---
id: oslo-concurrency
version: "7.6.1"
license: Apache-2.0
license_treatment: permissive
maintenance: active
---

# oslo.concurrency — Oslo Concurrency library

License: permissive · Maintenance: active · Downloads: 549.8K/mo

## What it is and what it does

oslo.concurrency is an OpenStack library that abstracts multi-threading and multi-process synchronization for applications that need safe concurrent access to shared resources. It wraps file-based and other locking primitives through fasteners and provides utilities for spawning and managing external processes. The library is part of the Oslo project, a collection of utilities shared across OpenStack services, and is designed for applications that need reliable coordination across multiple execution contexts without building locking logic from scratch.

The package targets Python 3.11+ and is actively maintained. Its dependency on oslo.config, oslo.i18n, oslo.utils, and debtcollector reflects its role as a mid-level utility within the OpenStack ecosystem, though it can be used standalone in any Python application that needs distributed or file-based locking. The permissive Apache-2.0 license and typed codebase make it suitable for both open-source and proprietary projects.

Use it for:

- Protect critical sections in multi-threaded applications using file-based locks that survive process restarts.
- Coordinate resource access across multiple independent processes or services without a centralized lock server.
- Manage external subprocess execution with built-in utilities for spawning and monitoring child processes.
- Implement distributed locking in OpenStack services or other cloud applications that need reliable synchronization.
- Enforce mutual exclusion in long-running daemon applications where lock state must persist across restarts.

## Worth the install?

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

oslo.concurrency provides locking mechanisms and external process utilities for safely running multi-thread and multi-process applications.

Yes, if you need file-based or distributed locking in a multi-process or multi-threaded application and are comfortable with the Oslo dependency chain. The library is actively maintained, has no known vulnerabilities, and offers low install friction. No, if you require a lighter-weight locking solution without OpenStack dependencies or if your Python version is below 3.11.

## Install

pip install oslo-concurrency
uv add oslo-concurrency
poetry add oslo-concurrency

## Installing oslo.concurrency

Before you install: Low install friction with a pure-Python wheel distribution. Active maintenance with a recent release (29 days ago). Depends on six Oslo libraries (pbr, oslo.config, oslo.i18n, oslo.utils, fasteners, debtcollector), which are standard in OpenStack ecosystems but add a moderate dependency chain.

License in practice: Apache-2.0 permissive license allows commercial use, modification, and distribution with minimal restrictions—suitable for proprietary applications.

Quickstart:

pip install oslo.concurrency

from oslo_concurrency import lockutils

with lockutils.lock('my-lock'):
    # Critical section protected by lock
    pass

Requires Python 3.11 or later; oslo.concurrency depends on fasteners, which may require system libraries for file locking on some platforms.

Verify before relying:

- Whether fasteners' system-level dependencies (if any) are documented or could affect installation on non-Linux POSIX systems.
- Performance characteristics and scalability limits for distributed locking across many processes or machines.

## Package facts

- License: Apache-2.0 (permissive)
- Python support: supports_current
- Install friction: low
- Maintenance: active
- Downloads: 549.8K/month (top 15,000 on PyPI)
- Known vulnerabilities: none known

## Tags

thread-safe locking library, multi-process synchronization, distributed locking, external process execution, concurrent application utilities, file-based locks, process coordination, openstack, locking, concurrency

[View on SkillFed](https://skillfed.io/packages/oslo-concurrency) · [View on PyPI](https://pypi.org/project/oslo-concurrency/)