The `setup.py` parse-info method treats description/long_description keys wrongly
Metadata
Current evaluation
Issue closed without fix. Maintainer explained that long_description from PyPI is often too long and contains installation instructions, making it unsuitable for the snap description field (PR #2756).
Resolution: closed not a bug
Reason: Closed as working as designed. The long_description field from PyPI is often too long, contains installation instructions for multiple platforms, and is in incompatible formats, making it unsuitable for the snap description field.
Evaluated by: mr-cal-bot
No scores available.
Issue body
According to the [setuptools documentation](https://setuptools.readthedocs.io/en/latest/setuptools.html?highlight=long_description#id54) the `description` key is equivalent to Snapcraft's `summary` key and the `long_description` key is equivalent to Snapcraft's `description` key, however currently Snapcraft uses the `description` key's value as the snap description and ignores the `long_description` key in setup.py, I would like to request changing the behavior to match with setuptools.
Evaluation history
| Date | Model | Scores | Action | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b | — | closed not a bug | Issue closed without fix. Maintainer explained that long_description from PyPI is often too long and contains installation instructions, making it unsuitable for the snap description field (PR #2756). | |
| stealth/space-bunny-alpha |
Impact:
14
Quick Win:
4
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
93
Actionability:
35
|
close stale | setup.py metadata mapping was not adopted; its legacy extractor has since been removed with snapcraft_legacy, and maintainers considered long_description unsuitable as snap description. | |
| stealth/space-bunny-alpha |
Impact:
20
Quick Win:
1
Complexity:
45
Confidence:
96
Actionability:
10
|
close stale | Requests setup.py description→summary and long_description→description mapping; both fix attempts were abandoned and the legacy setup.py extractor was later removed from Snapcraft. | |
| stealth/space-bunny-alpha |
Impact:
25
Quick Win:
12
Complexity:
35
Confidence:
78
Actionability:
72
|
needs triage | setup.py parse-info reportedly maps description to the snap description and ignores long_description; the request lacks maintainer triage and targets legacy behaviour that needs verification. | |
| qwen/qwen3.8-27b |
Impact:
25
Quick Win:
16
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
35
Confidence:
55
Support Request:
10
|
needs triage | Snapcraft's setup.py parse-info maps description to snap description and ignores long_description, mismatching setuptools conventions; open since 2018 with no maintainer activity. | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Staleness:
100
Complexity:
25
Confidence:
90
Support Request:
20
|
close stale | Request to change how setup.py description/long_description keys are mapped in Snapcraft to match setuptools documentation. | |
| qwen/qwen3.6-35b-a3b |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
20
Confidence:
85
Support Request:
10
|
close stale | Request to align Snapcraft's setup.py parsing with setuptools by using long_description for the snap description. Unlabelled, no maintainer response, and inactive for over seven years. | |
| qwen3.6-35b-a3b-mtp-q6 |
Staleness:
95
Complexity:
15
Confidence:
85
Support Request:
10
|
close stale | Snapcraft's setup.py parse-info incorrectly maps setuptools description/long_description keys. Unaddressed for over 6 years with no maintainer response or labels. |
Update history
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| closed | |
| created |
Related work
-
Related To:
snapcraft#2756
(confidence 90%)
PR #2756 contains the maintainer's rationale for why long_description shouldn't be used for the snap description field
Related issues
| Issue | Project | State | Summary | Similarity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #2518 snapcraft/extractors/setuppy.py: match setuptools metadata keys | snapcraft | closed | PR #2518 (setup.py: use setuptools description/long_description as snap summary/description, for LP#1813364) was closed unmerged in Oct 2019 by maintainer merlijn-sebrechts; WIP successor #2756 was also closed. |