Push notifications are nothing new but they are an essential component of the modern technology landscape. They allow apps and services to send notifications to your mobile devices.
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image-5.png)
A few years I was looking for a way to improve my Python development skills but also for a way to 'announce' when a Linux system had booted. I wrote bootlace to solve this problem using Pushover.net.
Usage
To use bootlace you'll need Python installed as well as the contents of requirements.yaml
.
git clone https://github.com/IronicBadger/bootlace.git
cd bootlace
pip install -r requirements.txt
Once installed, send a message using your Pushover API user and application tokens. For example:
python bootlace.py -m "Message content" -t "Application token" -u "Pushover user token" -d "Override device name" -T "Override notification title"
Pushover Tokens
Two tokens are required to use the Pushover API. The first is an application specific token. Begin by clicking Create an Application/API token
.
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image.png)
Next, fill out the information you want to provide for the application and find yourself a nice icon.
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image-1.png)
Then copy your application API Token/Key for use by bootlace.
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image-2.png)
Finally, on the main page take note of your User Key.
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image-3.png)
Configure bootlace to run at reboot
Using cron we can run bootlace when the server reboots. First create a simple shell script to execute bootlace and save it as bootlace.sh
somewhere. This example uses /home/alex/bootlace.sh
.
#!/bin/bash
/usr/bin/python3 /home/alex/scripts/bootlace/bootlace.py -m "server booted" -t apptoken -u usertoken
Then add the task to cron.
@reboot /bin/bash /home/alex/bootlace.sh > /dev/null 2>&1
Then, reboot the server and...
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/IMAGE-2020-07-27-10-33-59.jpg)
Wrap-up
I've used bootlace for 6 years at this point for my own needs. However when writing this article I noticed that Pushover now provide examples for calling their API via curl and numerous other means. If you'd prefer not to have Python, you have another option!
![](https://blog.ktz.me/content/images/2020/07/image-4.png)
Good luck and please feel free to ask any questions over on Discord at https://selfhosted.show/discord. I'm there as @alexktz and on Twitter @IronicBadger.
Another interesting option that @Roxedus just made me aware of over on Discord is Apprise. A single interface for multiple notification services.
Consider giving my podcast a listen over at selfhosted.show if you found this interesting. Thanks!