Doc/library/pickletools.rst

:mod:`pickletools` --- Tools for pickle developers
==================================================

.. module:: pickletools
   :synopsis: Contains extensive comments about the pickle protocols and
              pickle-machine opcodes, as well as some useful functions.

This module contains various constants relating to the intimate details of the
:mod:`pickle` module, some lengthy comments about the implementation, and a
few useful functions for analyzing pickled data.  The contents of this module
are useful for Python core developers who are working on the :mod:`pickle`;
ordinary users of the :mod:`pickle` module probably won't find the
:mod:`pickletools` module relevant.


.. function:: dis(pickle, out=None, memo=None, indentlevel=4, annotate=0)

   Outputs a symbolic disassembly of the pickle to the file-like
   object *out*, defaulting to ``sys.stdout``.  *pickle* can be a
   string or a file-like object.  *memo* can be a Python dictionary
   that will be used as the pickle's memo; it can be used to perform
   disassemblies across multiple pickles created by the same
   pickler. Successive levels, indicated by ``MARK`` opcodes in the
   stream, are indented by *indentlevel* spaces.  If a nonzero value
   is given to *annotate*, each opcode in the output is annotated with
   a short description.  The value of *annotate* is used as a hint for
   the column where annotation should start.

  .. versionadded:: 3.2
     The *annotate* argument.

.. function:: genops(pickle)

   Provides an :term:`iterator` over all of the opcodes in a pickle, returning a
   sequence of ``(opcode, arg, pos)`` triples.  *opcode* is an instance of an
   :class:`OpcodeInfo` class; *arg* is the decoded value, as a Python object, of
   the opcode's argument; *pos* is the position at which this opcode is located.
   *pickle* can be a string or a file-like object.

.. function:: optimize(picklestring)

   Returns a new equivalent pickle string after eliminating unused ``PUT``
   opcodes. The optimized pickle is shorter, takes less transmission time,
   requires less storage space, and unpickles more efficiently.