\section{\module{os} --- Miscellaneous OS interfaces} \declaremodule{standard}{os} \modulesynopsis{Miscellaneous OS interfaces.} This module provides a more portable way of using operating system (OS) dependent functionality than importing an OS dependent built-in module like \refmodule{posix} or \module{nt}. This module searches for an OS dependent built-in module like \module{mac} or \refmodule{posix} and exports the same functions and data as found there. The design of all Python's built-in OS dependent modules is such that as long as the same functionality is available, it uses the same interface; e.g., the function \code{os.stat(\var{path})} returns stat information about \var{path} in the same format (which happens to have originated with the \POSIX{} interface). Extensions peculiar to a particular OS are also available through the \module{os} module, but using them is of course a threat to portability! Note that after the first time \module{os} is imported, there is \emph{no} performance penalty in using functions from \module{os} instead of directly from the OS dependent built-in module, so there should be \emph{no} reason not to use \module{os}! % Frank Stajano complained that it % wasn't clear that the entries described in the subsections were all % available at the module level (most uses of subsections are % different); I think this is only a problem for the HTML version, % where the relationship may not be as clear. % \ifhtml The \module{os} module contains many functions and data values. The items below and in the following sub-sections are all available directly from the \module{os} module. \fi \begin{excdesc}{error} This exception is raised when a function returns a system-related error (e.g., not for illegal argument types). This is also known as the built-in exception \exception{OSError}. The accompanying value is a pair containing the numeric error code from \cdata{errno} and the corresponding string, as would be printed by the C function \cfunction{perror()}. See the module \refmodule{errno}\refbimodindex{errno}, which contains names for the error codes defined by the underlying operating system. When exceptions are classes, this exception carries two attributes, \member{errno} and \member{strerror}. The first holds the value of the C \cdata{errno} variable, and the latter holds the corresponding error message from \cfunction{strerror()}. For exceptions that involve a file system path (e.g. \function{chdir()} or \function{unlink()}), the exception instance will contain a third attribute, \member{filename}, which is the file name passed to the function. When exceptions are strings, the string for the exception is \code{'OSError'}. \end{excdesc} \begin{datadesc}{name} The name of the OS dependent module imported. The following names have currently been registered: \code{'posix'}, \code{'nt'}, \code{'dos'}, \code{'mac'}, \code{'os2'}, \code{'ce'}, \code{'java'}. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{path} The corresponding OS dependent standard module for pathname operations, e.g., \module{posixpath} or \module{macpath}. Thus, given the proper imports, \code{os.path.split(\var{file})} is equivalent to but more portable than \code{posixpath.split(\var{file})}. Note that this is also a valid module: it may be imported directly as \refmodule{os.path}. \end{datadesc} \subsection{Process Parameters \label{os-procinfo}} These functions and data items provide information and operate on the current process and user. \begin{datadesc}{environ} A mapping object representing the string environment. For example, \code{environ['HOME']} is the pathname of your home directory (on some platforms), and is equivalent to \code{getenv("HOME")} in C. If the platform supports the \function{putenv()} function, this mapping may be used to modify the environment as well as query the environment. \function{putenv()} will be called automatically when the mapping is modified. If \function{putenv()} is not provided, this mapping may be passed to the appropriate process-creation functions to cause child processes to use a modified environment. \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdescni}{chdir}{path} \funclineni{getcwd}{} These functions are described in ``Files and Directories'' (section \ref{os-file-dir}). \end{funcdescni} \begin{funcdesc}{ctermid}{} Return the filename corresponding to the controlling terminal of the process. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getegid}{} Return the current process' effective group id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{geteuid}{} \index{user!effective id} Return the current process' effective user id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getgid}{} \index{process!group} Return the current process' group id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getgroups}{} Return list of supplemental group ids associated with the current process. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getlogin}{} Return the actual login name for the current process, even if there are multiple login names which map to the same user id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getpgrp}{} \index{process!group} Return the current process group id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getpid}{} \index{process!id} Return the current process id. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getppid}{} \index{process!id of parent} Return the parent's process id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getuid}{} \index{user!id} Return the current process' user id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{putenv}{varname, value} \index{environment variables!setting} Set the environment variable named \var{varname} to the string \var{value}. Such changes to the environment affect subprocesses started with \function{os.system()}, \function{popen()} or \function{fork()} and \function{execv()}. Availability: most flavors of \UNIX{}, Windows. When \function{putenv()} is supported, assignments to items in \code{os.environ} are automatically translated into corresponding calls to \function{putenv()}; however, calls to \function{putenv()} don't update \code{os.environ}, so it is actually preferable to assign to items of \code{os.environ}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setegid}{egid} Set the current process's effective group id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{seteuid}{euid} Set the current process's effective user id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setgid}{gid} Set the current process' group id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setpgrp}{} Calls the system call \cfunction{setpgrp()} or \cfunction{setpgrp(0, 0)} depending on which version is implemented (if any). See the \UNIX{} manual for the semantics. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setpgid}{pid, pgrp} Calls the system call \cfunction{setpgid()}. See the \UNIX{} manual for the semantics. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setreuid}{ruid, euid} Set the current process's real and effective user ids. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setregid}{rgid, egid} Set the current process's real and effective group ids. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setsid}{} Calls the system call \cfunction{setsid()}. See the \UNIX{} manual for the semantics. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{setuid}{uid} \index{user!id, setting} Set the current process' user id. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} % placed in this section since it relates to errno.... a little weak ;-( \begin{funcdesc}{strerror}{code} Return the error message corresponding to the error code in \var{code}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{umask}{mask} Set the current numeric umask and returns the previous umask. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{uname}{} Return a 5-tuple containing information identifying the current operating system. The tuple contains 5 strings: \code{(\var{sysname}, \var{nodename}, \var{release}, \var{version}, \var{machine})}. Some systems truncate the nodename to 8 characters or to the leading component; a better way to get the hostname is \function{socket.gethostname()} \withsubitem{(in module socket)}{\ttindex{gethostname()}} or even \withsubitem{(in module socket)}{\ttindex{gethostbyaddr()}} \code{socket.gethostbyaddr(socket.gethostname())}. Availability: recent flavors of \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \subsection{File Object Creation \label{os-newstreams}} These functions create new file objects. \begin{funcdesc}{fdopen}{fd\optional{, mode\optional{, bufsize}}} Return an open file object connected to the file descriptor \var{fd}. \index{I/O control!buffering} The \var{mode} and \var{bufsize} arguments have the same meaning as the corresponding arguments to the built-in \function{open()} function. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{popen}{command\optional{, mode\optional{, bufsize}}} Open a pipe to or from \var{command}. The return value is an open file object connected to the pipe, which can be read or written depending on whether \var{mode} is \code{'r'} (default) or \code{'w'}. The \var{bufsize} argument has the same meaning as the corresponding argument to the built-in \function{open()} function. The exit status of the command (encoded in the format specified for \function{wait()}) is available as the return value of the \method{close()} method of the file object, except that when the exit status is zero (termination without errors), \code{None} is returned. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{tmpfile}{} Return a new file object opened in update mode (\samp{w+}). The file has no directory entries associated with it and will be automatically deleted once there are no file descriptors for the file. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} For each of these \function{popen()} variants, if \var{bufsize} is specified, it specifies the buffer size for the I/O pipes. \var{mode}, if provided, should be the string \code{'b'} or \code{'t'}; on Windows this is needed to determine whether the file objects should be opened in binary or text mode. The default value for \var{mode} is \code{'t'}. \begin{funcdesc}{popen2}{cmd\optional{, bufsize\optional{, mode}}} Executes \var{cmd} as a sub-process. Returns the file objects \code{(\var{child_stdin}, \var{child_stdout})}. \versionadded{2.0} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{popen3}{cmd\optional{, bufsize\optional{, mode}}} Executes \var{cmd} as a sub-process. Returns the file objects \code{(\var{child_stdin}, \var{child_stdout}, \var{child_stderr})}. \versionadded{2.0} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{popen4}{cmd\optional{, bufsize\optional{, mode}}} Executes \var{cmd} as a sub-process. Returns the file objects \code{(\var{child_stdin}, \var{child_stdout_and_stderr})}. \versionadded{2.0} \end{funcdesc} This functionality is also available in the \refmodule{popen2} module using functions of the same names, but the return values of those functions have a different order. \subsection{File Descriptor Operations \label{os-fd-ops}} These functions operate on I/O streams referred to using file descriptors. \begin{funcdesc}{close}{fd} Close file descriptor \var{fd}. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: this function is intended for low-level I/O and must be applied to a file descriptor as returned by \function{open()} or \function{pipe()}. To close a ``file object'' returned by the built-in function \function{open()} or by \function{popen()} or \function{fdopen()}, use its \method{close()} method. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{dup}{fd} Return a duplicate of file descriptor \var{fd}. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{dup2}{fd, fd2} Duplicate file descriptor \var{fd} to \var{fd2}, closing the latter first if necessary. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{fpathconf}{fd, name} Return system configuration information relevant to an open file. \var{name} specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the name of a defined system value; these names are specified in a number of standards (\POSIX.1, Unix95, Unix98, and others). Some platforms define additional names as well. The names known to the host operating system are given in the \code{pathconf_names} dictionary. For configuration variables not included in that mapping, passing an integer for \var{name} is also accepted. Availability: \UNIX{}. If \var{name} is a string and is not known, \exception{ValueError} is raised. If a specific value for \var{name} is not supported by the host system, even if it is included in \code{pathconf_names}, an \exception{OSError} is raised with \constant{errno.EINVAL} for the error number. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{fstat}{fd} Return status for file descriptor \var{fd}, like \function{stat()}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{fstatvfs}{fd} Return information about the filesystem containing the file associated with file descriptor \var{fd}, like \function{statvfs()}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{ftruncate}{fd, length} Truncate the file corresponding to file descriptor \var{fd}, so that it is at most \var{length} bytes in size. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{isatty}{fd} Return \code{1} if the file descriptor \var{fd} is open and connected to a tty(-like) device, else \code{0}. Availability: \UNIX{} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{lseek}{fd, pos, how} Set the current position of file descriptor \var{fd} to position \var{pos}, modified by \var{how}: \code{0} to set the position relative to the beginning of the file; \code{1} to set it relative to the current position; \code{2} to set it relative to the end of the file. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{open}{file, flags\optional{, mode}} Open the file \var{file} and set various flags according to \var{flags} and possibly its mode according to \var{mode}. The default \var{mode} is \code{0777} (octal), and the current umask value is first masked out. Return the file descriptor for the newly opened file. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. For a description of the flag and mode values, see the C run-time documentation; flag constants (like \constant{O_RDONLY} and \constant{O_WRONLY}) are defined in this module too (see below). Note: this function is intended for low-level I/O. For normal usage, use the built-in function \function{open()}, which returns a ``file object'' with \method{read()} and \method{write()} methods (and many more). \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{openpty}{} Open a new pseudo-terminal pair. Return a pair of file descriptors \code{(\var{master}, \var{slave})} for the pty and the tty, respectively. For a (slightly) more portable approach, use the \refmodule{pty}\refstmodindex{pty} module. Availability: Some flavors of \UNIX{} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{pipe}{} Create a pipe. Return a pair of file descriptors \code{(\var{r}, \var{w})} usable for reading and writing, respectively. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{read}{fd, n} Read at most \var{n} bytes from file descriptor \var{fd}. Return a string containing the bytes read. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: this function is intended for low-level I/O and must be applied to a file descriptor as returned by \function{open()} or \function{pipe()}. To read a ``file object'' returned by the built-in function \function{open()} or by \function{popen()} or \function{fdopen()}, or \code{sys.stdin}, use its \method{read()} or \method{readline()} methods. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{tcgetpgrp}{fd} Return the process group associated with the terminal given by \var{fd} (an open file descriptor as returned by \function{open()}). Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{tcsetpgrp}{fd, pg} Set the process group associated with the terminal given by \var{fd} (an open file descriptor as returned by \function{open()}) to \var{pg}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{ttyname}{fd} Return a string which specifies the terminal device associated with file-descriptor \var{fd}. If \var{fd} is not associated with a terminal device, an exception is raised. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{write}{fd, str} Write the string \var{str} to file descriptor \var{fd}. Return the number of bytes actually written. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: this function is intended for low-level I/O and must be applied to a file descriptor as returned by \function{open()} or \function{pipe()}. To write a ``file object'' returned by the built-in function \function{open()} or by \function{popen()} or \function{fdopen()}, or \code{sys.stdout} or \code{sys.stderr}, use its \method{write()} method. \end{funcdesc} The following data items are available for use in constructing the \var{flags} parameter to the \function{open()} function. \begin{datadesc}{O_RDONLY} \dataline{O_WRONLY} \dataline{O_RDWR} \dataline{O_NDELAY} \dataline{O_NONBLOCK} \dataline{O_APPEND} \dataline{O_DSYNC} \dataline{O_RSYNC} \dataline{O_SYNC} \dataline{O_NOCTTY} \dataline{O_CREAT} \dataline{O_EXCL} \dataline{O_TRUNC} Options for the \var{flag} argument to the \function{open()} function. These can be bit-wise OR'd together. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{O_BINARY} Option for the \var{flag} argument to the \function{open()} function. This can be bit-wise OR'd together with those listed above. Availability: Macintosh, Windows. % XXX need to check on the availability of this one. \end{datadesc} \subsection{Files and Directories \label{os-file-dir}} \begin{funcdesc}{access}{path, mode} Check read/write/execute permissions for this process or existence of file \var{path}. \var{mode} should be \constant{F_OK} to test the existence of \var{path}, or it can be the inclusive OR of one or more of \constant{R_OK}, \constant{W_OK}, and \constant{X_OK} to test permissions. Return \code{1} if access is allowed, \code{0} if not. See the \UNIX{} man page \manpage{access}{2} for more information. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{F_OK} Value to pass as the \var{mode} parameter of \function{access()} to test the existence of \var{path}. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{R_OK} Value to include in the \var{mode} parameter of \function{access()} to test the readability of \var{path}. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{W_OK} Value to include in the \var{mode} parameter of \function{access()} to test the writability of \var{path}. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{X_OK} Value to include in the \var{mode} parameter of \function{access()} to determine if \var{path} can be executed. \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdesc}{chdir}{path} \index{directory!changing} Change the current working directory to \var{path}. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{getcwd}{} Return a string representing the current working directory. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{chmod}{path, mode} Change the mode of \var{path} to the numeric \var{mode}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{chown}{path, uid, gid} Change the owner and group id of \var{path} to the numeric \var{uid} and \var{gid}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{link}{src, dst} Create a hard link pointing to \var{src} named \var{dst}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{listdir}{path} Return a list containing the names of the entries in the directory. The list is in arbitrary order. It does not include the special entries \code{'.'} and \code{'..'} even if they are present in the directory. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{lstat}{path} Like \function{stat()}, but do not follow symbolic links. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{mkfifo}{path\optional{, mode}} Create a FIFO (a named pipe) named \var{path} with numeric mode \var{mode}. The default \var{mode} is \code{0666} (octal). The current umask value is first masked out from the mode. Availability: \UNIX{}. FIFOs are pipes that can be accessed like regular files. FIFOs exist until they are deleted (for example with \function{os.unlink()}). Generally, FIFOs are used as rendezvous between ``client'' and ``server'' type processes: the server opens the FIFO for reading, and the client opens it for writing. Note that \function{mkfifo()} doesn't open the FIFO --- it just creates the rendezvous point. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{mkdir}{path\optional{, mode}} Create a directory named \var{path} with numeric mode \var{mode}. The default \var{mode} is \code{0777} (octal). On some systems, \var{mode} is ignored. Where it is used, the current umask value is first masked out. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{makedirs}{path\optional{, mode}} \index{directory!creating} Recursive directory creation function. Like \function{mkdir()}, but makes all intermediate-level directories needed to contain the leaf directory. Throws an \exception{error} exception if the leaf directory already exists or cannot be created. The default \var{mode} is \code{0777} (octal). \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{pathconf}{path, name} Return system configuration information relevant to a named file. \var{name} specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the name of a defined system value; these names are specified in a number of standards (\POSIX.1, Unix95, Unix98, and others). Some platforms define additional names as well. The names known to the host operating system are given in the \code{pathconf_names} dictionary. For configuration variables not included in that mapping, passing an integer for \var{name} is also accepted. Availability: \UNIX{}. If \var{name} is a string and is not known, \exception{ValueError} is raised. If a specific value for \var{name} is not supported by the host system, even if it is included in \code{pathconf_names}, an \exception{OSError} is raised with \constant{errno.EINVAL} for the error number. \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{pathconf_names} Dictionary mapping names accepted by \function{pathconf()} and \function{fpathconf()} to the integer values defined for those names by the host operating system. This can be used to determine the set of names known to the system. Availability: \UNIX. \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdesc}{readlink}{path} Return a string representing the path to which the symbolic link points. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{remove}{path} Remove the file \var{path}. See \function{rmdir()} below to remove a directory. This is identical to the \function{unlink()} function documented below. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{removedirs}{path} \index{directory!deleting} Recursive directory removal function. Works like \function{rmdir()} except that, if the leaf directory is successfully removed, directories corresponding to rightmost path segments will be pruned way until either the whole path is consumed or an error is raised (which is ignored, because it generally means that a parent directory is not empty). Throws an \exception{error} exception if the leaf directory could not be successfully removed. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{rename}{src, dst} Rename the file or directory \var{src} to \var{dst}. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{renames}{old, new} Recursive directory or file renaming function. Works like \function{rename()}, except creation of any intermediate directories needed to make the new pathname good is attempted first. After the rename, directories corresponding to rightmost path segments of the old name will be pruned away using \function{removedirs()}. Note: this function can fail with the new directory structure made if you lack permissions needed to remove the leaf directory or file. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{rmdir}{path} Remove the directory \var{path}. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{stat}{path} Perform a \cfunction{stat()} system call on the given path. The return value is a tuple of at least 10 integers giving the most important (and portable) members of the \emph{stat} structure, in the order \code{st_mode}, \code{st_ino}, \code{st_dev}, \code{st_nlink}, \code{st_uid}, \code{st_gid}, \code{st_size}, \code{st_atime}, \code{st_mtime}, \code{st_ctime}. More items may be added at the end by some implementations. (On MS Windows, some items are filled with dummy values.) Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: The standard module \refmodule{stat}\refstmodindex{stat} defines functions and constants that are useful for extracting information from a \ctype{stat} structure. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{statvfs}{path} Perform a \cfunction{statvfs()} system call on the given path. The return value is a tuple of 10 integers giving the most common members of the \ctype{statvfs} structure, in the order \code{f_bsize}, \code{f_frsize}, \code{f_blocks}, \code{f_bfree}, \code{f_bavail}, \code{f_files}, \code{f_ffree}, \code{f_favail}, \code{f_flag}, \code{f_namemax}. Availability: \UNIX{}. Note: The standard module \module{statvfs}\refstmodindex{statvfs} defines constants that are useful for extracting information from a \ctype{statvfs} structure. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{symlink}{src, dst} Create a symbolic link pointing to \var{src} named \var{dst}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{tempnam}{\optional{dir\optional{, prefix}}} Return a unique path name that is reasonable for creating a temporary file. This will be an absolute path that names a potential directory entry in the directory \var{dir} or a common location for temporary files if \var{dir} is omitted or \code{None}. If given and not \code{None}, \var{prefix} is used to provide a short prefix to the filename. Applications are responsible for properly creating and managing files created using paths returned by \function{tempnam()}; no automatic cleanup is provided. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{tmpnam}{} Return a unique path name that is reasonable for creating a temporary file. This will be an absolute path that names a potential directory entry in a common location for temporary files. Applications are responsible for properly creating and managing files created using paths returned by \function{tmpnam()}; no automatic cleanup is provided. \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{TMP_MAX} The maximum number of unique names that \function{tmpnam()} will generate before reusing names. \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdesc}{unlink}{path} Remove the file \var{path}. This is the same function as \function{remove()}; the \function{unlink()} name is its traditional \UNIX{} name. Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{utime}{path, times} Set the access and modified times of the file specified by \var{path}. If \var{times} is \code{None}, then the file's access and modified times are set to the current time. Otherwise, \var{times} must be a 2-tuple of numbers, of the form \code{(\var{atime}, \var{mtime})} which is used to set the access and modified times, respectively. \versionchanged[added support for \code{None} for \var{times}]{2.0} Availability: Macintosh, \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \subsection{Process Management \label{os-process}} These functions may be used to create and manage processes. The various \function{exec*()} functions take a list of arguments for the new program loaded into the process. In each case, the first of these arguments is passed to the new program as its own name rather than as an argument a user may have typed on a command line. For the C programmer, this is the \code{argv[0]} passed to a program's \cfunction{main()}. For example, \samp{os.execv('/bin/echo', ['foo', 'bar'])} will only print \samp{bar} on standard output; \samp{foo} will seem to be ignored. \begin{funcdesc}{abort}{} Generate a \constant{SIGABRT} signal to the current process. On \UNIX, the default behavior is to produce a core dump; on Windows, the process immediately returns an exit code of \code{3}. Be aware that programs which use \function{signal.signal()} to register a handler for \constant{SIGABRT} will behave differently. Availability: \UNIX, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execl}{path, arg0, arg1, ...} This is equivalent to \samp{execv(\var{path}, (\var{arg0}, \var{arg1}, ...))}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execle}{path, arg0, arg1, ..., env} This is equivalent to \samp{execve(\var{path}, (\var{arg0}, \var{arg1}, ...), \var{env})}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execlp}{path, arg0, arg1, ...} This is equivalent to \samp{execvp(\var{path}, (\var{arg0}, \var{arg1}, ...))}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execv}{path, args} Execute the executable \var{path} with argument list \var{args}, replacing the current process (i.e., the Python interpreter). The argument list may be a tuple or list of strings. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execve}{path, args, env} Execute the executable \var{path} with argument list \var{args}, and environment \var{env}, replacing the current process (i.e., the Python interpreter). The argument list may be a tuple or list of strings. The environment must be a dictionary mapping strings to strings. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execvp}{path, args} This is like \samp{execv(\var{path}, \var{args})} but duplicates the shell's actions in searching for an executable file in a list of directories. The directory list is obtained from \code{environ['PATH']}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{execvpe}{path, args, env} This is a cross between \function{execve()} and \function{execvp()}. The directory list is obtained from \code{\var{env}['PATH']}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{_exit}{n} Exit to the system with status \var{n}, without calling cleanup handlers, flushing stdio buffers, etc. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. Note: the standard way to exit is \code{sys.exit(\var{n})}. \function{_exit()} should normally only be used in the child process after a \function{fork()}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{fork}{} Fork a child process. Return \code{0} in the child, the child's process id in the parent. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{forkpty}{} Fork a child process, using a new pseudo-terminal as the child's controlling terminal. Return a pair of \code{(\var{pid}, \var{fd})}, where \var{pid} is \code{0} in the child, the new child's process id in the parent, and \code{fd} is the file descriptor of the master end of the pseudo-terminal. For a more portable approach, use the \refmodule{pty} module. Availability: Some flavors of \UNIX{} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{kill}{pid, sig} \index{process!killing} \index{process!signalling} Kill the process \var{pid} with signal \var{sig}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{nice}{increment} Add \var{increment} to the process's ``niceness''. Return the new niceness. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{plock}{op} Lock program segments into memory. The value of \var{op} (defined in \code{}) determines which segments are locked. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{spawnv}{mode, path, args} Execute the program \var{path} in a new process, passing the arguments specified in \var{args} as command-line parameters. \var{args} may be a list or a tuple. \var{mode} is a magic operational constant. See the Visual \Cpp{} Runtime Library documentation for further information; the constants are exposed to the Python programmer as listed below. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{spawnve}{mode, path, args, env} Execute the program \var{path} in a new process, passing the arguments specified in \var{args} as command-line parameters and the contents of the mapping \var{env} as the environment. \var{args} may be a list or a tuple. \var{mode} is a magic operational constant. See the Visual \Cpp{} Runtime Library documentation for further information; the constants are exposed to the Python programmer as listed below. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{P_WAIT} \dataline{P_NOWAIT} \dataline{P_NOWAITO} Possible values for the \var{mode} parameter to \function{spawnv()} and \function{spawnve()}. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{P_OVERLAY} \dataline{P_DETACH} Possible values for the \var{mode} parameter to \function{spawnv()} and \function{spawnve()}. These are less portable than those listed above. Availability: Windows. \versionadded{1.5.2} \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdesc}{startfile}{path} Start a file with its associated application. This acts like double-clicking the file in Windows Explorer, or giving the file name as an argument to the DOS \program{start} command: the file is opened with whatever application (if any) its extension is associated. \function{startfile()} returns as soon as the associated application is launched. There is no option to wait for the application to close, and no way to retrieve the application's exit status. The \var{path} parameter is relative to the current directory. If you want to use an absolute path, make sure the first character is not a slash (\character{/}); the underlying Win32 \cfunction{ShellExecute()} function doesn't work it is. Use the \function{os.path.normpath()} function to ensure that the path is properly encoded for Win32. Availability: Windows. \versionadded{2.0} \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{system}{command} Execute the command (a string) in a subshell. This is implemented by calling the Standard C function \cfunction{system()}, and has the same limitations. Changes to \code{posix.environ}, \code{sys.stdin}, etc.\ are not reflected in the environment of the executed command. The return value is the exit status of the process encoded in the format specified for \function{wait()}, except on Windows 95 and 98, where it is always \code{0}. Note that \POSIX{} does not specify the meaning of the return value of the C \cfunction{system()} function, so the return value of the Python function is system-dependent. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{times}{} Return a 5-tuple of floating point numbers indicating accumulated (CPU or other) times, in seconds. The items are: user time, system time, children's user time, children's system time, and elapsed real time since a fixed point in the past, in that order. See the \UNIX{} manual page \manpage{times}{2} or the corresponding Windows Platform API documentation. Availability: \UNIX{}, Windows. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{wait}{} Wait for completion of a child process, and return a tuple containing its pid and exit status indication: a 16-bit number, whose low byte is the signal number that killed the process, and whose high byte is the exit status (if the signal number is zero); the high bit of the low byte is set if a core file was produced. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{waitpid}{pid, options} Wait for completion of a child process given by process id \var{pid}, and return a tuple containing its process id and exit status indication (encoded as for \function{wait()}). The semantics of the call are affected by the value of the integer \var{options}, which should be \code{0} for normal operation. Availability: \UNIX{}. If \var{pid} is greater than \code{0}, \function{waitpid()} requests status information for that specific process. If \var{pid} is \code{0}, the request is for the status of any child in the process group of the current process. If \var{pid} is \code{-1}, the request pertains to any child of the current process. If \var{pid} is less than \code{-1}, status is requested for any process in the process group \code{-\var{pid}} (the absolute value of \var{pid}). \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{WNOHANG} The option for \function{waitpid()} to avoid hanging if no child process status is available immediately. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{datadesc} The following functions take a process status code as returned by \function{system()}, \function{wait()}, or \function{waitpid()} as a parameter. They may be used to determine the disposition of a process. \begin{funcdesc}{WIFSTOPPED}{status} Return true if the process has been stopped. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{WIFSIGNALED}{status} Return true if the process exited due to a signal. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{WIFEXITED}{status} Return true if the process exited using the \manpage{exit}{2} system call. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{WEXITSTATUS}{status} If \code{WIFEXITED(\var{status})} is true, return the integer parameter to the \manpage{exit}{2} system call. Otherwise, the return value is meaningless. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{WSTOPSIG}{status} Return the signal which caused the process to stop. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{funcdesc}{WTERMSIG}{status} Return the signal which caused the process to exit. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \subsection{Miscellaneous System Information \label{os-path}} \begin{funcdesc}{confstr}{name} Return string-valued system configuration values. \var{name} specifies the configuration value to retrieve; it may be a string which is the name of a defined system value; these names are specified in a number of standards (\POSIX, Unix95, Unix98, and others). Some platforms define additional names as well. The names known to the host operating system are given in the \code{confstr_names} dictionary. For configuration variables not included in that mapping, passing an integer for \var{name} is also accepted. Availability: \UNIX{}. If the configuration value specified by \var{name} isn't defined, the empty string is returned. If \var{name} is a string and is not known, \exception{ValueError} is raised. If a specific value for \var{name} is not supported by the host system, even if it is included in \code{confstr_names}, an \exception{OSError} is raised with \constant{errno.EINVAL} for the error number. \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{confstr_names} Dictionary mapping names accepted by \function{confstr()} to the integer values defined for those names by the host operating system. This can be used to determine the set of names known to the system. Availability: \UNIX. \end{datadesc} \begin{funcdesc}{sysconf}{name} Return integer-valued system configuration values. If the configuration value specified by \var{name} isn't defined, \code{-1} is returned. The comments regarding the \var{name} parameter for \function{confstr()} apply here as well; the dictionary that provides information on the known names is given by \code{sysconf_names}. Availability: \UNIX{}. \end{funcdesc} \begin{datadesc}{sysconf_names} Dictionary mapping names accepted by \function{sysconf()} to the integer values defined for those names by the host operating system. This can be used to determine the set of names known to the system. Availability: \UNIX. \end{datadesc} The follow data values are used to support path manipulation operations. These are defined for all platforms. Higher-level operations on pathnames are defined in the \refmodule{os.path} module. \begin{datadesc}{curdir} The constant string used by the OS to refer to the current directory, e.g.\ \code{'.'} for \POSIX{} or \code{':'} for the Macintosh. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{pardir} The constant string used by the OS to refer to the parent directory, e.g.\ \code{'..'} for \POSIX{} or \code{'::'} for the Macintosh. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{sep} The character used by the OS to separate pathname components, e.g.\ \character{/} for \POSIX{} or \character{:} for the Macintosh. Note that knowing this is not sufficient to be able to parse or concatenate pathnames --- use \function{os.path.split()} and \function{os.path.join()} --- but it is occasionally useful. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{altsep} An alternative character used by the OS to separate pathname components, or \code{None} if only one separator character exists. This is set to \character{/} on DOS and Windows systems where \code{sep} is a backslash. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{pathsep} The character conventionally used by the OS to separate search patch components (as in \envvar{PATH}), e.g.\ \character{:} for \POSIX{} or \character{;} for DOS and Windows. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{defpath} The default search path used by \function{exec*p*()} if the environment doesn't have a \code{'PATH'} key. \end{datadesc} \begin{datadesc}{linesep} The string used to separate (or, rather, terminate) lines on the current platform. This may be a single character, e.g.\ \code{'\e n'} for \POSIX{} or \code{'\e r'} for MacOS, or multiple characters, e.g.\ \code{'\e r\e n'} for MS-DOS and MS Windows. \end{datadesc}