simple non-blocking asynchronous web server to serve help docs since sphinx search doesn't work on google chrome otherwise

help_server.py

# -*- coding: utf-8 -*-

"""
Starts the help server so that Sphinx search works even in Google Chrome.
"""

import SimpleHTTPServer
import SocketServer
from threading import Thread
from Queue import Queue
import os
import logging

DOCS, PORT = os.path.join('path','to','docs'), 8000

# basic logging configuration
log_fmt = '[%(levelname)s] (%(threadName)-10s) %(message)s'
logging.basicConfig(level=logging.DEBUG, format=log_fmt)


class ThreadedTCPServer(SocketServer.ThreadingMixIn, SocketServer.TCPServer):
    pass


def help_server(server_queue):
    # use SimpleHTTPServer
    os.chdir(DOCS)
    Handler = SimpleHTTPServer.SimpleHTTPRequestHandler
    server = ThreadedTCPServer(("", PORT), Handler)
    logging.debug("serving at port %d", PORT)
    server_queue.put(server)
    server.serve_forever()


def start_help_server():
    server_queue = Queue()
    # Start a thread with the server -- that thread will then start one
    # more thread for each request
    server_thread = Thread(target=help_server, args=[server_queue])
    # Exit the server thread when the main thread terminates
    server_thread.daemon = True
    server_thread.start()
    logging.debug("Server loop running in thread: %s", server_thread.name)
    return server_queue.get()


def shutdown_help_server(server):
    logging.debug("Shutdown help server")
    server.shutdown()