Dumb Q #1

[Alex Martelli]

Grant Edwards wrote:

> In article <mailman.1043758549.8656.python-list at python.org>, Andy Jewell
> wrote:
> 
>> for record in records[:]:
>> 
>> 2) Rewrite the records list back to the file.  Modifying the records
>> /list/ merely changes the copy in memory.
> 
> Writing to a file like /etc/passwd is generally considered "A
> Bad Thing".  When you want to change a critical (and "live")
> file whose corruption will render your system inoperable,
> always use a temporary file and then rename it.

Incidentally, module fileinput can do that for you -- when you
specify the parameter requesting "inline rewrite" of the files
being processed, what fileinput does under the cover is exactly
this -- write to temporary files and replace the input files
with the temporary ones when each is done.

So...:

import fileinput

for line in fileinput.input('/etc/passwd', inplace=1):
    fields = line.split(':')
    if fields[3] == "200":
        fields[3] = 199
        line = ':'.join(fields)
    print line,


Alex