Running separate code while a socket server is running?

How can I have a socket server running that accepts incoming connections and deals with that part of the code, while not having code waiting for new connections stuck in that same loop?

I am just starting trying to learn. Would a TCP Handler be useful?

I just need some simple examples on this topic. I'm wanting something like having a commands portion in the server. So i can do certain things while the server is running.

EDIT: What I'm trying to do:

1 - TCP server for multiple clients
2 - Respond to more than one at a time when needed
3 - Text input availability at all time, to be used for getting/setting info
4 - A simple way to get/save client address info. Currently using a list to save them.

Solution

Python has builtin support of asynchronous socket handling in asyncore module (http://docs.python.org/library/asyncore.html).

Asynchronous socket handling means that You have to execute at least one iteration of socket processing loop inside Your code (main loop):

asyncore.loop(count=1)

Example taken from documentation:

import asyncore
import socket

class EchoHandler(asyncore.dispatcher_with_send):

    def handle_read(self):
        data = self.recv(8192)
        if data:
            self.send(data)

class EchoServer(asyncore.dispatcher):

    def __init__(self, host, port):
        asyncore.dispatcher.__init__(self)
        self.create_socket(socket.AF_INET, socket.SOCK_STREAM)
        self.set_reuse_addr()
        self.bind((host, port))
        self.listen(5)

    def handle_accept(self):
        pair = self.accept()
        if pair is None:
            pass
        else:
            sock, addr = pair
            print('Incoming connection from %s' % repr(addr))
            handler = EchoHandler(sock)

server = EchoServer('localhost', 8080)
# Note that here loop is infinite (count is not given)
asyncore.loop()

Each time the socket accepts the connection handle_accept is called by the loop. Each time the data is available to read from socket handle_read is called and so on.

You can use both TCP and UDP sockets in this manner.