Ping Class

Properties   Methods   Events   Config Settings   Errors  

The PING class encapsulates Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP) ECHO functionality, which is used to check whether there is a communications link between two computers.

Syntax

class ipworks.Ping

Remarks

When the ping_host method is called with the Host parameter, or if remote_host is assigned an IP address or domain name, the class sends an ICMP ECHO packet to the remote host. The response_time and response_source properties are updated with the time of the roundtrip to the remote host and the address of the host actually sending the response.

The class operates synchronously by default (i.e., waits for a response before returning control to the caller); however, the class may also operate asynchronously (i.e., returns control immediately) by setting timeout to 0. Please refer to the timeout property for more information.

Property List

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The following is the full list of the properties of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Method List

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The following is the full list of the methods of the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Event List

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The following is the full list of the events fired by the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

Config Settings

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The following is a list of config settings for the class with short descriptions. Click on the links for further details.

active Property

This property indicates whether the class is active.

Syntax

def get_active() -> bool: ...

active = property(get_active, None)

Default Value

FALSE

Remarks

This property indicates whether the class is currently active and can send or receive data. Use the activate and deactivate methods to control whether the class is active.

The ping_host method will automatically change the value of this property to True.

This property is read-only.

idle Property

The current status of the class.

Syntax

def get_idle() -> bool: ...

idle = property(get_idle, None)

Default Value

TRUE

Remarks

This property will be False if the component is currently busy (communicating or waiting for an answer), and True at all other times.

This property is read-only.

local_host Property

The name of the local host or user-assigned IP interface through which connections are initiated or accepted.

Syntax

def get_local_host() -> str: ...
def set_local_host(value: str) -> None: ...

local_host = property(get_local_host, set_local_host)

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the name of the local host as obtained by the gethostname() system call, or if the user has assigned an IP address, the value of that address.

In multihomed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface) setting LocalHost to the IP address of an interface will make the class initiate connections (or accept in the case of server classs) only through that interface. It is recommended to provide an IP address rather than a hostname when setting this property to ensure the desired interface is used.

If the class is connected, the local_host property shows the IP address of the interface through which the connection is made in internet dotted format (aaa.bbb.ccc.ddd). In most cases, this is the address of the local host, except for multihomed hosts (machines with more than one IP interface).

Note: local_host is not persistent. You must always set it in code, and never in the property window.

packet_size Property

This property includes the size of the packet to send as the ping request.

Syntax

def get_packet_size() -> int: ...
def set_packet_size(value: int) -> None: ...

packet_size = property(get_packet_size, set_packet_size)

Default Value

64

Remarks

This property allows you to control the size of the data packet sent in the ping_host method. The default packet size is 64 bytes, with a minimum of 8 bytes (4 bytes of the ICMP header plus the ECHO identifier). The maximum value is 65520.

remote_host Property

This property includes the address of the RemoteHost. Domain names are resolved to IP addresses.

Syntax

def get_remote_host() -> str: ...
def set_remote_host(value: str) -> None: ...

remote_host = property(get_remote_host, set_remote_host)

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property specifies the IP address (IP number in dotted internet format) or the domain name of the remote host.

If this property is set to 255.255.255.255, the class broadcasts data on the local subnet.

If this property is set to a domain name, a DNS request is initiated. Upon successful termination of the request, the property is set to the corresponding address. If the search is not successful, the class fails with an error.

If UseConnection is True, this property must be set before the class is activated (active is set to True).

request_id Property

This property includes a unique identifier for outgoing packets.

Syntax

def get_request_id() -> int: ...

request_id = property(get_request_id, None)

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property contains a unique identifier for outgoing packets. This property is useful during asynchronous ping operations. The RequestId parameter of the on_response event is used to match requests with responses.

The identifier of the outgoing ping packet is provided in this property after the ping_host method returns.

This property is read-only.

response_source Property

This property includes the source of the last PING response.

Syntax

def get_response_source() -> str: ...

response_source = property(get_response_source, None)

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the address of the host responding to the PING (ICMP ECHO) request. This may or may not be the host used in ping_host.

This property is read-only.

response_status Property

This property includes the status of the last PING response.

Syntax

def get_response_status() -> str: ...

response_status = property(get_response_status, None)

Default Value

""

Remarks

This property contains the status of the last response. After ping_host has returned, this property will be populated with the status of the response. For responses without error, the value will be OK. In the case of an error, the value will hold a description of the error, such as Network Unreachable or Host Unreachable.

This property is read-only.

response_time Property

This property includes the time elapsed between sending the original packet and the remote host reply.

Syntax

def get_response_time() -> int: ...

response_time = property(get_response_time, None)

Default Value

0

Remarks

This property contains the time elapsed between sending the original packet and the remote host reply. The time value is expressed in milliseconds. The lowest resolution available depends on the resolution of the clock on the host system (normally between 10 ms and 20 ms).

This property is read-only.

timeout Property

This property includes the timeout for the class.

Syntax

def get_timeout() -> int: ...
def set_timeout(value: int) -> None: ...

timeout = property(get_timeout, set_timeout)

Default Value

60

Remarks

If the timeout property is set to 0, all operations return immediately, potentially failing with a WOULDBLOCK error if data cannot be sent immediately.

If timeout is set to a positive value, data is sent in a blocking manner and the class will wait for the operation to complete before returning control. The class will handle any potential WOULDBLOCK errors internally and automatically retry the operation for a maximum of timeout seconds.

The class will use do_events to enter an efficient wait loop during any potential waiting period, making sure that all system events are processed immediately as they arrive. This ensures that the host application does not freeze and remains responsive.

If timeout expires, and the operation is not yet complete, the class fails with an error.

Note: By default, all timeouts are inactivity timeouts, that is, the timeout period is extended by timeout seconds when any amount of data is successfully sent or received.

The default value for the timeout property is 60 seconds.

time_to_live Property

This property includes the time-to-live (TTL) value for the ICMP packets sent by the class.

Syntax

def get_time_to_live() -> int: ...
def set_time_to_live(value: int) -> None: ...

time_to_live = property(get_time_to_live, set_time_to_live)

Default Value

0

Remarks

This method contains the time-to-live (TTL) value for the ICMP packets sent by the class. The TTL field of the ICMP packet is a counter limiting the lifetime of a packet.

Each router (or other module) that handles a packet decrements the TTL field by one or more if it holds the packet for more than one second. Thus, the TTL value is effectively a hop count limit on how far a datagram can propagate through the internet. When the TTL value is reduced to zero (or less), the packet is discarded.

If the value of the property is set to zero, then the default TTL value of the underlying Transmission Control Protocol (TCP)/IP subsystem will be used.

type_of_service Property

This property includes the type of ICMP message sent as a ping request.

Syntax

def get_type_of_service() -> int: ...
def set_type_of_service(value: int) -> None: ...

type_of_service = property(get_type_of_service, set_type_of_service)

Default Value

8

Remarks

This property contains the type of the ICMP message sent as a ping request. The default value is 8 (ECHO REQUEST).

activate Method

This method enables sending and receiving data.

Syntax

def activate() -> None: ...

Remarks

This method enables sending and receiving of data.

Note: Calling the ping_host method will automatically activate the class.

config Method

Sets or retrieves a configuration setting.

Syntax

def config(configuration_string: str) -> str: ...

Remarks

config is a generic method available in every class. It is used to set and retrieve configuration settings for the class.

These settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the config method.

To set a configuration setting named PROPERTY, you must call Config("PROPERTY=VALUE"), where VALUE is the value of the setting expressed as a string. For boolean values, use the strings "True", "False", "0", "1", "Yes", or "No" (case does not matter).

To read (query) the value of a configuration setting, you must call Config("PROPERTY"). The value will be returned as a string.

deactivate Method

This method disables sending and receiving data.

Syntax

def deactivate() -> None: ...

Remarks

This method disables sending and receiving data.

do_events Method

This method processes events from the internal message queue.

Syntax

def do_events() -> None: ...

Remarks

When do_events is called, the class processes any available events. If no events are available, it waits for a preset period of time, and then returns.

interrupt Method

This method interrupts the current method.

Syntax

def interrupt() -> None: ...

Remarks

If there is no method in progress, interrupt simply returns, doing nothing.

ping_host Method

This method pings a host.

Syntax

def ping_host(host: str) -> None: ...

Remarks

This method will ping a host. A valid internet domain name or address must be specified in Host, or an error will be returned.

A PING request (ICMP ECHO) is sent to the Host.

Example. Ping a Host:

PingControl.PingHost("MyHostName") ResponseTime = PingControl.ResponseTime

reset Method

This method will reset the class.

Syntax

def reset() -> None: ...

Remarks

This method will reset the class's properties to their default values.

resolve_remote_host Method

This method resolves the hostname in RemoteHost to an IP address.

Syntax

def resolve_remote_host() -> None: ...

Remarks

This method resolves the hostname specified by remote_host to an IP address. The resolved value is available in the remote_host property after this method returns.

In most cases, calling this method is not necessary; the class will resolve the hostname automatically when needed. If DelayHostResolution is True, this method may be called to manually resolve remote_host, if desired.

wake_on_lan Method

This method sends a Wake-On-LAN packet.

Syntax

def wake_on_lan(remote_host: str, mac_address: str) -> None: ...

Remarks

When this method is called, a Wake-On-LAN packet is sent to RemoteHost (which may also be a broadcast address). This has the effect of powering on the machine (if such functionality is supported by the network card on the remote machine).

The physical address of the remote host must be supplied in the MACAddress parameter.

on_error Event

Fired when information is available about errors during data delivery.

Syntax

class PingErrorEventParams(object):
  @property
  def error_code() -> int: ...

  @property
  def description() -> str: ...

# In class Ping:
@property
def on_error() -> Callable[[PingErrorEventParams], None]: ...
@on_error.setter
def on_error(event_hook: Callable[[PingErrorEventParams], None]) -> None: ...

Remarks

The on_error event is fired in case of exceptional conditions during message processing. Normally the class fails with an error.

The ErrorCode parameter contains an error code, and the Description parameter contains a textual description of the error. For a list of valid error codes and their descriptions, please refer to the Error Codes section.

on_response Event

This event is fired when a response packet is received.

Syntax

class PingResponseEventParams(object):
  @property
  def request_id() -> int: ...

  @property
  def response_source() -> str: ...

  @property
  def response_status() -> str: ...

  @property
  def response_time() -> int: ...

# In class Ping:
@property
def on_response() -> Callable[[PingResponseEventParams], None]: ...
@on_response.setter
def on_response(event_hook: Callable[[PingResponseEventParams], None]) -> None: ...

Remarks

The RequestId parameter is used along with the request_id property to match requests with responses.

ResponseStatus is set to OK for normal operation, or it contains an error string, such as Network unreachable or Host unreachable.

Ping Config Settings

The class accepts one or more of the following configuration settings. Configuration settings are similar in functionality to properties, but they are rarely used. In order to avoid "polluting" the property namespace of the class, access to these internal properties is provided through the config method.

Ping Config Settings

ICMP Config Settings

Socket Config Settings

Base Config Settings

Ping Errors

Ping Errors

The class may also return one of the following error codes, which are inherited from other classes.

ICMP Errors

SSL Errors

TCP/IP Errors