YaST - The Python Bindings

The API documentation for the UI can be found here. For more details, check the YaST documentation.

Python versions

The yast python bindings will build in both python2 and python3. Suppying the --enable-python3 option during configure will switch to python3 bindings.

Calling YaST from Python

Publish, Import and Include

The connection to the YaST component system has two parts. The first one is the ability to be called from the component system. Clients can be called via WFM and modules provide an interface via the Declare decorator, where the type signature is specified.

The second part is calling methods from the component system. Clients are called via WFM. Methods from modules are imported with {yast.import_module}, which loads a component and creates a python object in the Yast namespace from it, on which exported methods can be called.

A simple yast python module (example)

Modules must be installed in one of the YaST2 modules directories: /y2update/modules; $HOME/.yast2/modules; /usr/share/YaST2/modules

# ~/.yast2/modules/pytest.py
from yast import Declare
@Declare('integer', 'integer', 'integer')
def suma(a, b):
    return a + b

Calling this module from python

import yast
yast.import_module('pytest')
print(yast.pytest.suma(2, 3))

Calling this module from ruby

require "yast"
Yast.import "pytest"
puts Yast::pytest.suma(2, 3)

Calling this module from perl

use YaPI;
YaST::YCP::Import("pytest");
pytest.suma(2, 3);

How to call UI from YaST in Python

# test.py
import yast
yast.import_module('Popup')
yast.Popup.Message('Example text')

You must execute UI code using y2base, for example:

/usr/lib/YaST2/bin/y2base ./test.py ncurses

How to call SCR from python

There are 4 functions for working with SCR SCR.Dir, SCR.Read, SCR.Write and SCR.Execute. The first argument of a function is a ycp path as string. e.g. ".target.bash_output"

>>> import yast
>>> yast.SCR.Execute(yast.Path('.target.bash_output'),'pwd')
{'exit': 0, 'stderr': '', 'stdout': '/home/user\n'}

Symbol, Path and Term in python

After importing yast python has 3 classes for building yast type such as symbol, path or term.

path = Path('.my.path')
symbol = Symbol('Enabled')
term = Term('VBox',Term('Label','&Example Label'), Term('PushButton', '&So What'))

UI Shortcuts

Yast python provides shortcuts for UI terms, which is useful for constructing dialogs.

# usage with Term
content = yast.Term(
  yast.Symbol('ButtonBox'),
  yast.Term(
    yast.Symbol('PushButton'),
    yast.Term(yast.Symbol('id'), yast.Symbol('ok_button')),
    "OK"
  ),
  yast.Term(
    yast.Symbol('PushButton'),
    yast.Term(yast.Symbol('id'), yast.Symbol('cancel_button')),
    "Cancel"
  )
)

# usage with shortcuts
content = ButtonBox(
  PushButton(Id('ok_button'), "OK"),
  PushButton(Id('cancel_button'), "Cancel")
)

Internationalization & Localization

YaST python provides internationalization and localization using python's gettext library. Some helper functions are available via the python yast library. To bind to a text domain:

from yast import textdomain
textdomain('proj_name')

The textdomain function is a helper function which calls gettext.bindtextdomain and binds to /usr/share/YaST2/locale. You can also import the gettext function, or it's alias _(), via the yast module to translate text.

from yast import _
_('Message to be translated.')

The _() alias to gettext cannot be imported using from yast import *, because python automatically hides functions starting with an underscore. It must be imported explicitly.

Translations for the text wrapped with gettext should be added to the yast2-trans package.

Further Information

More information about YaST can be found on its homepage.

Packager information

Build dependencies

Build dependencies include autotools, a c++ compiler, python devel files, swig, and yast2 build dependencies. For a more detailed list, see the included spec file.

How to Compile

Use the latest yast2-devtools, then use these calls:

make -f Makefile.cvs all
./configure --enable-python3
make

How to Install

Compile it, and from the build directory call as root:

make install