# PEP 832: virtual environment discovery

**URL:** <https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-832-virtual-environment-discovery/106998>\
**Category:** PEPs\
**Created:** [April 15, 2026, 10:20pm UTC](https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-832-virtual-environment-discovery/106998 "2026-04-15T22:20:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 145

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**Author:** ![brettcannon](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/flex002/user_avatar/discuss.python.org/brettcannon/32/34895_2.png) [@brettcannon](https://discuss.python.org/u/brettcannon)\
**Post date:** [July 6, 2026, 9:41pm UTC](https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-832-virtual-environment-discovery/106998/145 "2026-07-06T21:41:47Z")

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> [@ofek](#):
>
> I’d much prefer that this PEP not handle multiple environments at all and just have it be about `.venv`.

I’m willing to do that, but the way I’m interpreting what people have been saying is `.python-envs` has more support.

> [@ofek](#):
>
> I’ll do a PEP for the WSP approach toward the end of summer.

Notice I didn’t say I wouldn’t to a WSP PEP, just not in **this** PEP. 😁 I already started a discussion at [Various ways of defining how to call a workflow tool for WSP](https://discuss.python.org/t/various-ways-of-defining-how-to-call-a-workflow-tool-for-wsp/108033/) to continue on in a different space.

> [@steve.dower](#):
>
> Does this imply that IDEs/(front-end tools) should look inside a path for a `pyvenv.cfg` (if that’s all they want to support) and ignore any that don’t have it?

Yes (which were covered by [PEP 405 – Python Virtual Environments | peps.python.org](https://peps.python.org/pep-0405/)). Same as conda environments have a `HISTORY` file (Lucas provided a link to a CEP earlier about that).

> [@steve.dower](#):
>
> And back-end tools should be generating something specific so that they can recognise their own environment from path/file-system alone?

That’s up to them if they even care. My assumption is any tool that uses `.python-envs` already has a specific place they put their environments, so they can tell just from the path which environments they created.

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_[View the full topic](https://discuss.python.org/t/pep-832-virtual-environment-discovery/106998)._