API

Sphinx-Needs provides an open API for other sphinx-extensions to provide specific need-types, create needs or make usage of the filter possibilities.

The API is designed to allow the injection of extra configuration. The overall manipulation (e.g remove need types) is not supported to keep the final configuration transparent for the Sphinx project authors.

For some implementation ideas, take a look into the Sphinx extension Sphinx-Test-Reports and its source code.

Configuration

API to get or add specific sphinx needs configuration parameters.

All functions here are available under sphinxcontrib.api. So do not import this module directly.

add_dynamic_function(app, function, name=None)

Registers a new dynamic function for sphinx-needs.

If name is not given, the name to call the function is automatically taken from the provided function. The used name must be unique.

Usage:

from sphinxcontrib.needs.api import add_dynamic_function

def my_function(app, need, needs, *args, **kwargs):
    # Do magic here
    return "some data"

add_dynamic_function(app, my_function)

Read Dynamic functions for details about how to use dynamic functions.

Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object

  • function – Function to register

  • name – Name of the dynamic function as string

Returns

None

add_extra_option(app: sphinx.application.Sphinx, name: str)

Adds an extra option to the configuration. This option can then later be used inside needs or add_need.

Same impact as using needs_extra_options manually.

Usage:

from sphinxcontrib.needs.api import add_extra_option

add_extra_option(app, 'my_extra_option')
Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object

  • name – Name as string of the extra option

Returns

None

add_need_type(app: sphinx.application.Sphinx, directive: str, title: str, prefix, color='#ffffff', style='node')

Adds a new need_type to the configuration.

The given directive must no exist, otherwise NeedsApiConfigException gets raised.

Same impact as using needs_types manually.

Usage:

from sphinxcontrib.needs.api import add_need_type

add_need_type(app, 'awesome', 'Awesome', 'AW_', '#000000', 'cloud')
Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object

  • directive – Name of the directive, e.g. ‘story’

  • title – Long, human-readable title, e.g. ‘User-Story’

  • prefix – Prefix, if IDs get automatically generated. E.g.: 'US_'

  • color – Hex-color code used in needflow representation. Default: '#ffffff'

  • style – Plantuml-style for needflow representation. Default: ‘node’

Returns

None

add_warning(app, name, function=None, filter_string=None)

Registers a warning.

A warning can be based on the result of a given filter_string or an own defined function.

Parameters

  • app – Sphinx app object

  • name – Name as string for the warning

  • function – function to execute to check the warning

  • filter_string – filter_string to use for the warning

Returns

None

get_need_types(app: sphinx.application.Sphinx)

Returns a list of directive-names from all configured need_types.

Usage:

from sphinxcontrib.needs.api import get_need_types

all_types = get_need_types(app)
Parameters

app – Sphinx application object

Returns

list of strings

Need

add_external_need(app, need_type, title, id=None, external_url=None, external_css='external_link', content='', status=None, tags=None, links_string=None, **kwargs)

Adds an external need from an external source. This need does not have any representation in the current documentation project. However, it can be linked and filtered. It’s reference will open a link to another, external sphinx documentation project.

It return an empty list (without any nodes), so no nodes will be added to the document.

Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object.

  • need_type – Name of the need type to create.

  • title – String as title.

  • id – ID as string. If not given, a id will get generated.

  • external_url – URL as string, which shall be used as link to the original need source

  • content – Content as single string.

  • status – Status as string.

  • tags – Tags as single string.

  • links_string – Links as single string.

  • external_css – CSS class name as string, which is set for the <a> tag.

  • kwargs –

Returns

Empty list

add_need(app: sphinx.application.Sphinx, state, docname: str, lineno: int, need_type, title: str, id: Optional[str] = None, content: str = '', status: Optional[str] = None, tags=None, links_string: Optional[str] = None, hide=False, hide_tags=False, hide_status=False, collapse=None, style=None, layout=None, template=None, pre_template=None, post_template=None, is_external=False, external_url=None, external_css='external_link', **kwargs)

Creates a new need and returns its node.

add_need allows to create needs programmatically and use its returned node to be integrated in any docutils based structure.

kwags can contain options defined in needs_extra_options and needs_extra_links. If an entry is found in kwags, which is not specified in the configuration or registered e.g. via add_extra_option, an exception is raised.

If is_external is set to True, no node will be created. Instead the need is referencing an external url. Used mostly for needs_external_needs to integrate and reference needs from external documentation.

Usage:

Normally needs get created during handling of a specialised directive. So this pseudo-code shows how to use add_need inside such a directive.

from docutils.parsers.rst import Directive
from sphinxcontrib.needs.api import add_need

class MyDirective(Directive)
    # configs and init routine

    def run():
        main_section = []

        docname = self.state.document.settings.env.docname

        # All needed sphinx-internal information we can take from our current directive class.
        # e..g app, state, lineno
        main_section += add_need(self.env.app, self.state, docname, self.lineno,
                                 need_type="req", title="my title", id="ID_001"
                                 content=self.content)

        # Feel free to add custom stuff to main_section like sections, text, ...

        return main_section
Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object.

  • state – Current state object.

  • docname – documentation name.

  • lineno – line number.

  • need_type – Name of the need type to create.

  • title – String as title.

  • id – ID as string. If not given, a id will get generated.

  • content – Content as single string.

  • status – Status as string.

  • tags – Tags as single string.

  • links_string – Links as single string.

  • hide – boolean value.

  • hide_tags – boolean value. (Not used with Sphinx-Needs >0.5.0)

  • hide_status – boolean value. (Not used with Sphinx-Needs >0.5.0)

  • collapse – boolean value.

  • style – String value of class attribute of node.

  • layout – String value of layout definition to use

  • template – Template name to use for the content of this need

  • pre_template – Template name to use for content added before need

  • post_template – Template name to use for the content added after need

  • is_external – Is true, no node is created and need is referencing external url

  • external_url – URL as string, which is used as target if is_external is True

  • external_css – CSS class name as string, which is set for the <a> tag.

Returns

node

del_need(app, id)

Deletes an existing need.

Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object.

  • id – Sphinx need id.

make_hashed_id(app: sphinx.application.Sphinx, need_type: str, full_title, content, id_length=None)

Creates an ID based on title or need.

Also cares about the correct prefix, which is specified for each need type.

Parameters

  • app – Sphinx application object

  • need_type – name of the need directive, e.g. req

  • full_title – full title of the need

  • content – content of the need

  • id_length – maximum length of the generated ID

Returns

ID as string

Exceptions

exception NeedsApiConfigException

A configuration changes collides with the already provided configuration by the user.

Example: An extension wants to add an already existing needs_type.

exception NeedsApiConfigWarning
exception NeedsDuplicatedId
exception NeedsInvalidException
exception NeedsInvalidFilter
exception NeedsInvalidOption
exception NeedsNoIdException
exception NeedsNotLoadedException

Sphinx-Needs is not loaded. Therefore configuration parameters and functions are missing.

Make sure sphinxcontrib.needs is added to the``extension`` parameter of conf.py-

exception NeedsStatusNotAllowed
exception NeedsTagNotAllowed
exception NeedsTemplateException