/ 
Meta-0.07
River stage zero No dependents
/ Meta::Utils::System

NAME

Meta::Utils::System - A module to help with running other programs.

COPYRIGHT

Copyright (C) 2001, 2002 Mark Veltzer; All rights reserved.

LICENSE

This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.

This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.

You should have received a copy of the GNU General Public License along with this program; if not, write to the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 59 Temple Place, Suite 330, Boston, MA 02111, USA.

DETAILS

MANIFEST: System.pm
PROJECT: meta
VERSION: 0.39

SYNOPSIS

package foo;
use Meta::Utils::System qw();
Meta::Utils::System::system_shell("echo Hello, World!");

DESCRIPTION

SPECIAL STDERR FILE

This library basically provides the routines to do the following: 0. execute binaries. 1. execute shell commands (with shell interpretation). 2. execute other perl scripts (in the same interpreter as you are...). 3. smart routines to find the most efficient way to execute something. All routines have a die/nodie version which (respectivly) die or don't die on errors from the execution process...

FUNCTIONS

system_nodie($$)
system($$)
system_shell_nodie($)
system_shell($)
smart_shell($)
system_out_nodie($$$)
system_err_nodie($$$)
system_err_silent_nodie($$)
system_out($$)
system_out_val($$)
system_out_list($$)
system_out_hash($$)
perl_nodie($$)
smart_nodie($$)
os_exit($)
exit($)
die($)
TEST($)

FUNCTION DOCUMENTATION

system_nodie($$)

This routine is the same as the system routine and it does not die. It returns the actual code that that process returned (look at the "CORE::system" routines manual for details...).

system($$)

This routine does the regular system() perl call. The idea is to expand it to include the fact that if a perl script is run then it will not be run via a regular call but rather inside the perl interpreter... In any case the system which is called does not pass through a shell since we use it with two arguments (read the documentation of CORE::system). We also dies if the system is not successfull.

system_shell_nodie($)

This executes a system shell but doesnt die. It returns the exit status of the process.

system_shell($)

This routine executes a system command given in one string. This will use the regular system of perl and therefore will use a shell and will be slower than the sys command (better use that...). It will also (like sys) die if there is an error.

smart_shell($)

This routine get a full shell script, splits it according to ";", and gives each piece to smart_part_shell.

system_out_nodie($$$)

This routine does exactly the same as system_out but does not die. This routine return the error status according to whether the command was successful or not. This routine gets a string by reference to store the results in.

system_err_nodie($$$)

This method is the same as system_out_nodie except it catched the standard error and not the standard output.

system_err_silent_nodie($$)

This method is the same as system_err_nodie except it will print out the output if it fails.

system_out($$)

This routine runs a script with arguments and returns a reference to all the output that the program generated (stdout). The program should accept one argument which is the program to be run and an array of arguments for that program.

system_out_val($$)

This routine returns the output of running a system command with the outputs actual value and not just a reference (for use in small outputed executables).

system_out_list($$)

This gives you the output of a command as a list of the lines of the output.

system_out_hash($$)

This gives you the output of a command as a hash of the lines of the output.

perl_nodie($$)

This routine receives a name of a perl script to execute, and a list of arguments for it and executes it with the current perl interpreter and returning the return value of the script and not dying if something went wrong. This script could be done in two basic ways: 0. way number 1 - the correct way - using the Safe module which allows you to control the compartment in which you're evaluating the code and make sure that it doesnt contaminate your name space... (contamination could even mean chaning your variables...). I didn't get that code to work and it is currently marked out... Read the perl manual for "Safe" if you want to know more... 1. way number 2 - the wrong way - this is currently implemented. Just eval the code. This is unsafe as name space contamination is concerned but hey - "Im just a singer in a Rock & Roll band...". In both methods care in the routine is taken for the following: 0. setting ARGV to list the arguments so the code will think it is actually being executed. 1. saving stderr and stdout for any case the code does any redirection (and it does since it uses our own "exit" method which redirects stderr so "die" wont print it's funny messages on the screen...). 2. getting the correct return code. this is very ugly indeed since we take it for granted that the process were using uses our own "exit" routine to exit and that routine puts the code in the $@ variable.

smart_nodie($$)

This routine is a smart execution routine. You should use this routine to execute anything you want when you dont know what it is you want to execute. The idea is for the routine to detect that you want to execute perl code and not to execute perl again but rather use the "perl_" routines in this module to run it. If what you want to run is another type of executable then the regular "system_" routines are called. The routine detects perl code to be run in two ways: 0. the suffix of the file to run is ".pl". 1. the program that you want to run is a perl interpreter.

os_exit($)

This routine is you way to exit the program with an error code! The ideas here are: 0. use die and not exit so your entire code could be evaluated within yet another perl program and not cause the entire thing to exit (using "exit" is nasty - check the perl manual...). 1. block stderr from writing before the die cause we dont want eny message on the screen. (the parent will take care of it's own stderr handle and even "dup" it if need be before calling us to do our thing). 2. I know it's funny that there is no "die" routine that doesnt print anything to the screen and I've sent a mail about that to the perl guys (Gurushy Sarathni - the guy in charge of perl release 5.6...). No real answer as of yet...

exit($)

This function performs an exist but with a normal value passed to it. This means that you pass 1 for success and 0 otherwise.

die($)

This routine gets a string and dies while printing the string.

TEST($)

Test suite for this module.

SUPER CLASSES

None.

BUGS

None.

AUTHOR

Name: Mark Veltzer
Email: mailto:veltzer@cpan.org
WWW: http://www.veltzer.org
CPAN id: VELTZER

HISTORY

0.00 MV initial code brought in
0.01 MV make quality checks on perl code
0.02 MV more perl checks
0.03 MV make Meta::Utils::Opts object oriented
0.04 MV more harsh checks on perl code
0.05 MV fix up perl checks
0.06 MV check that all uses have qw
0.07 MV fix todo items look in pod documentation
0.08 MV more on tests/more checks to perl
0.09 MV more perl code quality
0.10 MV more quality testing
0.11 MV lilypond stuff
0.12 MV fix up the rule system
0.13 MV finish Simul documentation
0.14 MV perl quality change
0.15 MV perl code quality
0.16 MV more perl quality
0.17 MV more perl quality
0.18 MV perl documentation
0.19 MV more perl quality
0.20 MV perl qulity code
0.21 MV more perl code quality
0.22 MV revision change
0.23 MV languages.pl test online
0.24 MV history change
0.25 MV PDMT/SWIG support
0.26 MV perl packaging
0.27 MV PDMT
0.28 MV md5 project
0.29 MV database
0.30 MV perl module versions in files
0.31 MV movies and small fixes
0.32 MV more thumbnail stuff
0.33 MV thumbnail user interface
0.34 MV more thumbnail issues
0.35 MV md5 project
0.36 MV website construction
0.37 MV web site automation
0.38 MV SEE ALSO section fix
0.39 MV download scripts

SEE ALSO

Carp(3), Meta::Utils::Debug(3), Meta::Utils::File::File(3), Meta::Utils::Output(3), Meta::Utils::Utils(3), strict(3)

TODO

-do not actually do a system call in both system and system_shell (one should call the other...).

-make the routine that die use the routines that dont die.

-drop the "system_" add to everything. do the following names: system [to] dire_diex system_nodie [to] dire_ndie system_shell [to] shel_diex system_shell_nodie [to] shel_ndie system_out [to] dire_outx and add the "shel_outx" routine. maybe think about passing the die argument ?

-why doesnt the use of Safe work ? It keeps giving me these strange errors!!! make the Safe work - this is a must because otherwise the code could do bad things to us...

-the perl_nodie routine doesnt know how to scan the path for the executable that it's expected to perform. therefore it has to get absolute file names. (as a result the smart routine also has to get absolute filenames cause its using perl_nodie...). make it scan...

-add a third way of detecting that perl code is wanted to run in the "smart_" routines using the first line of the target script...

-improve the exit routine... It should be nicer...

-rearrange the routines in proper order...

-work with the "Safe" module in the perl runnign section.

-get ridd of the ugly patch where "exit" sends the code in the "$@" variable so "perl_nodie" could catch it there...

-smart_shell should be optimized greatly.

-straighten out the mess with system_out,system_out_val,system_out_nodie (have them do some code sharing for god sake...).

-do a function which runs a system command that gets its stdin from a text you send it... (this could be useful in a lot of cases...).

-do a shell function that runs a command internally (not via shell) and has a predefined output file for stdout or stderr.