Reference library

Python Code Samples

Copy-ready Python snippets by topic and difficulty — short, focused, and runnable in the browser editor.

14 matches
Strings & text easy

How to Split Strings in Python (Beginner-Friendly)

Split Python strings by a delimiter into lists, plus a cleanup variant that strips whitespace and filters empty parts.

string split text parsing delimiter
Python
def split_text(text, delimiter=" "):
    """Split a string by a delimiter and return a list of parts."""
    return text.split(delimiter)


def split_text_with_cleanup(text, delimiter=" "):
    """Split a string, stripping whitespace and filtering empty parts."""
    parts = text.split(delimiter)
    cleaned = [part.s…
15 0 Open
Files & data easy

Build a Python Script That Detects and Deletes Empty Files Across Folders

A Python script that recursively finds and removes all zero-byte files across nested directories, returning a list of deleted paths.

filesystem cleanup pathlib
Python
import os
from pathlib import Path

def find_and_delete_empty_files(root_dir: str) -> list:
    """Find and delete all empty files under root_dir. Returns list of deleted paths."""
    deleted = []
    for file_path in Path(root_dir).rglob('*'):
        if file_path.is_file() and file_path.stat().st_size == 0:
       …
56 0 Open
Files & data easy

How to Prune Empty Directories in Python with os.walk

Remove all empty subdirectories bottom-up using os.walk with topdown=False and os.rmdir, safely ignoring non-empty folders.

os.walk filesystem cleanup
Python
import os

def prune_empty_dirs(root):
    """Remove all empty subdirectories under root, bottom-up."""
    for dirpath, dirnames, filenames in os.walk(root, topdown=False):
        if dirpath == root:
            continue
        try:
            os.rmdir(dirpath)
            print(f"Removed: {dirpath}")
        exce…
14 0 Open
Comprehensions & generators easy

How to Close a Generator and Handle GeneratorExit in Python

This Python code demonstrates how to explicitly close a generator using the close() method and handle the GeneratorExit exception through a finally block to run cleanup logic.

generators generator-exit close
Python
def countdown(n):
    try:
        while n > 0:
            yield n
            n -= 1
    finally:
        print(f"Generator closed after countdown completed")


if __name__ == "__main__":
    gen = countdown(5)
    print(next(gen))
    print(next(gen))
    gen.close()
    print("Generator closed explicitly")
12 0 Open
Automation & scripting medium

Automatically Clean Temporary Files from Applications Using Python

A Python script that safely deletes temporary files from common application temp directories across Windows, Linux, and macOS, tracking cleaned count and disk space.

temporary-files cleanup automation
Python
import os
import shutil
import tempfile
import platform

def clean_application_temp_files():
    """Delete common temporary file locations safely."""
    system = platform.system()
    temp_dirs = []

    if system == "Windows":
        temp_dirs.extend([
            os.path.join(os.getenv("LOCALAPPDATA"), "Temp"),
  …
55 0 Open
Automation & scripting hard

Detect Memory Leaks in Python with Weak References

A custom LeakDetector uses weak references and garbage collection to find class instances that survive past expected cleanup in long-running Python applications.

memory leak weakref
Python
import gc
import sys
import weakref
import time
from collections import defaultdict

class LeakDetector:
    def __init__(self):
        self._tracked = defaultdict(list)

    def track_class(self, cls):
        """Track all instances of a class for leak detection."""
        old_init = cls.__init__
        def new_in…
37 0 Open
Automation & scripting medium

Find Orphan Files Not Referenced Anywhere in Python

Scan a project directory for files whose names never appear in the content of other files, identifying potentially unused resources.

orphan files file cleanup automation
Python
import os
from pathlib import Path
import re

def find_orphan_files(root_dir: str, extensions: set = None, ignore_patterns: list = None):
    """Find files not referenced by any other file in the project."""
    if extensions is None:
        extensions = {'.txt', '.md', '.py', '.html', '.css', '.js', '.json', '.yaml'…
37 0 Open
Automation & scripting easy

How to Clean Old Temp Files in Python

A Python script that scans a directory and deletes files older than a configurable age (default: one week), with safe error handling.

file-system cleanup pathlib
Python
import os
import time
from pathlib import Path

def clean_old_temp_files(directory=".", max_age_seconds=7 * 24 * 60 * 60):
    """
    Remove files in directory older than the specified age.
    
    Args:
        directory: Path to directory to clean
        max_age_seconds: Maximum age in seconds (default: 1 week)
 …
12 0 Open
Automation & scripting medium

How to Detect Unused Images in a Project with Python

A Python script that scans a website project folder, identifies all image files, and checks HTML/CSS/JS files to find which images are never referenced.

automation files regex
Python
import os
import re
from pathlib import Path

def find_unused_images(project_path):
    image_exts = {'.png', '.jpg', '.jpeg', '.gif', '.svg', '.webp'}
    used_images = set()
    all_images = set()
    
    # Find all image files
    for root, _, files in os.walk(project_path):
        for file in files:
            …
36 0 Open
Automation & scripting easy

How to Filter Docker Containers for Pruning in Python

Simulate Docker's container prune by filtering a JSON list for exited containers older than a cutoff, returning pruned IDs and space freed.

docker json datetime
Python
import json
from datetime import datetime, timedelta


def parse_docker_ps(json_output: str, older_than_hours: int = 24) -> list:
    containers = json.loads(json_output)
    cutoff = datetime.now() - timedelta(hours=older_than_hours)
    return [
        c for c in containers
        if datetime.fromisoformat(c["crea…
12 0 Open
Git + Python easy

How to Filter Git History to Remove Secret File Entries in Python

A pure-Python mock that filters a repository's history to drop any commit that touched a secret file, so you can plan a cleanup before rewriting Git history.

git secrets history
Python
from pathlib import Path
import json

def filter_history(history, secret_path):
    """Remove entries that touch the secret file."""
    return [entry for entry in history if secret_path not in entry["files"]]

if __name__ == "__main__":
    repo_history = [
        {"commit": "a1b2c3", "message": "Add app", "files": …
10 0 Open
Concurrency & performance medium

How to Cancel an asyncio Task with Graceful Cleanup in Python

Cancel a running asyncio task, handle the cancellation signal inside a worker coroutine to perform cleanup, then re-raise so the cancellation propagates correctly.

asyncio cancellation cleanup
Python
import asyncio


async def worker(name: str, sleep: float) -> None:
    try:
        print(f"{name}: starting")
        await asyncio.sleep(sleep)
        print(f"{name}: completed")
    except asyncio.CancelledError:
        print(f"{name}: cancelled, cleaning up...")
        await asyncio.sleep(0.2)  # Simulate clea…
13 0 Open
Caching & Redis medium

How to Implement a Redis-Like Cache Dictionary in Python

Build a RedisMockDict class that mimics basic Redis key-value operations with TTL support, expiry cleanup, and standard dict-like methods.

redis cache ttl
Python
from collections import OrderedDict
import time

class RedisMockDict:
    def __init__(self, ttl=None):
        self._data = OrderedDict()
        self._ttl = ttl  # default TTL in seconds, None = no expiry
        self._expiry = {}

    def set(self, key, value, ttl=None):
        """Set a key-value pair with optiona…
12 0 Open
Production deployment patterns medium

How to Drain a Connection Pool Before Exit in Python

Gracefully close all pooled sockets using a thread-safe ConnectionPool that drains connections before program exit.

connection-pool sockets threading
Python
import socket
import threading
import time
import random

class ConnectionPool:
    def __init__(self, size=5):
        self.pool = []
        self.lock = threading.Lock()
        self.closed = False
        for _ in range(size):
            self.pool.append(self.create_connection())
    
    def create_connection(sel…
13 0 Open

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Guide: free Python code samples library

Copy-ready Python snippets for learners and developers

PythonSkillset code samples are short, focused examples organised by topic and difficulty. Every snippet is server-rendered HTML — readable by search engines and easy to copy. Open any sample, read the notes, copy the code, then press Try in editor to run it in the browser with Pyodide.

How to use this library

  1. Pick a topic section — strings, lists, files, functions, and more
  2. Open a sample, read How it works, and copy the code block
  3. Run it in the IDE, tweak values, then take a related quiz or tutorial lesson

Samples vs tutorials and challenges

Samples are quick reference — one concept per page. For step-by-step teaching, use our Python tutorials. To test yourself, try quizzes or coding challenges. Clean up style with the Python formatter.