Libloader

Libloader is a cross-platform Python library that simplifies loading shared libraries on macOS, Windows, and Linux. It handles platform-specific differences automatically, making your code more portable.

It also provides a COM module (libloader.com), making it easier to load COM DLLs on Windows.

Installation

pip install libloader

Usage

Loading Shared Libraries

from libloader import load_library

# Load a library with default paths
my_lib = load_library("mylibrary")

# Load a library with custom paths for 32-bit and 64-bit versions
my_lib = load_library("mylibrary", x86_path="./lib/x86", x64_path="./lib/x64")

# Load a library with ARM64 support (M1+ Macs, ARM servers)
my_lib = load_library("mylibrary", x64_path="./lib/x64", arm64_path="./lib/arm64")

# Call a function from the library
result = my_lib.some_function(arg1, arg2)

Working with COM Objects (Windows)

from libloader.com import load_com

# Load a COM object
excel = load_com("Excel.Application")

# Try multiple COM objects until one succeeds
speech = load_com("SAPI.SpVoice", "SpeechLib.SpVoice")

API Reference

libloader

• load_library(library, x86_path=".", x64_path=".", arm64_path=None, *args, **kwargs): Load a library with the given name. If arm64_path is not specified on ARM64 systems, falls back to x64_path.
• find_library_path(libname, x86_path=".", x64_path=".", arm64_path=None): Finds the path of the given library.
• get_functype(): Returns the ctypes functype for the current platform.
• get_library_extension(): Get the extension of the library for your current platform.
• _do_load(file, *args, **kwargs): Attempts to actually load the library. Used internally by load_library.

libloader.com

• load_com(*names): Load a COM object. If you pass multiple names, it will try each one until one works.
• prepare_gencache(): Prepare the gencache for COM. Called automatically by load_com().

Platform Support

Libloader automatically handles the differences between platforms:

• Windows: .dll files
• macOS: .dylib files
• Linux: .so files

Architecture Support

Libloader automatically detects the system architecture and loads the appropriate library:

• x86 (32-bit): Uses x86_path
• x86_64/AMD64 (64-bit Intel/AMD): Uses x64_path
• ARM64/aarch64 (M1+ Macs, ARM servers): Uses arm64_path if specified, otherwise falls back to x64_path

This means existing code works on Apple Silicon Macs without modification, while allowing you to provide architecture-specific binaries when needed.

License

See the LICENSE file for details.