API · Python
Python os.execl() Method
The os.execl() is an in-built Python function used to execute a program or a function.
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Python os.execl() method is an efficient way of causing the current process to be terminated and replaced by the program passed as the argument to the os.execl() method.
Syntax of Python os.execl() Method
os.execl(path, arg1, arg2...)
Parameters
path |
It is an address object of the first file system path or a symlink. The object can either be an str or bytes. |
arg1 |
It is the argument of any process we want to execute. |
Return
There is no return type for this method.
Example 1: Use the os.execl() Method in Python
import os
import sys
enter = input("Do you want to restart the current program? Enter 'y' for yes. ")
if enter == "y":
print("The program has restarted.")
os.execl(sys.executable, os.path.abspath(__file__), *sys.argv)
else:
print("The program has been closed.")
sys.exit(0)
Output:
Do you want to restart the current program? Enter 'y' for yes. y
The program has restarted.
Do you want to restart the current program? Enter 'y' for yes. n
The program has been closed.
Note that Unix OS’s new executable function replaces the current process but will still have the same process id as the caller.
Example 2: Understanding the os.execl() Method in Python
import os
import sys
if len(sys.argv) >= 2 and sys.argv[1] == "exec":
os.execl("/usr/rand/python", "key", sys.argv[0])
print("The current process has been replaced.")
else:
print("The current process has not been terminated.")
print(sys.executable)
Output:
The current process has not been terminated.
/usr/bin/python3
The method os.execl() causes the new processes to inherit the environment of the currently running process.
