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Learn how to control a Selenium WebDriver using keypresses in Python. Discover practical solutions for managing script execution and automating web tasks efficiently.
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Automating Selenium WebDriver in Python: Managing Keypress Events and Process Control

Automating tasks on websites using Selenium WebDriver can be incredibly useful for developers and testers alike. However, when your automation script runs through long processes, it can be challenging to manage manual interruptions, especially if you need to restart the script or stop it based on keyboard input. In this guide, we will explore a solution that addresses the common problem of controlling a Selenium WebDriver with keypresses while utilizing Python's multithreading capabilities.

The Problem

Imagine you have a Python script for Selenium automation that carries out several time-consuming tasks such as filling out forms, clicking buttons, and gathering data. While this is happening, you may want the flexibility to restart or stop the script without interrupting the ongoing tasks completely. The challenge lies in achieving this without freezing the script or causing conflicts with running threads. The user initially attempted to use Python's multiprocessing module for process management but faced issues with sharing the WebDriver instance across different processes.

Here’s a brief summary of the primary concerns:

Need for continuous input checking while performing web automation tasks.

The challenge of using multiprocessing for managing Selenium WebDriver across threads.

Potential for abrupt process termination and ensuring the driver cleanly resets.

The Solution

After analyzing the limitations of using multiprocessing with Selenium WebDriver, a workaround was discovered that does not rely on sharing the WebDriver instance across process boundaries. Instead, the solution terminates any existing Chrome processes associated with the Selenium instance and launches a new one when needed. The following sections break down this unconventional yet effective method.

Step 1: Import Necessary Libraries

First, ensure you have the proper libraries installed. You will need psutil, which helps manage system processes, along with selenium and keyboard. You can install them using pip:

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Step 2: Monitor and Terminate Chrome Processes

Next, create a function to identify and close the existing Chrome processes used by Selenium. This way, when you want to restart the program, you can kill any lingering instances of Chrome.

Here is a simple implementation:

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Step 3: Set Up Keyboard Listeners

To monitor keyboard inputs, we need to set up listeners that can trigger specific actions based on key combinations. In this script, we can use keyboard.is_pressed() to check for specific commands, such as ctrl+ f10 for restarting and ctrl+ f9 for stopping the script.

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Step 4: Restarting the Selenium Driver

After terminating the existing processes, you can recreate the Selenium instance. Make sure you have the initiation logic for your Selenium automation encapsulated in a function so that it can be easily called again.

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Conclusion: A Practical Workaround

While using multiprocessing presents challenges in sharing a global WebDriver, the outlined workaround ensures that we can gracefully manage our Selenium automation with manual input control. By terminating existing processes and reinitializing the WebDriver, you can maintain flexibility in your script's execution.

This solution might not be perfect, but it achieves the objective of enabling manual control during automated tasks. With this method, you can focus on building efficient automation scripts without the hassle of incorrect t