pathreg

Persistently add or remove directories from PATH on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

Installation

pip install pathreg

CLI Usage

pathreg add /some/directory             # append (default)
pathreg add --index 0 /some/directory   # insert at position 0
pathreg prepend /some/directory         # insert at front
pathreg remove /some/directory
pathreg move /some/directory 0          # move existing entry to position 0
pathreg set /a /b /c                    # replace PATH with given directories
pathreg list
pathreg list --filter exists
pathreg list --filter writable
pathreg list --filter readable
pathreg list --filter is_symlink
pathreg list --filter is_real
pathreg list --filter is_empty
pathreg list --filter is_nonempty
pathreg list --filter has_executables
pathreg list --filter is_user
pathreg list --filter is_system
pathreg list --filter is_venv
pathreg list --filter has_executable --filter-arg python
pathreg list --filter depth      --filter-arg 3
pathreg list --filter min_depth  --filter-arg 2
pathreg list --filter max_depth  --filter-arg 4
pathreg list --filter newer_than --filter-arg 7     # days
pathreg list --filter older_than --filter-arg 30
pathreg list --filter contains   --filter-arg usr
pathreg list --filter matches    --filter-arg "^/usr"
pathreg list --filter startswith --filter-arg /usr
pathreg count                           # prints number of PATH entries
pathreg check /some/directory           # prints "yes" or "no"
pathreg find python                     # prints full path or "not found"
pathreg find-all python                 # prints all matches (shadows included), or "not found"
pathreg clean                           # removes duplicates and non-existent entries
pathreg duplicates                      # list entries that appear more than once
pathreg swap /a /b                      # swap positions of two entries
pathreg rename /old /new                # replace an entry in-place, keeping its position
pathreg save /path/to/file.txt          # write current PATH entries to a file, one per line
pathreg load /path/to/file.txt          # add entries from a file

Python API

from pathreg import (
    add_path, prepend_path, remove_path, move_path, set_path,
    list_paths, path_len, in_path, find_executable, find_all_executables,
    clean_path, diff_paths, duplicate_paths, swap_paths, rename_path,
    snapshot_path, restore_path, save_path_to_file, load_path_from_file,
    path_context,
)
from pathreg import filters

add_path("/some/directory")          # append (default); idempotent
add_path("/some/directory", index=0) # insert at position 0; idempotent
prepend_path("/some/directory")      # insert at front; idempotent
remove_path("/some/directory")       # no-op if not found
move_path("/some/directory", 0)      # move existing entry to position 0; no-op if absent
set_path(["/a", "/b", "/c"])         # replace PATH entirely
list_paths()                         # returns list[Path] of current PATH entries
list_paths(filters.exists)           # pass any callable(Path) -> bool as filter
list_paths(filters.contains("usr"))  # factory filters return a predicate
path_len()                           # returns number of PATH entries (faster than len(list_paths()))
in_path("/some/directory")           # returns True if directory is in PATH
find_executable("python")            # returns Path to first match, or None
find_all_executables("python")       # returns list[Path] of all matches (useful for spotting shadows)
clean_path()                         # removes duplicates and non-existent dirs, returns cleaned list[Path]
diff_paths(before, after)            # returns {"added": [...], "removed": [...]} comparing two PATH lists
duplicate_paths()                    # returns entries that appear more than once (does not modify PATH)
swap_paths("/a", "/b")               # swap positions of two entries in the current process
rename_path("/old", "/new")          # replace an entry in-place, keeping its position
snapshot_path()                      # returns current PATH as list[str] for later restoration
restore_path(snapshot)               # restores PATH from a snapshot_path() result
save_path_to_file("/path/file.txt")  # writes current PATH entries to a file, one per line
load_path_from_file("/path/file.txt") # adds entries from a file (idempotent)

with path_context("/tmp/mybin", "/opt/extra"):
    ...  # directories are in PATH here; PATH restored on exit (even on exception)

add_path, remove_path, move_path, and set_path modify the shell profile and the current process's PATH immediately (move_path only updates the current process).

Behavior

• Paths are normalized: trailing separators stripped, slashes converted per platform.
• add_path is idempotent, does nothing if the entry already exists. The optional index parameter controls insertion position (default None = append to end); supports negative indices.
• move_path moves an existing entry to the given index in the current process PATH only; no-op if absent.
• remove_path is a no-op if the entry is absent or the profile file does not exist.
• list_paths reflects the current process PATH; it does not read the profile file. An optional filter predicate (Callable[[Path], bool]) narrows the results.
• pathreg.filters provides ready-made predicates:
  • Plain: exists, writable, readable, is_symlink, is_real, is_empty, is_nonempty, has_executables, is_user, is_system, is_venv
  • Factories (return a predicate): contains(s), matches(pattern), startswith(prefix), has_executable(name), depth(n), min_depth(n), max_depth(n), newer_than(days), older_than(days)
  • Combinators: not_(pred), all_(*preds), any_(*preds)
• in_path normalizes trailing separators before comparing, matching add_path behaviour.
• find_executable walks PATH entries in order and returns the first regular file that is executable, or None.
• clean_path removes non-existent directories and duplicates (resolved via symlinks) from the current process PATH in-place, and returns the cleaned list.
• find_all_executables walks all PATH entries and returns every match, not just the first — useful for detecting shadowed binaries.
• diff_paths(before, after) compares two list[Path] values and returns {"added": [...], "removed": [...]} — useful for debugging shell startup changes.
• duplicate_paths returns entries that appear more than once (resolved via symlinks) without modifying PATH.
• swap_paths(a, b) swaps the positions of two entries in the current process PATH; no-op if either is absent.
• rename_path(old, new) replaces old with new at the same position; no-op if absent.
• snapshot_path / restore_path save and restore PATH as a plain list[str] — useful in scripts and tests.
• save_path_to_file / load_path_from_file write/read PATH entries one per line.
• path_context(*directories) is a context manager that adds directories for the duration of a with block then restores PATH — works correctly even when exceptions are raised.

Platform support

Platform	Persistence target
Windows	HKCU\Environment via winreg; broadcasts WM_SETTINGCHANGE to notify the shell
bash	~/.bash_profile (falls back to ~/.profile if it exists)
zsh	~/.zshenv
sh	~/.profile

The active shell is detected from the SHELL environment variable.

No third-party dependencies required.