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GraalVM Python Runtime

GraalPy provides a Python 3.10 compliant runtime. A primary goal is to support PyTorch, SciPy, and their constituent libraries, as well as to work with other data science and machine learning libraries from the rich Python ecosystem.. GraalPy can usually execute pure Python code faster than CPython, and nearly match CPython performance when C extensions are involved. While many workloads run fine, any Python program that uses external packages could hit something unsupported. At this point, the Python implementation is made available for experimentation and curious end-users. See the FAQ for commonly asked questions about this implementation.

Installing GraalPy

Linux and macOS

The easiest way to install GraalPy on Linux and macOS platforms is to use pyenv, the Python version manager. For example, to install version 22.3.0, for example, run the following commands:

pyenv install graalpy-22.3.0
pyenv shell graalpy-22.3.0

Another option is to use Conda-Forge. To get an environment with the latest version of GraalPy, use the following command:

conda create -c conda-forge -n graalpy graalpy

Alternatively, download a compressed GraalPy installation file appropriate for your platform. For example, for Linux, download a file that matches the pattern graalpy-XX.Y.Z-linux-amd64.tar.gz. Uncompress the file and update your PATH variable as necessary. If you are using macOS Catalina or later, you may need to remove the quarantine attribute. To do this, run the following command:

sudo xattr -r -d com.apple.quarantine /path/to/GRAALPY_HOME

To try GraalPy with a full GraalVM, including support for Java embedding and interoperability with other languages, you can use the bundled releases from www.graalvm.org.

Windows

There is currently no installer for Windows. Instead, follow these instructions to build GraalPy from source.

Running Python

The best way of using GraalPy is from a venv virtual environment. This generates wrapper scripts and makes the implementation usable from a shell as the standard Python interpreter. To create a venv virtual environment with GraalPy, run the following command in your project directory:

graalpy -m venv <venv-dir>

To activate the environment in your shell session run:

source <venv-dir>/bin/activate

Several executables are available in the virtual environment, including python, python3, and graalpy.

You can run simple Python commands or programs with the graalpy launcher:

graalpy [options] [-c cmd | filename]

For example, start the Python interactive shell from the command line using the command graalpy, then enter the following line at the Python shell prompt (identified by >>>), followed by CR.

>>> print("Hello World!")

You should see the output displayed directly, followed by the Python interactive shell prompt

Hello World!
>>>

Alternatively, you can invoke a Python script. Copy the following content into a file named helloworld.py:

print("Hello World!")

Start graalpy and pass the filename as an argument:

graalpy helloworld.py

You should see the following output

Hello World!

Python Options

GraalPy supports some of the same options as Python 3.10 as well as some additional options to control the underlying Python runtime, GraalVM’s tools, and the execution engine. These can be viewed using the following command:

graalpy --help --help:tools --help:languages

Native Image and JVM Runtime

By default, GraalVM runs GraalPy from a binary, compiled ahead-of-time with Native Image, yielding faster startup time and lower footprint. Although the ahead-of-time compiled binary includes the Python and LLVM interpreters, to interoperate with other languages you must supply the --jvm option. This instructs the launcher to run on the JVM instead of in Native Image mode. Thus, you will notice a longer startup time.