multithread_sketch.py

def do_one_device(this_thread):
    device_info = this_thread.device

    # ... whatever we need, including starting a subprocesses and waiting for it

class DeviceThread(threading.Thread):
    def __init__(self, result_queue, device):
        super(LoadConfigThread, self).__init__(**kwargs)
        self.result_queue         = result_queue
        self.device               = device

    def run(self):
        try:
            do_one_device(self)
        except Exception as e:
            self.result_queue.put((self.device, e))
        else:
            self.result_queue.put((self.device, "a-ok"))

def _multithreaded_device_fiddling(devices):
    """Create one thread for each device.  Each thread fiddles the device,
    and "returns" (that is, enqueues) the result, which is either an
    exception or a string; we write each such result into a "summary"
    file.

    """

    result_queue = Queue.Queue()
    threads = []

    for device in devices:
        t = DeviceThread(result_queue,
                         device)

        threads.append(t)

    for t in threads:
        t.daemon = True
        t.start()

    for t in threads:
        t.join()

    exceptions = 0
    while True:
        try:
            device_name, result = result_queue.get(block=False)
            if isinstance(result, Exception):
                exceptions += 1
            result_by_device[device_name] = result
        except Queue.Empty:
            break

    return result_by_device

def main():
    _multithreaded_device_fiddling(config_ID, rack_id, rack_password, track, zmq_topic, zmq_url, reset_only=reset_only)