How to run “ ps cax | grep something ” in Python?

Question

How do I run a command with a pipe | in it?

The subprocess module seems complex...

Is there something like

output,error = `ps ca         


        

Answer 1

You've already accepted an answer, but:

Do you really need to use grep? I'd write something like:

import subprocess
ps = subprocess.Popen(('ps', 'cax'), stdout=subprocess.PIPE)
output = ps.communicate()[0]
for line in output.split('\n'):
    if 'something' in line:
        ...

This has the advantages of not involving shell=True and its riskiness, doesn't fork off a separate grep process, and looks an awful lot like the kind of Python you'd write to process data file-like objects.