Astrometry not working with crontab

[Elif Şafak]

Hi

I use astrometry in python codes. When I run these python codes in terminal, astrometry works fine. But when I run python codes with crontab, astrometry doesn't work and no new files are created, and I don't get any errors.

What is the problem here?

[Hans]

Hi Elif,

That is almost certainly an environment variable issue.

Can you share your exact crontab line(s) ? We can work from there.

-- Hans

[Şafak]

Hi Hans,

Program running on the crontab like this:

    30 06 * * * python3 /mydir/program.py

And in python codes(program.py), astrometry runs like this:

    os.system("solve-field ........")

20 Şubat 2020 Perşembe 01:07:56 UTC+3 tarihinde Hans yazdı:

[Dustin Lang]

Hi,

When run in crontab, it is probably running as the 'root' user -- so none of your environment variables or anything from your ~/.bashrc or any other init files will get read -- so if you set PATH or PYTHONPATH or anything for your user, they will *not* be set for the root user.  Try logging in as root and try running your commands there.

cheers,

--dustin

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[Şafak]

Actually other processes in the program are working but only astrometry not working.

crontab line written in "sudo crontab -e "

[Russell Valentine]

It is probably the PATH variable.

In your crontab you can send the values of all your environment
variables to a file. You can do the same when you are logged in and
compare the two.

1 1 * * * /usr/bin/env > cron_env

Can change the hour and minute to run value so it runs soon

/usr/bin/env > login_env

diff cron_env login_env

https://serverfault.com/questions/449651/why-is-my-crontab-not-working-and-how-can-i-troubleshoot-it

[Şafak]

I created a log and finally got the full error text. I hope it is enough for this solution:

solve-field.c:148:append_executable Error, couldn't find executable "astrometry-engine"

Also i checked crontab and it works as root. Problem is not user related.

21 Şubat 2020 Cuma 20:20:20 UTC+3 tarihinde Russell Valentine yazdı:

[Dustin Lang]

Where have you installed the astrometry code?

which solve-field

which astrometry-engine

?

astrometry-engine is the program that solve-field runs to actually do the solving.  Solve-field should look for astrometry-engine in the same directory, or search $PATH.  So you can set the PATH environment variable, but if it's in the same directory as solve-field, it should just work.

cheers,

--dustin

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[ŞAFAK]

Hi,

astrometry.net directory in my desktop. 

Thank you Dustin i figured out where the error originated, but should I move all the folders into the /usr/ folder?: include, bin, data, examples, etc, doc, share.

25 Şubat 2020 Salı 14:57:47 UTC+3 tarihinde Dustin Lang yazdı:

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[Dustin Lang]

You can do that via "make install INSTALL_DIR=/usr/local" , which is the normal way to install the code.

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[ŞAFAK]

In addition, solve-field in the /usr/bin folder.

4 Mart 2020 Çarşamba 23:01:44 UTC+3 tarihinde ŞAFAK yazdı:

[Jan-Benedict Glaw]

On Wed, 2020-03-04 12:01:44 -0800, ŞAFAK <elif...@ogr.iu.edu.tr> wrote:
> Hi,
> astrometry.net directory in my desktop.
>
> Thank you Dustin i figured out where the error originated, but should I

> move all the folders into the /usr/ folder?: *include, bin, data, examples,
> etc, doc, share.*

Please don't!

The point is that when called from cron, you don't have your usual
environment variables set.

This includes the $PATH variables which contains, colon-separated,
the pathes where programs are searched for. In crontabs, you can even
set these variables (see "man 5 crontab"). This is why you were
suggested to run the `env' command from your command line as well as
through cron to spot the differences. Most likely, you're good off by
setting PATH and any python related stuff (look for variables starting
with "PY".)

You should NOT copy or move your hand-compiled tools to /usr etc.
These directories are for regularly installes programs (those that
were installed through your package manager.) Either set $PATH
correct, or if you really would like to "install" your personal
binaries into the system, use /usr/local for locally-built stuff.

MfG, JBG

--

[ŞAFAK]

i do that in my astrometry.net/bin directory:

export PATH=$PATH:"/home/ist60cal/astrometry.net/bin"

But crontab not found astrometry-engine

In which folder i should do INSTALL_DIR ?

4 Mart 2020 Çarşamba 23:14:16 UTC+3 tarihinde Jan-Benedict Glaw yazdı:

[Jan-Benedict Glaw]

On Wed, 2020-03-04 13:04:24 -0800, ŞAFAK <elif...@ogr.iu.edu.tr> wrote:
> i do that in my astrometry.net/bin directory:
>
> export PATH=$PATH:"/home/ist60cal/astrometry.net/bin"
>
> But crontab not found astrometry-engine

So your crontab should probably look like this:

======================================
PATH=/bin:/usr/bin:/home/ist60cal/astrometry.net/bin

* * * * * .....
======================================

So it ships its own PATH!

MfG, JBG

--

[Şafak]

"make install "command not working but it worked when i showed it together through solve-field in command. 

But now I'm getting a different error. The program is still running in the terminal but it gives this error even though it sees the path in crontab:

Command failed: an-fitstopnm -i /tmp/tmp.uncompressed.O8X2l6 > /tmp/tmp6GDnFp.pnm

augment-xylist.c:590:backtick Failed to run command: /home/astrometry.net/bin/image2pnm --infile /dir/2020_02_17__23_41_52__1600_600.fits.gz --uncompressed-outfile /tmp/tmp.uncompressed.O8X2l6 --outfile /tmp/tmp.ppm.f4zv0D --ppm --mydir /home/astrometry.net/bin/solve-field

 ioutils.c:567:run_command_get_outputs Command failed: return value 255

Reading input file 1 of 1: "/dir/2020_02_17__23_41_52__1600_900.fits.gz"...

sh: 1: an-fitstopnm: not found

4 Mart 2020 Çarşamba 23:10:47 UTC+3 tarihinde Dustin Lang yazdı:

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[Russell Valentine]

Run:

which an-fitstopnm

Is that in the contabs path?

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[Şafak]

No, it's in "astrometry.net/bin"

[Dustin Lang]

This just should not be complicated.

"make install INSTALL_DIR=somewhere".

Add "somewhere" to the PATH variable before running solve-field.

That's it.

cheers,

--dustin

On Fri, Mar 13, 2020 at 9:17 PM Şafak <esafa...@gmail.com> wrote:

No, it's in "astrometry.net/bin"

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