bpo-38234: Py_SetPath() uses the program full path (GH-16357)

Py_SetPath() now sets sys.executable to the program full path
(Py_GetProgramFullPath()), rather than to the program name
(Py_GetProgramName()).

Fix also memory leaks in pathconfig_set_from_config().

2 files changed, 11 insertions, 2 deletions

diff --git a/Doc/c-api/init.rst b/Doc/c-api/init.rst
index 0f8ff3b..0b7a84d 100644
--- a/Doc/c-api/init.rst
+++ b/Doc/c-api/init.rst
@@ -472,8 +472,8 @@ Process-wide parameters
    dependent delimiter character, which is ``':'`` on Unix and Mac OS X, ``';'``
    on Windows.
 
-   This also causes :data:`sys.executable` to be set only to the raw program
-   name (see :c:func:`Py_SetProgramName`) and for :data:`sys.prefix` and
+   This also causes :data:`sys.executable` to be set to the program
+   full path (see :c:func:`Py_GetProgramFullPath`) and for :data:`sys.prefix` and
    :data:`sys.exec_prefix` to be empty.  It is up to the caller to modify these
    if required after calling :c:func:`Py_Initialize`.
 
@@ -483,6 +483,10 @@ Process-wide parameters
    The path argument is copied internally, so the caller may free it after the
    call completes.
 
+   .. versionchanged:: 3.8
+      The program full path is now used for :data:`sys.executable`, instead
+      of the program name.
+
 
 .. c:function:: const char* Py_GetVersion()
 
diff --git a/Doc/whatsnew/3.8.rst b/Doc/whatsnew/3.8.rst
index c2455f4..0995cb3 100755
--- a/Doc/whatsnew/3.8.rst
+++ b/Doc/whatsnew/3.8.rst
@@ -1347,6 +1347,11 @@ Build and C API Changes
   parameter for indicating the number of positional-only arguments.
   (Contributed by Pablo Galindo in :issue:`37221`.)
 
+* :c:func:`Py_SetPath` now sets :data:`sys.executable` to the program full
+  path (:c:func:`Py_GetProgramFullPath`) rather than to the program name
+  (:c:func:`Py_GetProgramName`).
+  (Contributed by Victor Stinner in :issue:`38234`.)
+
 
 Deprecated
 ==========