[python-win32] Automated FTP?

[Tim Roberts]

Matt Upton wrote:

>Hello Tim and Mark.  I have a subscription to the python win-32 help e-mail
>list but I keep getting bounce backs (I have been sending to:
>python-win32 at python.org).  Do I have the wrong address?? I have e-mailed the
>help e-mail addresses and have not gotten any responses.
>  
>

That's the right address.  Have you possibly changed e-mail addresses
recently?  You might try logging in to the list server to see if your
account is current.

http://mail.python.org/mailman/listinfo/python-win32


>Hello all, I am relatively new to Python (on Windows XP).
>
>Is it possible using Python to automate downloading large files from a ftp
>site.
>
>For example, to set a specific time for my code to run (say 7AM in the
>morning), connect to a ftp site and download the files in a certain folder
>(with some if then statements of course).
>
>How would I get started with doing that?
>
>I figure this might be a relatively straight forward program that many have
>done before, so instead of re-inventing the wheel, maybe I could go directly
>to the sources?
>  
>

Yes, this is easy in Python.  You can use the Windows "Scheduled Tasks"
tool to run your script at 7 AM every morning.  There is an ftplib
module in the standard library, that even includes a sample script
showing you how to do a transfer.

However, depending on how much conditional stuff you have, you might
also be able to do the job with a batch file calling wget.  Wget is a
terrific command line utility for fetching arbitrary files from web and
FTP servers, and it is available for Windows.

-- 
Tim Roberts, timr at probo.com
Providenza & Boekelheide, Inc.