How to use Shovel with Django

Here is my attempt to use Shovel (Rake, for Python) in Django.

Shovel can be used as an alternative to Django built-in Command. The reasons to use Shovel instead of the Command are:

1. "Rake, for Python" sounds cool.
2. Shovel is light-weight.
3. I can find all tasks in one place (the shovel/ directory).
4. I hate writing a list of make_option.
5. I hate inheriting LabelCommand, BaseCommand, NoArgsCommand, etc.

Okay, you get it... The reasons to use Shovel are actually: (i) "Rake, for Python" sounds cool, and (ii) I am lazy.

I didn't use the term "replacement for Django Command" because we cannot simply invoke Shovel task in the Django codebase using django.core.management.call_command(). (But we can have work-around, like making a Command to proxy the call)

Let's get back to my attempt to mix the two. I placed the shovel/ folder inside the Django project.

djangoproject/
  - manage.py
  - settings.py
  - urls.py
  - shovel/ 

And I setup the Django environment at the top of the Shovel task file.

try: # Load the django environment
    import imp
    import os
    import sys

    me = os.path.abspath(os.path.dirname(__file__))
    module_info = imp.find_module('context', [me])
    imp.load_module('context', *module_info)
except:
    print >> sys.stderr, 'Cannot setup Python environment from context.py'

At last, the setup injects a directory to Python sys.path and use Django function to load the settings.py.

def setup_django_env(path):
    from django.core.management import setup_environ
    try:
        module_info = imp.find_module('settings', [path])
        settings = imp.load_module('settings', *module_info)

        setup_environ(settings)
    except ImportError:
        msg = "Error: Can't find 'settings.py' in configured PYTHON_PATH", path
        print >> sys.stderr, msg
        sys.exit(1)

# assume shovel/ directory is placed at the same level of settings.py
setup_django_env(os.getcwd())

This is a common technique to integrate Django with other Python gears as well. By applying this technique, I can freely use any Django functions / models in Shovel.

NOTE 1: The name of Shovel task file cannot collide with any module/app name of the Django project.

NOTE 2: We can place the shovel/ folder outside the Django project but we have to use proper Python path and import statement (e.g. use `from themix.things.models import Thing` instead of `from things.models import Thing`).

My attempt can be found at - https://github.com/mrkschan/shovel-django-mix.