Python Automation – Automate Repetitive Tasks

File Automation with pathlib

from pathlib import Path
import shutil

downloads = Path.home() / "Downloads"
categories = {
    ".pdf": "Documents",
    ".jpg": "Images", ".jpeg": "Images", ".png": "Images",
    ".mp4": "Videos",
    ".zip": "Archives",
}

for file in downloads.iterdir():
    if file.is_file() and file.suffix.lower() in categories:
        dest_dir = downloads / categories[file.suffix.lower()]
        dest_dir.mkdir(exist_ok=True)
        shutil.move(str(file), dest_dir / file.name)
        print(f"Moved {file.name}")

Scheduling Tasks

import schedule
import time

def daily_report():
    print("Generating report...")

schedule.every().day.at("09:00").do(daily_report)
schedule.every().hour.do(lambda: print("Heartbeat"))

while True:
    schedule.run_pending()
    time.sleep(60)

Sending Emails

import smtplib
from email.mime.text import MIMEText
from email.mime.multipart import MIMEMultipart

def send_email(to, subject, body, smtp_pass):
    msg = MIMEMultipart()
    msg["From"] = "you@gmail.com"
    msg["To"] = to
    msg["Subject"] = subject
    msg.attach(MIMEText(body, "html"))
    with smtplib.SMTP_SSL("smtp.gmail.com", 465) as server:
        server.login("you@gmail.com", smtp_pass)
        server.sendmail("you@gmail.com", to, msg.as_string())

Excel with openpyxl

import openpyxl
from openpyxl.styles import Font, PatternFill

wb = openpyxl.Workbook()
ws = wb.active
ws.title = "Report"

headers = ["Product", "Units", "Revenue"]
for col, h in enumerate(headers, 1):
    cell = ws.cell(row=1, column=col, value=h)
    cell.font = Font(bold=True)

data = [("Widget A", 150, 7500), ("Widget B", 230, 11500)]
for row_idx, row_data in enumerate(data, 2):
    for col_idx, value in enumerate(row_data, 1):
        ws.cell(row=row_idx, column=col_idx, value=value)

wb.save("report.xlsx")

Automation: Let Python Do the Boring Work

Automation is one of Python's most practical uses — replacing repetitive manual tasks (renaming files, sending reports, cleaning data) with a script you run once and reuse forever. The standard-library tools cover most needs.

from pathlib import Path

# rename every .txt in a folder to .md
for file in Path("notes").glob("*.txt"):
    file.rename(file.with_suffix(".md"))

Use pathlib, not string paths: Path("a") / "b" / "c.txt" builds paths that work on every OS, with methods like .glob(), .exists(), and .rename() — far cleaner than fragile os.path.join string juggling. Golden rule of destructive automation: a script that renames, moves, or deletes files can wreck data fast — test on a copy first, print what it would do (a dry run) before actually doing it, and back up. Scheduling: to run a script automatically (nightly cleanup, hourly report), register it with your OS scheduler (cron on Linux/macOS, Task Scheduler on Windows) rather than leaving a Python loop running. Use subprocess.run([...], check=True) to invoke other command-line tools safely.

Interview Questions on Automation

• What kinds of tasks are good candidates for automation with Python?
• Why is pathlib preferred over os.path for file work?
• How do you schedule recurring tasks in Python?
• What libraries help automate Excel or email?
• How do you make an automation script safe to run repeatedly (idempotent)?
• How do you handle errors so an automation does not silently fail?
• What is the difference between scheduling in-process and using cron / Task Scheduler?

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