Welcome to blargs’s documentation!

blargs provides easy command line parsing, as an alternative to argparse and optparse from Python’s standard library. The main distinctions are:

• Cleaner, more minimal, and possibly more pythonic syntax.
• Support for arbitrarily complex dependency relationships. For example, argument A might require arguments B and C, while conflicting with D; or requiring argument E in the case that A is less than 10 or B is equal to the string ‘wonderful!’.
• Emphasis on ease of use over configurability.

Blargs has been tested on Python2.6 to Python3.2 and PyPy.

Note: blargs is currently still in beta. You can help by submitting bugs here!

Installation

By Pip:

pip install blargs

Or by git:

git clone https://bitbucket.org/gyllstromk/blargs.git

License

BSD

Quick start

The preferred use of Parser is via the with idiom, as follows:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.int('arg1')
...    p.str('arg2')
...    p.flag('arg3')
...
>>> print 'Out of with statement; sys.argv is now parsed!'
>>> print arg1, arg2, arg3

Note the use of locals is limited to the global scope; use a dictionary otherwise, getting argument values using the argument names as keys.

The user can now specify the following command lines:

python test.py --arg1=3          # either '=' ...
python test.py --arg1 3          # ...or space is allowed
python test.py --arg2 'hello'    #
python test.py --arg3            # no value is specified; implied true

The following command lines will be rejected:

python test.py --arg1    # no value specified for 'arg1'
python test.py --arg1 a  # 'a' does not parse to int
python test.py --arg3 a  # 'arg3' is a flag and does not accept a value

Additionally, users can query for help:

python test.py --help

To which the program will respond:

Arguments:
    --arg1 <int>
    --arg2 <option>
    --arg3
    --help/-h

Specifying arguments

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    # basic types
...    p.str('string_arg')      # --string_arg='hello'
...    p.int('int_arg')         # --int_arg 3
...    p.float('float_arg')     # --float_arg 9.6
...    p.flag('flag_arg')       # --flag_arg  (no argument passed)
...    # complex types
...    p.range('range_arg')     # --range_arg 1:2
...    p.multiword('multi_arg') # --multi_arg hello world
...    p.file('file_arg')       # --file_arg README.txt
...    p.directory('dir_arg')   # --dir_arg /tmp/

On occasions you may need to refer to a created argument to specify relationships. This can be done at creation time, or by a lookup. The following:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...     argument1 = p.str('arg1')

is equivalent to:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...     p.str('arg1')
...     argument1 = p['arg1']

Note that argument1 does not get the value of the parsed value; it represents the argument object itself.

Howto

Require an argument

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('required_arg').required()

If we try to not pass it:

python test.py

We get the following:

No value passed for required_arg
usage: test.py [--required_arg <option>] [--help,-h]

Shorthand/alias

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('arg1').shorthand('a')

Either is acceptable:

python test.py --arg1 my_string
python test.py -a my_string

Note that we can specify any number of attributes by daisy-chaining calls. For example:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:                 # 'arg1' has 'a' as alias and
...    p.str('arg1').shorthand('a').required()  # is also required

Dependencies/Conflicts

Dependencies indicate that some argument is required if another one is specified, while conflicts indicate that two or more arguments may not be mutually specified.

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:                 # if 'arg2' is specified,
...    arg1 = p.str('arg1')                     # so too must be 'arg3'
...    p.str('arg2').requires(                  # and 'arg1'. Note: if 'arg1'
...      p.str('arg3'),                         # is specified, this does not
...      arg1,                                  # mean 'arg2' must be
...    )
...    p.str('arg4').conflicts(                 # if 'arg4' is specified, then
...      arg1                                   # 'arg1' may not be.
...    )

A slightly more complex example:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.float('arg1').requires(  # if 'arg1' is specified
...      p.int('arg2'),           # then both 'arg2'
...      p.flag('arg3'),          # and 'arg3' must be too, however,
...    ).conflicts(               # if it is specified,
...      p.str('arg4'),           # then neither 'arg4'
...      p.range('arg5')          # nor 'arg5' may be specified
...    )

Allowing Duplicates/Multiple

Normally an argument may only be specified once by the user. This can be changed:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('arg1').multiple()
...
>>> print len(arg1)  # arg1 is list
>>> print arg1[0]

To use:

python test.py --arg1 hello --arg1 world

Now the value of arg1 is ['hello', 'world'].

Note: by indicating multiple, the variable is stored as a list even if only one instance is specified by the user.

Indicating default values or environment variables

A default value means the argument will receive the value if not specified.

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('arg1').default('hello')

Both executions are equivalent:

python test.py --arg1 hello
python test.py

Additionally, we can specify that an argument should be drawn from the OS/shell environment if not provided at the command line:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('port').environment()

Now the following shell interactions are equivalent:

python test.py --port 5000
export PORT=5000; python test.py

Currently, this works by setting the default value to the environment value. Consequently, the default and environment arguments currently conflict (or, specifically, override one another).

Allowing no argument label

If we want an argument to be parsed even without a label:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('arg1').unspecified_default()
...    p.str('arg2')

Now, an argument without a label will be saved to arg1:

python test.py hello  # arg1 = 'hello'
python test.py --arg2 world hello   # arg1 = 'hello', arg2 = 'world'

Note that to avoid ambiguity, only one argument type may be an unspecified_default.

Creating your own types

It is possible to create your own types using the cast function, in which you specify a function that is run on the value at parse time. Let’s say we want the user to be able to pass a comma-separated list of float values, or a space-delimited list of int values:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.str('floatlist').cast(lambda x: [float(val) for val in x.split(',')])
...    p.multiword('intlist').cast(lambda x: [int(val) for val in x.split()])

A sample command line:

python test.py --floatlist 1.2,3.9,8.6 --intlist 1 9 2

We now can access these:

>>> print floatlist, intlist
... [1.2, 3.9, 8.6], [1, 9, 2]

Conditions

Conditions extend the concept of dependencies and conflicts with conditionals.

if

Argument must be specified if condition:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    arg1 = p.int('arg1')
...    arg2 = p.float('arg2').if_(arg1 > 10) # 'arg2' must be specified if
...                                          # 'arg1' > 10
...    p.float('arg3').if_(arg1.or_(arg2))   # 'arg3' must be specified if
...                                          # 'arg1' or 'arg2' is

unless

Argument must be specified unless condition.

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    arg1 = p.int('arg1')
...    p.float('arg2').unless(arg1 > 10)    # 'arg2' must be specified if
...                                         # 'arg1' <= 10

requires

We described requires previously, but here we show that it also works with conditional expressions.

If argument is specified, then condition must be true;

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    arg1 = p.int('arg1')
...    p.float('arg2').requires(arg1 < 20)  # if 'arg2' specified, 'arg1' must
...                                         # be < 20

and/or

Build conditions via logical operators and_ and or_:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    arg1 = p.int('arg1')
...    p.float('arg2').unless((0 < arg1).and_(arg1 < 10))  # 'arg2' is required
...                                                        # unless 0 < arg1 < 10
...
...    p.float('arg3').if_((arg1 < 0).or_(arg1 > 10))      # 'arg3' is required
...                                                        # if 'arg1' < 0 or
...                                                        # 'arg1' > 10

Aggregate calls

Aggregate calls enable the indication of behavior for a set of arguments at once.

At least one

Require at least one (up to all) of the subsequent arguments:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.at_least_one(
...       p.str('arg1'),
...       p.str('arg2'),
...       p.str('arg3')
...    )

Mutual exclusion

Only one of the arguments can be specified:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.only_one_if_any(
...       p.str('arg1'),
...       p.str('arg2'),
...       p.str('arg3')
...    )

All if any

If any of the arguments is be specified, all of them must be:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.all_if_any(
...       p.str('arg1'),
...       p.str('arg2'),
...       p.str('arg3')
...    )

Require one

One and only one of the arguments must be specified:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.require_one(
...       p.str('arg1'),
...       p.str('arg2'),
...       p.str('arg3')
...    )

Complex Dependencies

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.at_least_one(            # at least one of
...      p.only_one_if_any(       # 'arg1', 'arg2', and/or 'arg3'
...        p.int('arg1'),         # must be specified, but
...        p.flag('arg2'),        # 'arg1' and 'arg2' may not
...      ),                       # both be specified
...      p.str('arg3'),
...    )

>>> with Parser(locals() as p:
...     p.require_one(
...         p.all_if_any(
...             p.only_one_if_any(
...                 p.flag('a'),
...                 p.flag('b'),
...             ),
...             p.flag('c'),
...         ),
...         p.only_one_if_any(
...             p.all_if_any(
...                 p.flag('d'),
...                 p.flag('e'),
...             ),
...             p.flag('f'),
...         ),
...     )

Accepts these combinations:

a, c; b, c; d, e; f

Customizing

Indicating label style

By default, -- denotes a full argument while - denotes the shorthand/alias variant. This can be replaced via set_single_prefix() and set_double_prefix().

Setting help function

The set_help_prefix() allows you to specify the content that appears before the argument list when users trigger the --help command.

Code

class blargs.Parser(store=None, default_help=True)

Command line parser.

all_if_any(*args)

If any of args is specified, then all of args must be specified.

at_least_one(*args)

Require at least one of args.

bool(name)

Alias of flag().

config(name)

Add configuration file, whose key/value pairs will provide/replace any arguments created for this parser. For example:

>>> with Parser() as p:
...   p.int('a')
...   p.str('b')
...   p.config('conf')

Now, arg a can be specfied on the command line, or in the configuration file passed to conf. For example:

python test.py --a 3
python test.py --conf myconfig.cfg

Where myconfig.cfg:

[myconfigfile]
a = 5
b = 9
x = 'hello'

Note that any parameters in the config that aren’t created as arguments via this parser are ignored. In the example above, the values of variables a and b would be assigned, while x would be ignored (as the developer did not create an x argument).

If anything is specified on the command line, its value is not taken from the config file. For example:

python test.py --a 3 --config myconfig.cfg

In this case, the value of a is 3 (from the command line) and not 5 (from the config file).

directory(name, create=False)

File directory value. Checks to ensure that the user passed file name exists and is a directory (i.e., not some other file object). If create is specified, creates the directory using os.makedirs; any intermediate directories are also created.

file(name, mode=None, buffering=None)

Opens the file indicated by the name passed by the user. mode and buffering are arguments passed to open.

The example below implements a file copy operation:

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...     p.file('input_file')
...     p.file('output_file', mode='w')
...
... output_file.write(input_file.read())

flag(name)

Boolean value. The presence of this flag indicates a true value, while an absence indicates false. No arguments.

float(name)

Add float argument.

int(name)

Add integer argument.

multiword(name)

Accepts multiple terms as an argument. For example:

>>> with Parser() as p:
...   p.multiword('multi')

Now accepts:

python test.py --multi path to something

only_one_if_any(*args)

If any of args is specified, then none of the remaining args may be specified.

range(name)

Range type. Accepts similar values to that of python’s py:range and py:xrange. Accepted delimiters are space, -, and :.

>>> with Parser() as p:
...   p.range('values')

Now accepts:

python test.py --values 10  # -> xrange(10)
python test.py --values 0-1  # -> xrange(0, 1)
python test.py --values 0:10:2  # -> xrange(0, 10, 2)
python test.py --values 0 10 3  # -> xrange(0, 10, 3)

require_one(*args)

Require only and only one of args.

set_double_prefix(flag)

Set the double flag prefix. This appears before long arguments (e.g., –arg).

set_help_prefix(message)

Indicate text to appear before argument list when the help function is triggered.

set_single_prefix(flag)

Set the single flag prefix. This appears before short arguments (e.g., -a).

str(name)

Add str argument.

underscore()

Convert ‘-‘ to ‘_’ in argument names. This is enabled if with_locals is used, as variable naming rules are applied.

url(name)

URL value; verifies that argument has a scheme (e.g., http, ftp, file).

classmethod with_locals()

Create Parser using locals() dict.

class blargs.Option(argname, parser)

cast(cast)

Provide a casting value for this argument.

conflicts(*conditions)

Specifiy other conditions which this argument conflicts with.

Parameters:conditions (sequence of either Option or Condition) – conflicting options/conditions

default(value)

Provide a default value for this argument.

environment()

Pull argument value from OS environment if unspecified. The case of the argument name, all lower, and all upper are all tried. For example, if the argument name is Port, the following names will be used for environment lookups: Port, port, PORT.

>>> with Parser(locals()) as p:
...    p.int('port').environment()

Both command lines work:

python test.py --port 5000
export PORT=5000; python test.py

if_(condition)

Argument is required if conditions.

multiple()

Indicate that the argument can be specified multiple times.

required()

Indicate that this argument is required.

requires(*conditions)

Specifiy other options/conditions which this argument requires.

Parameters:conditions – required conditions

shorthand(alias)

Set shorthand for this argument. Shorthand arguments are 1 character in length and are prefixed by a single ‘-‘. For example:

>>> parser.str('option').shorthand('o')

would cause ‘–option’ and ‘-o’ to be alias argument labels when invoked on the command line.

Parameters:alias – alias of argument

unless(condition)

Argument is required unless conditions.

unspecified_default()

Indicate that values passed without argument labels will be attributed to this argument.

Exceptions

class blargs.ArgumentError

Root class of all arguments that are thrown due to user input which violates a rule set by the parser. In other words, errors of this type should be caught and communicated to the user some how. The default behavior is to signal the particular error and show the usage.

class blargs.FormatError

Argument not formatted correctly.

class blargs.MissingRequiredArgumentError(arg)

Required argument not specified.

class blargs.ManyAllowedNoneSpecifiedArgumentError(allowed)

An argument out of a list of required is missing. e.g., one of -a and -b is required and neither is specified.

class blargs.MultipleSpecifiedArgumentError

Multiple of the same argument specified.

class blargs.DependencyError(arg1, arg2)

User specified an argument that requires another, unspecified argument.

class blargs.ConflictError(offender1, offender2)

User specified an argument that conflicts another specified argument.

class blargs.UnspecifiedArgumentError(arg)

User supplies argument that isn’t specified.