I'm trying to run a python script from cron, but its not running properly so I'm assuming its the different path env variable. Is there anyway to change the variable within a python script?

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3 Answers

While the accepted answer works for the OP's purposes, and while the second answer is correct for updating the python sys.path variable, I think, if the OP weren't able to use the accepted answer (because, say, there was a policy against modifying the OS PATH variable on build/test machines), something like this SO answer would be what they are looking for. Summarizing the simple case here, to change the OS PATH environment variable:

app_path = os.path.join(root_path, 'other', 'dir', 'to', 'app')
os.environ["PATH"] += os.pathsep + app_path

At least, this is what I was hoping to find when I read the question.

2

@unutbu has the right approach, but for what it's worth, @Joe Schmoe, if you ever need the info:

import sys
print sys.path
['.', '/usr/local/bin', '/usr/local/lib/python2.6/dist-packages',...]
sys.path.append('/home/JoeBlow/python_scripts')
print sys.path
['.', '/usr/local/bin', '/usr/local/lib/python2.6/dist-packages', '/home/JoeBlow/python_scripts',...] 

sys.path is an array containing everything that was in your initiating script's PYTHONPATH variable (or whatever your shell's default PYTHONPATH is).

You shouldn't need to set the PATH from within the python script. Instead, put something like

USER=joe
HOME=/home/joe
SHELL=/bin/bash
PATH=/sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/some/other/path
PYTHONPATH=/home/joe/pybin
MAILTO=joe
LANG=en_US.UTF-8
#min hr day mon dow
*/5 12 * * * reminder.py 'Eat lunch'

at the top of your crontab. These environment variables will then be available to all cron jobs run through your crontab.

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