Utils

Pyloid provides utility functions to help with resource path resolution, environment detection, platform identification, and networking.

Production & Development

get_production_path

Constructs the absolute path to a resource file, adjusting based on the execution environment.

• In a production environment (e.g., when packaged with PyInstaller), it prepends the application's base directory to the provided relative path.
• If no path is provided, it returns the base path itself.
• In a development environment (regular Python script), it simply returns the provided path as is. If no path is provided, it returns None.

from pyloid.utils import get_production_path

########## Usage ##########

# In production (e.g., PyInstaller bundle, sys._MEIPASS = '/tmp/_MEIabcde')
prod_path = get_production_path("assets/icon.ico")  
print(prod_path) # '/tmp/_MEIabcde/assets/icon.ico'

base_prod_path = get_production_path()              
print(base_prod_path) # '/tmp/_MEIabcde'

Production Example

The example shows how get_production_path() automatically returns the correct path in both development (dev) and bundled (prod) environments, allowing you to use the same code without additional branching.

from pyloid import Pyloid
from pyloid.utils import get_production_path

app = Pyloid(app_name="MyApp", single_instance=True)

app.set_icon(get_production_path("assets/icon.ico")) # set the icon
app.set_tray_icon(get_production_path("assets/icon.ico")) # set the tray icon

Parameters

Returns

is_production

Checks if the current environment is a production environment (e.g., PyInstaller or Nuitka bundle).

• Returns True if running in a production environment, otherwise False.

from pyloid.utils import is_production

########## Usage ##########

if is_production():
    print("Running in production environment.")
else:
    print("Not in production environment.")

Returns

Platform

get_platform

Returns the name of the current system's platform.

• Uses platform.system() to determine the OS.
• Returns one of: "windows", "macos", "linux".

from pyloid.utils import get_platform

########## Usage ##########

platform_name = get_platform()
print(platform_name)  # e.g., "windows"

Returns

Path Operations

get_absolute_path

Returns the absolute path of the given relative path.

from pyloid.utils import get_absolute_path

########## Usage ##########

absolute_path = get_absolute_path("assets/icon.ico")
print(absolute_path)
# e.g., 'C:/Users/aaaap/Documents/pyloid/pyloid/assets/icon.ico'

Parameters

Returns

Networking

get_free_port

Finds and returns an available random network port number from the operating system.

• Creates a socket, binds to port 0 (let OS choose), retrieves the port, and closes the socket.
• Note: The port may be reassigned to another process after this function returns, so use it quickly.

from pyloid.utils import get_free_port

########## Usage ##########

port = get_free_port()
print(f"Found available port: {port}")

# Example: Start a web server on the found port
import http.server
server = http.server.HTTPServer(('localhost', port), http.server.SimpleHTTPRequestHandler)

Returns

Qt Backend

set_qt_backend

Sets the Qt Quick backend to force a specific rendering mode.

• Allows changing the Qt Quick rendering backend by setting the QT_QUICK_BACKEND environment variable.
• Setting it to 'software' forces software rendering, which can be useful in environments with graphics driver issues or where hardware acceleration is not available.
• Important: This setting must be applied before the Qt application is initialized.

from pyloid.utils import set_qt_backend

########## Usage ##########

# Force software rendering (useful for compatibility)
set_qt_backend('software')

# You can also use other backends like 'opengl' or 'd3d12' if needed
# set_qt_backend('opengl')

Production Example

This is typically called at the very beginning of your application, before creating any Pyloid instances:

from pyloid.utils import set_qt_backend
from pyloid import Pyloid

# Set software rendering for better compatibility
set_qt_backend('software')

app = Pyloid(app_name="MyApp", single_instance=True)

# Rest of your application code...

Parameters

Returns