Does Compiled Standalone Cython Executable Still Contain All Original Source Code?

I'm experimenting with Cython and possibilities of code obfuscation (article). In that article especially noted: When the compilation is done there’s no way to reverse compiled

Solution 1:

No, it does not embed the code. It relies on being able to find the .pyx file - if you move that file then you will get a traceback but without the original code.

If you inspect the generated C source you'll find that the error handling routine goes through __Pyx_AddTraceback, then __Pyx_CreateCodeObjectForTraceback, which creates a PyCodeObject linked to your .pyx source file.

Under some circumstances (I'm not sure what though) it links to your .c file instead. The same rules will apply though - if it can't find the source it won't show that line.

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Even without the .pyx file you will still get a traceback with useful method names - these are preserved in the compiled executable.