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I've just about finished coding a decently sized disease transmission model in C#. However, I'm fairly new to .NET and am unsure how to proceed. Currently I just double-click on the .exe file and the model imports config setting from text files, does its thing, and outputs the results into a text file.

What I would like to do next is write a Python script to do the following:

  • Run the simulation N times (N > 1000)
  • After each run rename the output file and store (i.e. ./output.txt -> ./acc/outputN.txt)
  • Aggregate, parse, and analyze the outputs
  • Output the result in some clean format (possibly excel)

The majority of my programming experience to date has been in C/C++ on linux. I'm fairly confident about the last two items; however, I have no idea how to proceed for the first two. Here are some specific questions I'd like advice on:

  • What is the easiest/best way to run my C# .exe from a python script?
  • Does anyone have advice on the best way to do filesystem operations in Python on a Windows system?

Thanks!

UmNyobe
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Mandelbrot
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  • Just curious, but why do the rest in Python (and not in C#)? – H H Jul 15 '10 at 21:10
  • If you're looking for unit tests, try NUnit: http://www.nunit.org/ – Bobby Jul 15 '10 at 21:11
  • @Henk: I wanted to avoid making changes to the model itself. Thus, doing what I want requires writing a new app/script. The performance of the solution is not important, but the time taken to code it is. I thought a scripting language would be better for a scripting sort of problem. Plus, I like python more. :) – Mandelbrot Jul 15 '10 at 21:21
  • A bit off topic, but maybe something that might interest you. Have you thought of using IronPython? It allows you to run python scripts from C# (some exceptions related to C libraries). Also you can work with the .Net framework using IronPython. Just a thought. – Wade73 Jul 15 '10 at 21:42

2 Answers2

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As of Python 2.6+ you should be using the subprocess module: (Docs)

import subprocess

for v in range(1000):
    cmdLine = r"c:\path\to\my\app.exe"
    subprocess.Popen(subprocess)
    subprocess.Popen(r"move output.txt ./acc/output-%d.txt" % (v))
Aren
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  • Ah-ha someone that actually knows python instead of just looking at docs like me... touche, this should be marked correct. – kersny Jul 15 '10 at 21:15
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    An improvement would be using `os.rename` instead of execing out to `move`. – Jed Smith Jul 16 '10 at 01:50
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    note: `subprocess` is available since Python 2.4. `Popen` doesn't wait for the program to finish -- it just starts it i.e., `move` command is run too soon unless `app.exe` is *very* quick. You could use `subprocess.check_call` to wait for the child process to end – jfs May 05 '14 at 09:11
  • A question: Can I have my .exe file developed w/ C# on a linux server and run it directly through a python script like this, or do I need to go through something like Mono? – user2875994 Sep 24 '15 at 07:47
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    @user2875994 All this is doing is executing the exe file using the shell. So if you've set up your server with something like mono such that executing the file with your command terminal will run it, then it'll work. Otherwise you may have to use `cmdLine = r"mono c:\path\to\my\app.exe"` and have mono installed. – Aren Sep 24 '15 at 16:50
  • I see. Thanks for the answer :) – user2875994 Sep 25 '15 at 11:03
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The answer to your problems can be found in 'os' in the python standard library. Documentation for doing various operations, such as handling files and starting processes, can be found here.

Process management (Running your C# program) can be found here and file operations are here.

EDIT: Actually, instead of the above process link, you should use the subprocess module.

kersny
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