Programming Python, Second Edition

Administrative Tools

Now that we have finished implementing a Python-powered, web-enabled, concurrently accessible report database, and published web pages and scripts that make that database accessible to the cyberworld at large, we can sit back and wait for reports to come in. Or almost; there still is no way for the site owner to view or delete records offline. Moreover, all records are tagged as “not yet verified” on submission, and must somehow be verified or rejected.

This section lists a handful of tersely documented PyErrata scripts that accomplish such tasks. All are Python programs shipped in the top-level AdminTools directory and are assumed to be run from a shell command line on the server (or other machine, after database downloads). They implement simple database content dumps, database backups, and database state-changes and deletions for use by the errata site administrator.

These tasks are infrequent, so not much work has gone into these tools. Frankly, some fall into the domain of “quick and dirty” hackerage and aren’t as robust as they could be. For instance, because these scripts bypass the database interface classes and speak directly to the underlying file structures, changes in the underlying file mechanisms will likely break these tools. Also in a more polished future release, these tools might instead sprout GUI- or web-based user interfaces to support over-the-net administration. For now, such extensions are left as exercises for the ambitious reader. ...