of
|
||||
low overhead during profiling. (:func:`os.times` is *pretty* bad, as it
|
||||
returns a tuple of floating point values). If you want to substitute a
|
||||
better timer in the cleanest fashion, derive a class and hardwire a
|
||||
replacement dispatch method that best handles your timer call, along with the
|
||||
appropriate calibration constant.
|
||||
|
||||
:class:`cProfile.Profile`
|
||||
``your_time_func`` should return a single number. If it returns integers,
|
||||
you can also invoke the class constructor with a second argument specifying
|
||||
the real duration of one unit of time. For example, if
|
||||
``your_integer_time_func`` returns times measured in thousands of seconds,
|
||||
you would construct the :class:`Profile` instance as follows::
|
||||
|
||||
pr = cProfile.Profile(your_integer_time_func, 0.001)
|
||||
|
||||
As the :class:`cProfile.Profile` class cannot be calibrated, custom timer
|
||||
functions should be used with care and should be as fast as possible. For
|
||||
the best results with a custom timer, it might be necessary to hard-code it
|
||||
in the C source of the internal :mod:`_lsprof` module.
|
||||
|
||||
Python 3.3 adds several new functions in :mod:`time` that can be used to make
|
||||
precise measurements of process or wall-clock time. For example, see
|
||||
:func:`time.perf_counter`.
|
Reference in New Issue
Block a user