Installing

Install with pip

$ pip install pyrad2

Install with uv

$ uv add pyrad2

How does pyrad2 work

pyrad2 allows you to build servers and clients for the RADIUS protocol.

It is not meant to be a standalone implementation like FreeRADIUS, but rather as a tool to allow you to build your own server and client.

RADIUS Concepts

Dictionary

For the purpose of using pyrad2, the most important concept is the Dictionary. The dictionary is an actual file on the filesystem.

Note

Dictionary files are textfiles with one command per line.

RADIUS uses dictionaries to define the attributes that can be used in packets. The Dictionary class stores the attribute definitions from one or more dictionary files and allows Server/Client to understand what an attribute code means.

Here's an example of how it looks:

ATTRIBUTE   User-Name           1   string
ATTRIBUTE   User-Password       2   string
ATTRIBUTE   CHAP-Password       3   octets

You can find a reference dictionary file here. Another dictionary is provided here with FreeRADIUS vendor-specific attributes.

For our example, download both files and place it into your project folder.

When you see code like this:

Loading a dictionary

dictfile = dictionary.Dictionary("dictionary")

You are actually passing a path to a file (or a file-like object) called dictionary, so make sure the file you pass is accessible from your code and it's a valid dictionary file.