Timeout on subprocess readline in Python

python timeout subprocess
Tom picture Tom · May 25, 2012 · Viewed 38.2k times · Source

I have a small issue that I'm not quite sure how to solve. Here is a minimal example:

What I have

scan_process = subprocess.Popen(command, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.STDOUT)
while(some_criterium):
    line = scan_process.stdout.readline()
    some_criterium = do_something(line)

What I would like

scan_process = subprocess.Popen(command, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.STDOUT)
while(some_criterium):
    line = scan_process.stdout.readline()
    if nothing_happens_after_10s:
        break
    else:
        some_criterium = do_something(line)

I read a line from a subprocess and do something with it. How can I exit if no line arrived after a fixed time interval?

Answer

Tom picture Tom · May 25, 2012

Thanks for all the answers!

I found a way to solve my problem by simply using select.poll to peek into standard output.

import select
...
scan_process = subprocess.Popen(command, stdout=subprocess.PIPE, stderr=subprocess.STDOUT)
poll_obj = select.poll()
poll_obj.register(scan_process.stdout, select.POLLIN)
while(some_criterium and not time_limit):
    poll_result = poll_obj.poll(0)
    if poll_result:
        line = scan_process.stdout.readline()
        some_criterium = do_something(line)
    update(time_limit)

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