How to get python version in shell script?

Question

Objective: to get python version in shell script

Observation:

[root@srvr0 ~]# python --version
Python 2.7.5

Code:

export python_version=`python --version`
echo "\$python_version=$python_version"

Expected:

$python_version=Python 2.7.5

Actual:

$python_version=

Please help me getting python version in shell script.

Also note, some Linux distributions use different binary names for python and, e.g. python2. If you have a need for one or the other, it's worth checking how your distribution handles the naming. — David C. Rankin
– David C. Rankin, Commented Feb 22, 2020 at 2:56

tink · Accepted Answer · 2021-08-19 20:44:51Z

2

the --version writes to stderr, so:

export python_version=$(python --version 2>&1)

tink

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answered Feb 22, 2020 at 2:17

L. Scott Johnson

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Comments

Durgan · Accepted Answer · 2021-08-19 20:33:52Z

0

The command output being in stderr rather than stdout really tripped me up for a while; definitely wasn't expected behavior for me.

Anyways, if anyone comes here trying to do this on Windows, you can do this:

for /f "USEBACKQ tokens=2" %G in (`"python --version 2>&1"`) do set pyVersion=%G

You'll then have a string like '2.7.18' in the pyVersion variable. Remember to expand %G to %%G if using it within a batch script.

answered Aug 19, 2021 at 20:33

Durgan

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