geocat auotomatized upload Script

This project automates the upload of XML and MEF (.zip) metadata records to the geocat.ch (GeoNetwork) API.

Features

• Authenticates to the geocat API using username and password.
• Automatically uploads all .xml and .zip (MEF) files from a specified folder to the API.
• For MEF files, can validate and/or publish the metadata after upload, depending on parameters.
• Detailed logging of operations and errors.

Requirements

• Python 3.8+
• A geocat.ch user account with write permissions on the target group.
• Python dependencies:
  • requests
  • python-dotenv (if you use a .env file for credentials)

Installation

1. Clone the repository or copy the files into a folder.

2. Install dependencies:

   pip install requests python-dotenv

3. Configure parameters in config.py and .env:

   • .env:

     GEOCAT_USERNAME=your_username
     GEOCAT_PASSWORD=your_password
     PROXY_HTTP=
     PROXY_HTTPS=
     

   • config.py: adjust paths, group, and other parameters as needed.

4. Place your XML and MEF files to upload in the folder defined by PATH_TO_MD_FILES in config.py.

Usage

Simply run:

python main.py

The script will:

• Check if the target folder exists.
• Authenticate the user.
• Upload each .xml file as metadata.
• Upload each .zip file as MEF, then:
  • Validate the metadata if PARAMETER_VALIDATION is set to "True".
  • Publish the metadata if PARAMETER_PUBLICATION is set to "True".

Automation

On Linux

Use cron to run the script at regular intervals:

crontab -e

Add for example:

0 * * * * /usr/bin/python3 /path/to/main.py >> /path/to/cron.log 2>&1

On Windows

Use the Task Scheduler to run the script automatically (see Windows documentation).

Customization

• Target group: edit PARAMETER_GROUP in config.py.
• Upload parameters: adjust PARAMETER_VALIDATION and PARAMETER_PUBLICATION in config.py to control MEF validation and publication.
• Proxy settings: leave PROXY_HTTP and PROXY_HTTPS empty if not needed.

Project Structure

.
├── main.py
├── upload_md.py
├── config.py
├── .env
└── [XML/MEF folder]

Logging

Logs are displayed in the console. To redirect them to a file, run:

python main.py >> log.txt 2>&1

Authors

Script adapted and automated for geocat.ch by swisstopo.

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Note:

• The script will process all .xml and .zip files in the target folder.
• For MEF files, validation and publication are controlled by the parameters in config.py.
• Make sure your user has the necessary permissions on the target group.