cat
Print a file from inside a package archive. This reads from the published artifact on the registry — what users actually install — not a source repository checkout.
Usage
Arguments
| Argument | Description |
|---|---|
package |
Package name. Required. |
path |
File path inside the package archive. Required. |
Options
| Option | Type | Default | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
--version |
string | latest | Specific version to inspect. |
--max-bytes |
string | 128KiB | Maximum bytes of text output. Accepts size suffixes: 128KiB, 1MB, 65536. |
--full |
flag | — | Show complete content (no byte limit). |
Path format
The path argument is a relative path inside the distribution archive. Common files:
| Path | Contents |
|---|---|
pyproject.toml |
Build configuration and project metadata |
LICENSE |
License text |
PKG-INFO |
Package metadata (auto-generated) |
<package>/__init__.py |
Package entry point |
The archive structure depends on the distribution type (wheel vs. sdist) and the package's build configuration.
Binary files are detected automatically and display a placeholder with the file size instead of raw bytes.
Notes
- Output is limited to 128 KiB by default to prevent oversized output in pipelines and agent contexts.
- Accepts size suffixes:
128KiB,1MB,65536. - Truncation applies to text content only — binary files always show a placeholder regardless of
--max-bytes.
Examples
Read a project file
$ peeq cat requests pyproject.toml
[build-system]
requires = ["setuptools>=61.0"]
build-backend = "setuptools.build_meta"
[project]
name = "requests"
description = "Python HTTP for Humans."
readme = "README.md"
license = {text = "Apache-2.0"}
...
Read the license
Read a source file from a specific version
Save a file locally
With --format plain (auto-selected when piped or redirected), cat outputs the raw file content with no decoration — suitable for saving or piping to other tools:
peeq cat requests pyproject.toml --full > pyproject.toml
peeq cat requests LICENSE --version 2.28.0 | head -5