Calling ftp commands from python

[Thierry Lam]

Is it possible to run an ftp command to connect to some remote computer
on the network.

For example, if I want to retrieve some data from
\\remcomputer\datafiles on the network and copy it to my local
computer, how do I do it in python on the Unix side?

I don't want to use mount since I don't have permission.

Thanks
Thierry

 

[draghuram]

Your best bet would be to use "pexpect" module. Code may look something
like:

import pexpect
import sys
child = pexpect.spawn ('ftp ftp.site.com')
child.expect ('Name .*: ')
child.sendline ('username')
child.expect ('Password:')
child.sendline ('password')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('cd testdir')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('bin')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('hash')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('get testfile')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
print child.before
child.sendline ('bye')

Raghu.
~

 

[Robert Kern]

Is it possible to run an ftp command to connect to some remote computer
on the network.

If the remote computer is running an ftp server, yes. If not, no.

For example, if I want to retrieve some data from
\\remcomputer\datafiles on the network and copy it to my local
computer, how do I do it in python on the Unix side?

I don't want to use mount since I don't have permission.

http://miketeo.net/projects/pysmb/

--
Robert Kern
(e-mail address removed)

"In the fields of hell where the grass grows high
Are the graves of dreams allowed to die."
-- Richard Harter

 

[Steve Holden]

Is it possible to run an ftp command to connect to some remote computer
on the network.

For example, if I want to retrieve some data from
\\remcomputer\datafiles on the network and copy it to my local
computer, how do I do it in python on the Unix side?

I don't want to use mount since I don't have permission.

Thanks
Thierry

http://www.holdenweb.com/Python/PDCode/ftpStream.py shows you how to
drive a remote FTP server using an object-oriented approach. Don;t know
whether it'll help.

regards
Steve

 

[Cameron Laird]

Your best bet would be to use "pexpect" module. Code may look something
like:

import pexpect
import sys
child = pexpect.spawn ('ftp ftp.site.com')
child.expect ('Name .*: ')
child.sendline ('username')
child.expect ('Password:')
child.sendline ('password')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('cd testdir')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('bin')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('hash')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
child.sendline ('get testfile')
child.expect ('ftp> ')
print child.before
child.sendline ('bye')

Raghu.
~

.... and, for those for whome pexpect is somehow infeasible,
there are a variety of ways to work around its absence <URL:
http://phaseit.net/claird/comp.unix.programmer/ftp_automation.html >.

 

[Maurice LING]

Is it possible to run an ftp command to connect to some remote computer
on the network.

For example, if I want to retrieve some data from
\\remcomputer\datafiles on the network and copy it to my local
computer, how do I do it in python on the Unix side?

I don't want to use mount since I don't have permission.

Thanks
Thierry

I use ftplib in the standard libraries.

from ftplib import FTP

def grab_geneontology():
"""Function to download gene ontology file."""
ftp = FTP('ftp.geneontology.org')
ftp.login()
ftp.cwd('/pub/go/ontology')
ftp.retrbinary('retr gene_ontology.obo',
open('gdata/gene_ontology', 'wb').write)
ftp.quit()

if __name__ == '__main__': grab_geneontology()

maurice

 

[Mike Meyer]

Is it possible to run an ftp command to connect to some remote computer
on the network.

Yes, but why would you want to do taht?

For example, if I want to retrieve some data from
\\remcomputer\datafiles on the network and copy it to my local
computer, how do I do it in python on the Unix side?

Start with "import ftplib". Use ftplib to read the file, and write it
out wherever you want it - or don't, if the goal was to get the
contents of the file into your Python program. The API is sorta ugly,
but it works, and comes with Python.

<mike