Option Setting Locations

The get_location() method of ConfigOpts can be used to determine where the value for an option was set, either by the user or by the application code. The return value is a LocationInfo instance, which includes 2 fields: location and detail.

The location value is a member of the Locations enum, which has 5 possible values. The detail value is a string describing the location. Its value depends on the location.

Value	is_user_controlled	Description	detail
opt_default	False	The original default set when the option was defined.	The source file name where the option is defined.
set_default	False	A default value set by the application as an override of the original default. This usually only applies to options defined in libraries.	The source file name where set_default() or set_defaults() was called.
set_override	False	A forced value set by the application.	The source file name where set_override() was called.
user	True	A value set by the user through a configuration backend such as a file.	The configuration file where the option is set.
command_line	True	A value set by the user on the command line.	Empty string.
environment	True	A value set by the user in the process environment.	The name of the environment variable.

Did a user set a configuration option?

Each Locations enum value has a boolean property indicating whether that type of location is managed by the user. This eliminates the need for application code to track which types of locations are user-controlled separately.

loc = CONF.get_location('normal_opt').location
if loc.is_user_controlled:
   print('normal_opt was set by the user')
else:
   print('normal_opt was set by the application')