---
id: globus-sdk
version: "4.9.0"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# globus-sdk — Globus SDK for Python

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 179.5K/mo

## What it is and what it does

Globus SDK is a Python client library that wraps the Globus APIs, a research data management and transfer service. It lets developers authenticate against Globus, discover endpoints (local or remote), and programmatically manage data transfers and access control. The SDK handles authentication via JWT and cryptography, making it straightforward to integrate Globus into Python applications without building HTTP requests manually.

The package is production-stable (Development Status 5), maintained actively, and supports a wide range of modern Python versions. It depends on requests for HTTP, pyjwt and cryptography for authentication, and typing_extensions for type hints. It's commonly used in research computing environments where federated identity and secure, auditable data movement are required.

Use it for:

- Automate data transfers between research institutions or cloud storage without managing credentials directly.
- Integrate Globus authentication into a Python web application or service for federated login.
- Discover and list available Globus endpoints (local Globus Connect Personal or remote collections) programmatically.
- Build a data management workflow that moves files between endpoints based on events or schedules.
- Manage access control and permissions on shared research data collections via the Globus API.

## Worth the install?

AI-flagged interpretation of the facts above — verify before relying.

Provides a Python interface to Globus APIs for managing data transfer, authentication, and access to Globus services.

Yes. The package is production-stable, actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, and low install friction. Install it if you need to integrate Globus data transfer or authentication into a Python application. Skip it if you don't use Globus or need only command-line tools.

## Install

pip install globus-sdk
uv add globus-sdk
poetry add globus-sdk

## Installing globus-sdk

Before you install: Low friction install with stable maintenance: released 4 days ago, active repository with recent commits, supports modern Python versions (3.9–3.14), and depends only on common libraries (requests, pyjwt, cryptography, typing_extensions, importlib_resources).

License in practice: Apache-2.0 permissive license allows commercial and private use with minimal restrictions; you must include a copy of the license and state significant changes.

Quickstart:

pip install globus-sdk

from globus_sdk import LocalGlobusConnectPersonal

endpoint_id = LocalGlobusConnectPersonal().endpoint_id

Globus Connect Personal must be installed on the system for LocalGlobusConnectPersonal to return a valid endpoint_id; otherwise it returns None.

Verify before relying:

- Whether the SDK requires active Globus account credentials or API keys for most operations beyond endpoint discovery.
- Performance characteristics and rate limits when working with large data transfers or frequent API calls.
- Specific authentication flows supported (OAuth2, API tokens, etc.) and their setup complexity.

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 179.5K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

globus api client, data transfer sdk, globus authentication, research data management, globus connect integration, federated identity, secure file transfer, research-computing, data-transfer, federated-auth

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