docs/python/variant-slim.md

%%IMAGE%%:<version>-slim

This image does not contain the common Debian packages contained in the default tag and only contains the minimal Debian packages needed to run %%IMAGE%%. Unless you are working in an environment where only the %%IMAGE%% image will be deployed and you have space constraints, we highly recommend using the default image of this repository.

When using this image pip install will work if a suitable built distribution is available for the Python distribution package being installed. pip install may fail when installing a Python distribution package from a source distribution. This image does not contain the Debian packages required to compile extension modules written in other languages. Possible solutions if a pip install fails include:

• Use this image and install any required Debian packages before running pip install.
• Use the default image of this repository. The default image contains the most commonly required Debian packages. The majority of arbitrary pip installs should be successful without additional header/development Debian packages.