Running executable that takes arguments using Python

Question

I am writing a small python script where I open an existing executable (.exe) and I send a string as an argument.

I am using the subprocess.call method and I get the following error:

File "C:\Python34\lib\subprocess.py", line 537, in call
   with Popen(*popenargs, **kwargs) as p:
File "C:\Python34\lib\subprocess.py", line 767, in __init__
   raise TypeError("bufsize must be an integer")
TypeError: bufsize must be an integer

My code

import os
import subprocess

x = subprocess.call("C:\\Users\\Desktop\\Program\\Program.exe", y)

where y is a string I am passing.

I am trying to upgrade an old VB code. The original code calls the executable and passes an argument as shown below. I am trying to replicate this in Python.

Private comm As ExecCmd
Dim cmd As String
Dim app As String
Dim e As New ExecCmd

exec_1= "...\Desktop\Program.exe"
x = "Text" & Variable & " Hello" & Variable2

comm.StartApp exec_1, x   'starts the .exe file with an argument

James · Accepted Answer · 2016-08-01 20:01:54Z

4

Put the program and any arguments you want into an array first.

import os
import subprocess

x = subprocess.call(["C:\\Users\\Desktop\\Program\\Program.exe", y])

answered Aug 1, 2016 at 20:01

James

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James K · Accepted Answer · 2016-08-01 20:02:14Z

3

The command and arguments should be in a list

x = subprocess.call(["C:\\Users\\Desktop\\Program\\Program.exe", y])

Documentation

answered Aug 1, 2016 at 20:02

James K

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4 Comments

JC203 Over a year ago

Thank you for the explanation. I placed all the arguments in a list and it worked.

JC203 Over a year ago

Do you happen to know how can I read the output of the executable? I tried this and I get an error: x = subprocess.Popen(["C:\\Users\\Desktop\\Program\\Program.exe", y], stdout=PIPE) where PIPE is not defined.

James K Over a year ago

Read the docs. PIPE is an attribute of the subprocess module, use stdout=subprocess.PIPE But if you need pipes you should be using the popen class or subprocess.check_output

JC203 Over a year ago

Thanks, it works. This what I did: subprocess.check_output(["C:\\Users\\Desktop\\Program\\Program.exe", y]). The output is then converted to a string by using the .decode()

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