Run a C# application from python script

Question

I've just about finished coding a decently sized disease transmission model in C#. However, I'm fairly new to .NET and am unsure how to proceed. Currently I just double-click on the .exe file and the model imports config setting from text files, does its thing, and outputs the results into a text file.

What I would like to do next is write a Python script to do the following:

• Run the simulation N times (N > 1000)
• After each run rename the output file and store (i.e. ./output.txt -> ./acc/outputN.txt)
• Aggregate, parse, and analyze the outputs
• Output the result in some clean format (possibly excel)

The majority of my programming experience to date has been in C/C++ on linux. I'm fairly confident about the last two items; however, I have no idea how to proceed for the first two. Here are some specific questions I'd like advice on:

• What is the easiest/best way to run my C# .exe from a python script?
• Does anyone have advice on the best way to do filesystem operations in Python on a Windows system?

Thanks!

Answer 1

As of Python 2.6+ you should be using the subprocess module: (Docs)

import subprocess

for v in range(1000):
    cmdLine = r"c:\path\to\my\app.exe"
    subprocess.Popen(subprocess)
    subprocess.Popen(r"move output.txt ./acc/output-%d.txt" % (v))