flake8-tidy-imports 4.12.0
A flake8 plugin that helps you write tidier imports.
Requires Python: >=3.9
Keywords: flake8_tidy_imports

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flake8-tidy-imports
===================

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A `flake8 <https://flake8.readthedocs.io/en/latest/>`_ plugin that helps you write tidier imports.

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Requirements
============

Python 3.9 to 3.14 supported.

Installation
============

First, install with ``pip``:

.. code-block:: sh

     python -m pip install flake8-tidy-imports

Second, if you define Flake8’s ``select`` setting, add the ``I25`` prefix to it.
Otherwise, the plugin should be active by default.

Options
=======

``banned-modules``
------------------

Config for rule I251 (below).
Should contain a map where each line is a banned import string, followed by '=', then the message to use when encountering that import.

There is also a special directive to ban a preselected list of removed/moved modules between Python 2 and Python 3, recommending replacements from `six
<https://pythonhosted.org/six/>`_ where possible.
It can be turned on by adding ``{python2to3}`` to the list of ``banned-modules``.

For example in ``setup.cfg``:

.. code-block:: ini

    [flake8]
    banned-modules =
      mock = Use unittest.mock.
      {python2to3}

Note that despite the name, you can ban imported objects too, since the syntax is the same.
For example:

.. code-block:: ini

    [flake8]
    banned-modules =
      decimal.Decimal = Use ints and floats only.

Entries containing ``*`` are treated as wildcards matching zero or more path components.
For example:

* ``example.yellow.*`` matches ``example.yellow``, ``example.yellow.truck``, ``example.yellow.truck.driving`` etc.
* ``example.*.truck`` matches ``example.truck``, ``example.yellow.truck``, ``example.red.truck``, ``example.big.red.truck``, etc.

``ban-relative-imports``
------------------------

Controls rule I252 (below). Accepts two values:

* ``parents`` - bans imports from parent modules (and grandparents, etc.), i.e. with more than one ``.``.
* ``true`` - bans all relative imports.

For example:

.. code-block:: ini

    [flake8]
    ban-relative-imports = parents

(If you want to ban absolute imports, you can put your project's modules in ``banned-modules``.)

Rules
=====

**Note:** Before version 4.0.0, the rule codes were numbered 50 lower, e.g. I250 was I200.
They were changed in `Issue #106 <https://github.com/adamchainz/flake8-tidy-imports/issues/106>`__ due to conflict with ``flake8-import-order``.

I250: Unnecessary import alias
------------------------------

Complains about unnecessary import aliasing of three forms:

* ``import foo as foo`` -> ``import foo``
* ``import foo.bar as bar`` -> ``from foo import bar``
* ``from foo import bar as bar`` -> ``from foo import bar``

The message includes the suggested rewrite (which may not *always* be correct), for example:

.. code-block:: sh

    $ flake8 file.py
    file.py:1:1: I250 Unnecessary import alias - rewrite as 'from foo import bar'.

Such aliases can be automatically fixed by ``isort`` if you activate its `remove_redundant_aliases option <https://pycqa.github.io/isort/docs/configuration/options/#remove-redundant-aliases>`__.

I251: Banned import ``<import>`` used.
--------------------------------------

Complains about use of banned imports.
By default there are no imports banned - you should configure them with ``banned-modules`` as described above in 'Options'.

The message includes a user-defined part that comes from the configuration.
For example:

.. code-block:: sh

    $ flake8 file.py
    file.py:1:1: I251 Banned import 'mock' used - use unittest.mock instead.

I252: Relative imports <from parent modules> are banned.
--------------------------------------------------------

Complains about use of relative imports:

* ``from . import foo`` (sibling import)
* ``from .bar import foo`` (sibling import)
* ``from .. import foo`` (parent import)

Controlled by the ``ban-relative-imports`` configuration option.

Absolute imports, or relative imports from siblings, are recommended by `PEP8 <https://www.python.org/dev/peps/pep-0008/>`__:

    Absolute imports are recommended, as they are usually more readable and tend to be better behaved...

    .. code-block:: python

        import mypkg.sibling
        from mypkg import sibling
        from mypkg.sibling import example

    However, explicit relative imports are an acceptable alternative to absolute imports...

    .. code-block:: python

        from . import sibling
        from .sibling import example

See also
--------

For more advanced control of imports in your project, try `import-linter <https://pypi.org/project/import-linter/>`__.