Automation & scripting
CLI tools, scheduled jobs, filesystem tasks, and glue scripts that save time.
How to Backup an SQLite Database with a Timestamp in Python
Backs up an SQLite database file to a timestamped copy using the sqlite3 backup API.
import sqlite3
import shutil
from datetime import datetime
from pathlib import Path
def backup_database(db_path: str, backup_dir: str = "backups") -> Path:
db = Path(db_path)
backup_folder = Path(backup_dir)
backup_folder.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
timestamp = datetime.now().strftime("%Y%m%d_%H%M%S")
…How to Recover Deleted .txt Files from a Backup in Python
A Python function that searches a backup directory recursively and copies all .txt files to a destination folder, printing each recovered file name and a total count.
import os
import shutil
from pathlib import Path
def recover_deleted_txt_files(source_backup_dir: str, destination_dir: str) -> None:
"""Recover .txt files from backup directory."""
backup_path = Path(source_backup_dir)
dest_path = Path(destination_dir)
dest_path.mkdir(parents=True, exist_ok=True)
…Restore sqlite from latest backup file in Python
This script finds the most recently modified backup file in a directory and restores it to the main database path, then verifies the restored data.
import sqlite3
import glob
import os
import shutil
def restore_latest_backup(db_path, backup_dir):
backups = sorted(glob.glob(os.path.join(backup_dir, "*.db")), key=os.path.getmtime)
if not backups:
raise FileNotFoundError("No backup files found")
latest = backups[-1]
shutil.copy2(latest, db_p…Restrict Secrets File Permissions with the chmod Script in Python
This script restricts a secrets file to 0600 permissions, rotates it to a dated backup, and creates a fresh protected file for secure automation workflows.
import os
import sys
import stat
from pathlib import Path
def restrict_secrets_file(filepath: str) -> None:
"""Set restrictive permissions (0600) on a secrets file."""
path = Path(filepath).expanduser()
if not path.is_file():
raise FileNotFoundError(f"Secrets file not found: {path}")
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Automation & scripting — Python code examples
What you will find here
This page collects automation & scripting snippets — short, copy-ready Python you can paste into our free online IDE and run without installing anything. Each sample includes a plain-English explanation and the full source code.
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.