What is the role of os.environ in Python?

In Python, os.environ is a dictionary that contains the current environment variables, allowing for access, modification, and manipulation of these variables. Specifically, os.environ can be used to retrieve system environment variable values, as well as to set, delete, and add new environment variables.

You can achieve the following functions by using os.environ:

1. To retrieve the value of an environment variable, you can do so by using the key name. For example, os.environ[‘PATH’] will retrieve the value of the PATH environment variable.
2. To change the value of an environment variable, you can use the key name to modify it, such as os.environ[‘PATH’] = ‘/new/path’ to update the value of the PATH environment variable to ‘/new/path’.
3. Remove an environment variable: You can use the ‘del’ keyword to delete an environment variable, for example ‘del os.environ[‘PATH’]’ can remove the PATH environment variable.
4. To add a new environment variable, you can use a key-value pair, such as os.environ[‘NEW_VAR’] = ‘new_value’, to add a variable named NEW_VAR.

In summary, os.environ provides a way to access and manipulate operating system environment variables in Python, allowing programs to perform different operations or configurations based on the environment variables.