Python Script to Automate Software Installation

Software installation can often be a time-consuming and monotonous undertaking, particularly when dealing with multiple applications. Python scripting gives a solution by enabling automation of the entire installation process which leads to more time consuming, enhances productivity, and gets rid of repetitive manual intervention. So, let’s dive into the intricacies of software installation automation with Python, empowering you to take control of your workflow and optimize your efficiency. In this article, you will learn about creating a Python script to automate software installation.

Before diving into the steps, let’s understand some key concepts related to software installation automation:

• Subprocess Module: The subprocess module in Python allows you to spawn new processes, connect to their input/output/error pipes, and obtain their return codes. We will use this module to execute commands for software installation.
• urllib. request Module: The urllib.request module provides a high-level interface for fetching data from URLs. We will use it to download software installers.
• Operating System (OS) Interaction Module: The os module in Python provides a way to interact with the underlying operating system. We will use it to remove the installer file after installation.

Create a Python Script for Automated Software Installation

Import required modules

So, now start by opening your spider editor or your preferred editor and create a python (.py) file and start importing the modules required for the automation scripting process.

import subprocess
import urllib.request
import os

The subprocess module allows us to execute external commands while urllib.request helping us download files from URLs. The os module provides functions for interacting with the operating system.

Defining the Installation Function

Once, the modules are imported we have to define a function that will handle the installation of a software package, so I have created a function name “install_software”

Python3

def install_software(package):
    try:
        if package == 'firefox':
            # Download Firefox installer
            url = 'https://download.mozilla.org/?product=firefox-latest&os=win64&lang=en-US'
            installer_path = 'firefox_installer.exe'
            urllib.request.urlretrieve(url, installer_path)
            # Install Firefox silently
            subprocess.check_call([installer_path, '-ms'])
            # Delete the installer file
            os.remove(installer_path)
        else:
            subprocess.check_call(['pip', 'install', package])
        print(f"Successfully installed {package}")
    except subprocess.CalledProcessError:
        print(f"Failed to install {package}")

This function takes a single argument package, which represents the name of the software package to be installed. Inside the function, we check if the package is “Firefox” because it requires a different installation process. For other packages, we use the pip command to install them.

For Firefox, we retrieve the installer from the Mozilla website using the provided URL. The installer is saved as firefox_installer.exe or open a Open a web browser and go to the Mozilla Firefox website https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/new/, Right-click on the “Download Firefox” button or link on the page. We then use subprocess.check_call to run the installer silently with the -ms flags. Finally, we delete the installer file using os.remove.

Create a List of Packages

Now, let’s create a list of software packages that we want to install. we will install “umpy”, and “firefox”.

software_packages = [‘numpy’,’firefox’]

You can modify this list to include any other packages you need for example, if you want to install Brave sometimes.

software_packages = [‘numpy’,’firefox’,’brave’]

Installing the Packages

With our list of packages prepared in Step 3, we can now iterate over it and call the install_software function for each package

for package in software_packages:

install_software(package)

This loop will iterate through each package name and call the I function with the current package name as an argument.

Running the Script

Save the Python script with an appropriate name, such as software_installation.py. Open your terminal or command prompt, navigate to the directory where the script is saved, and execute the following command

python software_installation.py

This way, the loop will install the other packages, and then the install_software function will be called separately to install Firefox.

Example Code

Python3

import subprocess
import urllib.request
import os

def install_software(package):
    """
    Function to install a software package.
    """
    try:
        if package == 'firefox':
            url = 'https://download.mozilla.org/?product=firefox-latest&os=win64&lang=en-US'
            installer_path = 'firefox_installer.exe'
            urllib.request.urlretrieve(url, installer_path)
            subprocess.check_call([installer_path, '-ms'])
            os.remove(installer_path)
        else:
            subprocess.check_call(['pip', 'install', package])
        print("Successfully installed {package}")
    except subprocess.CalledProcessError:
        print("Failed to install {package}")


software_packages = ['numpy', 'pandas', 'matplotlib', 'firefox']

for package in software_packages:
    if package == "firefox":
        install_software(package)

Output:

Successfully installed firefox

Once, you executed the code you will get the output in the terminal as ‘”Successfully installed”, then go to the installed application in your local setting and check that the application is installed.

Conclusion

Overall this particular approach of automatic installing of software increases efficiency and reduces time but also decreases the chances of error. It’s important for you to always remember the security implications of automating software installations. Ensure that the script runs with appropriate permissions and does not unintentionally expose sensitive system information.