Pyectool

Pyectool is a Python package with C++ bindings for interacting with the Embedded Controller (EC) on ChromeOS and Framework devices. It is extracted from and based on ectool utility, and exposes EC control functions directly to Python programs via a native extension.

Features

• Python bindings for EC functionality using pybind11.
• Supports fan duty control, temperature reading, AC power status, and more.
• Designed for integration with hardware management or fan control tools.
• Shared core logic with libectool for C/C++ integration.

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Build & Install (Python Package)

We use scikit-build-core to build the C++ extension via CMake.

Prerequisites

Install the required system dependencies:

sudo apt update
sudo apt install -y libusb-1.0-0-dev libftdi1-dev pkg-config

Clone the repository

Install system-wide

sudo pip install .

Or:

sudo env "PIP_BREAK_SYSTEM_PACKAGES=1" pip install .

(Required on modern distros like Ubuntu 24.04 due to PEP 668.)

Test from outside the repo dir

After installing, do not run Python from the libectool/ directory, since it contains a pyectool/ folder that may shadow the installed package.

Instead, test from another location, e.g.:

cd ..
sudo python -c "import pyectool; print(pyectool.is_on_ac())"

VENV INSTALLATION

If you don’t want to touch system Python:

Create venv

python3 -m venv ~/.venv/pyectool
source ~/.venv/pyectool/bin/activate

Install your package

Inside the venv:

pip install .

Test from outside the repo dir

cd ..
sudo env "PATH=$PATH" python -c "import pyectool; print(pyectool.is_on_ac())" 

Available Functions

Function	Description
auto_fan_control()	Enables automatic fan control by the EC.
get_max_non_battery_temperature() -> float	Returns the highest temperature (in °C) from all sensors except the battery.
get_max_temperature() -> float	Returns the highest temperature (in °C) from all EC sensors including battery.
is_on_ac() -> bool	Checks whether the device is running on AC power.
set_fan_duty(percent: int)	Sets the fan duty cycle manually (0–100%).