Relocate user site packages on Windows 32-bit

[zooba]

BPO	41627
Nosy	@terryjreedy, @pfmoore, @tjguk, @zware, @zooba, @corona10
PRs	bpo-41627: Distinguish 32 and 64-bit user site packages on Windows #22098

^{Note: these values reflect the state of the issue at the time it was migrated and might not reflect the current state.}

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GitHub fields:

assignee = 'https://github.com/zooba'
closed_at = <Date 2020-09-04.23:46:47.935>
created_at = <Date 2020-08-24.19:45:31.233>
labels = ['3.10', 'OS-windows']
title = 'Relocate user site packages on Windows 32-bit'
updated_at = <Date 2020-09-04.23:46:47.934>
user = 'https://github.com/zooba'

bugs.python.org fields:

activity = <Date 2020-09-04.23:46:47.934>
actor = 'steve.dower'
assignee = 'steve.dower'
closed = True
closed_date = <Date 2020-09-04.23:46:47.935>
closer = 'steve.dower'
components = ['Windows']
creation = <Date 2020-08-24.19:45:31.233>
creator = 'steve.dower'
dependencies = []
files = []
hgrepos = []
issue_num = 41627
keywords = ['patch']
message_count = 6.0
messages = ['375860', '376085', '376142', '376401', '376418', '376419']
nosy_count = 6.0
nosy_names = ['terry.reedy', 'paul.moore', 'tim.golden', 'zach.ware', 'steve.dower', 'corona10']
pr_nums = ['22098']
priority = 'normal'
resolution = 'fixed'
stage = 'resolved'
status = 'closed'
superseder = None
type = None
url = 'https://bugs.python.org/issue41627'
versions = ['Python 3.10']

[zooba]

Currently, the user site packages on Windows is %APPDATA%\Python\PythonXY. This can cause conflicts between the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the runtime.

We should switch the pattern to Python{sys.winver}, which is XY or XY-32, the same as elsewhere.

This is a breaking change to tools that try to manage these directly, but it shouldn't need a deprecation cycle (there isn't really anywhere to raise a warning...). So I think we can just update Lib/sysconfig.py and Lib/site.py for 3.10, as well as the docs.

[terryjreedy]

If it is otherwise possible to user-only install both 32 and 64 bit versions, then using the same site-packages strikes me a bug, even if only fixed in the next version.

[corona10]

We should switch the pattern to Python{sys.winver}, which is XY or XY-32, the same as elsewhere.

+1

[zooba]

If it is otherwise possible to user-only install both 32 and 64 bit versions, then using the same site-packages strikes me a bug

It's very easy to install both 32 and 64-bit runtimes (and it doesn't matter if they're user or system installs).

But when you're installing packages in the nt_user scheme (--user with pip), you can only use one or the other. If you install with 32-bit runtime first, then you'll get 32-bit binaries installed and the 64-bit runtime won't try and install the package again (or it'll delete it and replace it with one that only works with the 64-bit runtime).

With the change in PR 22098, the 32-bit interpreter will install to a different location.

[zooba]

New changeset dd18001 by Steve Dower in branch 'master':
bpo-41627: Distinguish 32 and 64-bit user site packages on Windows (GH-22098)
dd18001

[zooba]

With the change in PR 22098, the 32-bit interpreter will install to a different location.

To clarify this, I meant the 32-bit interpreter will install *packages* to a different location (when using the user scheme).