You have different ways to get what you want by PyQGIS Console:

1. Aragon's suggestion;
2. by using QgsGeometryAnalyzer class:

from qgis.utils import iface from qgis.analysis import QgsGeometryAnalyzer mc = iface.mapCanvas() layer = mc.activeLayer() QgsGeometryAnalyzer().buffer(layer, "path_to/output.shp", 500, False, False, -1) 

3. by using Sextante class:

from sextante.core.Sextante import Sextante Sextante.runalg("ftools:fixeddistancebuffer","input_path.shp", False, 500, 5, True, "output_path_buffer.shp") 

To get the sextante parameters type Sextante.alghelp("ftools:fixeddistancebuffer") in PyQGIS Console.

Hope this helps !

You have different ways to get what you want by PyQGIS Console:

1. Aragon's suggestion;
2. by using QgsGeometryAnalyzer class:

from qgis.utils import iface from qgis.analysis import QgsGeometryAnalyzer mc = iface.mapCanvas() layer = mc.currentLayer() QgsGeometryAnalyzer().buffer(layer, "path_to/output.shp", 500, False, False, -1) 

3. by using Sextante class:

from sextante.core.Sextante import Sextante Sextante.runalg("ftools:fixeddistancebuffer","input_path.shp", False, 500, 5, True, "output_path_buffer.shp") 

To get the sextante parameters type Sextante.alghelp("ftools:fixeddistancebuffer") in PyQGIS Console.

Hope this helps !