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a0c0a00f 1BASH(1) General Commands Manual BASH(1)
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3
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5N\bNA\bAM\bME\bE
6 bash - GNU Bourne-Again SHell
7
8S\bSY\bYN\bNO\bOP\bPS\bSI\bIS\bS
ac50fbac 9 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh [options] [command_string | file]
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11C\bCO\bOP\bPY\bYR\bRI\bIG\bGH\bHT\bT
712f80b0 12 Bash is Copyright (C) 1989-2020 by the Free Software Foundation, Inc.
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13
14D\bDE\bES\bSC\bCR\bRI\bIP\bPT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN
15 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh is an s\bsh\bh-compatible command language interpreter that executes
16 commands read from the standard input or from a file. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh also incor-
17 porates useful features from the _\bK_\bo_\br_\bn and _\bC shells (k\bks\bsh\bh and c\bcs\bsh\bh).
18
19 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh is intended to be a conformant implementation of the Shell and
20 Utilities portion of the IEEE POSIX specification (IEEE Standard
21 1003.1). B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh can be configured to be POSIX-conformant by default.
22
23O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS
a0c0a00f 24 All of the single-character shell options documented in the description
d233b485 25 of the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command, including -\b-o\bo, can be used as options when
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26 the shell is invoked. In addition, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh interprets the following op-
27 tions when it is invoked:
17345e5a 28
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29 -\b-c\bc If the -\b-c\bc option is present, then commands are read from the
30 first non-option argument _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b__\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. If there are argu-
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31 ments after the _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b__\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg, the first argument is as-
32 signed to $\b$0\b0 and any remaining arguments are assigned to the
33 positional parameters. The assignment to $\b$0\b0 sets the name of
34 the shell, which is used in warning and error messages.
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35 -\b-i\bi If the -\b-i\bi option is present, the shell is _\bi_\bn_\bt_\be_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bv_\be.
36 -\b-l\bl Make b\bba\bas\bsh\bh act as if it had been invoked as a login shell (see
37 I\bIN\bNV\bVO\bOC\bCA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below).
712f80b0 38 -\b-r\br If the -\b-r\br option is present, the shell becomes _\br_\be_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bc_\bt_\be_\bd
17345e5a 39 (see R\bRE\bES\bST\bTR\bRI\bIC\bCT\bTE\bED\bD S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL below).
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40 -\b-s\bs If the -\b-s\bs option is present, or if no arguments remain after
41 option processing, then commands are read from the standard
42 input. This option allows the positional parameters to be
43 set when invoking an interactive shell or when reading input
d233b485 44 through a pipe.
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45 -\b-D\bD A list of all double-quoted strings preceded by $\b$ is printed
46 on the standard output. These are the strings that are sub-
17345e5a 47 ject to language translation when the current locale is not C\bC
712f80b0 48 or P\bPO\bOS\bSI\bIX\bX. This implies the -\b-n\bn option; no commands will be
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49 executed.
50 [\b[-\b-+\b+]\b]O\bO [\b[_\bs_\bh_\bo_\bp_\bt_\b__\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn]\b]
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51 _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bp_\bt_\b__\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn is one of the shell options accepted by the
52 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). If
17345e5a 53 _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bp_\bt_\b__\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn is present, -\b-O\bO sets the value of that option; +\b+O\bO
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54 unsets it. If _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bp_\bt_\b__\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn is not supplied, the names and
55 values of the shell options accepted by s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt are printed on
56 the standard output. If the invocation option is +\b+O\bO, the
a0c0a00f 57 output is displayed in a format that may be reused as input.
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58 -\b--\b- A -\b--\b- signals the end of options and disables further option
59 processing. Any arguments after the -\b--\b- are treated as file-
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60 names and arguments. An argument of -\b- is equivalent to -\b--\b-.
61
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62 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh also interprets a number of multi-character options. These op-
63 tions must appear on the command line before the single-character op-
64 tions to be recognized.
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65
66 -\b--\b-d\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bgg\bge\ber\br
67 Arrange for the debugger profile to be executed before the shell
712f80b0 68 starts. Turns on extended debugging mode (see the description
495aee44 69 of the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg option to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin below).
17345e5a 70 -\b--\b-d\bdu\bum\bmp\bp-\b-p\bpo\bo-\b-s\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bgs\bs
712f80b0 71 Equivalent to -\b-D\bD, but the output is in the GNU _\bg_\be_\bt_\bt_\be_\bx_\bt p\bpo\bo (por-
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72 table object) file format.
73 -\b--\b-d\bdu\bum\bmp\bp-\b-s\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bgs\bs
74 Equivalent to -\b-D\bD.
712f80b0 75 -\b--\b-h\bhe\bel\blp\bp Display a usage message on standard output and exit success-
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76 fully.
77 -\b--\b-i\bin\bni\bit\bt-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\be _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
78 -\b--\b-r\brc\bcf\bfi\bil\ble\be _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
79 Execute commands from _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be instead of the standard personal ini-
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80 tialization file _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc if the shell is interactive (see I\bIN\bN-\b-
81 V\bVO\bOC\bCA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below).
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82
83 -\b--\b-l\blo\bog\bgi\bin\bn
84 Equivalent to -\b-l\bl.
85
86 -\b--\b-n\bno\boe\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg
712f80b0 87 Do not use the GNU r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be library to read command lines when
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88 the shell is interactive.
89
90 -\b--\b-n\bno\bop\bpr\bro\bof\bfi\bil\ble\be
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91 Do not read either the system-wide startup file _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be or
92 any of the personal initialization files _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be,
93 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bl_\bo_\bg_\bi_\bn, or _\b~_\b/_\b._\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be. By default, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reads these
94 files when it is invoked as a login shell (see I\bIN\bNV\bVO\bOC\bCA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN be-
95 low).
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96
97 -\b--\b-n\bno\bor\brc\bc Do not read and execute the personal initialization file
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98 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc if the shell is interactive. This option is on by de-
99 fault if the shell is invoked as s\bsh\bh.
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100
101 -\b--\b-p\bpo\bos\bsi\bix\bx
712f80b0 102 Change the behavior of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh where the default operation differs
ac50fbac 103 from the POSIX standard to match the standard (_\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be). See
712f80b0 104 S\bSE\bEE\bE A\bAL\bLS\bSO\bO below for a reference to a document that details how
ac50fbac 105 posix mode affects bash's behavior.
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106
107 -\b--\b-r\bre\bes\bst\btr\bri\bic\bct\bte\bed\bd
108 The shell becomes restricted (see R\bRE\bES\bST\bTR\bRI\bIC\bCT\bTE\bED\bD S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL below).
109
110 -\b--\b-v\bve\ber\brb\bbo\bos\bse\be
a0c0a00f 111 Equivalent to -\b-v\bv.
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112
113 -\b--\b-v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn
712f80b0 114 Show version information for this instance of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh on the stan-
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115 dard output and exit successfully.
116
117A\bAR\bRG\bGU\bUM\bME\bEN\bNT\bTS\bS
118 If arguments remain after option processing, and neither the -\b-c\bc nor the
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119 -\b-s\bs option has been supplied, the first argument is assumed to be the
120 name of a file containing shell commands. If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is invoked in this
121 fashion, $\b$0\b0 is set to the name of the file, and the positional parame-
122 ters are set to the remaining arguments. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh reads and executes com-
123 mands from this file, then exits. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh's exit status is the exit sta-
124 tus of the last command executed in the script. If no commands are ex-
125 ecuted, the exit status is 0. An attempt is first made to open the
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126 file in the current directory, and, if no file is found, then the shell
127 searches the directories in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH for the script.
128
129I\bIN\bNV\bVO\bOC\bCA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN
712f80b0 130 A _\bl_\bo_\bg_\bi_\bn _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl is one whose first character of argument zero is a -\b-, or
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131 one started with the -\b--\b-l\blo\bog\bgi\bin\bn option.
132
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133 An _\bi_\bn_\bt_\be_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bv_\be shell is one started without non-option arguments (un-
134 less -\b-s\bs is specified) and without the -\b-c\bc option whose standard input
a0c0a00f 135 and error are both connected to terminals (as determined by _\bi_\bs_\ba_\bt_\bt_\by(3)),
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136 or one started with the -\b-i\bi option. P\bPS\bS1\b1 is set and $\b$-\b- includes i\bi if
137 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is interactive, allowing a shell script or a startup file to test
a0c0a00f 138 this state.
17345e5a 139
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140 The following paragraphs describe how b\bba\bas\bsh\bh executes its startup files.
141 If any of the files exist but cannot be read, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reports an error.
142 Tildes are expanded in filenames as described below under T\bTi\bil\bld\bde\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bn-\b-
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143 s\bsi\bio\bon\bn in the E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN section.
144
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145 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is invoked as an interactive login shell, or as a non-inter-
146 active shell with the -\b--\b-l\blo\bog\bgi\bin\bn option, it first reads and executes com-
147 mands from the file _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be, if that file exists. After reading
17345e5a 148 that file, it looks for _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be, _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bl_\bo_\bg_\bi_\bn, and _\b~_\b/_\b._\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be,
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149 in that order, and reads and executes commands from the first one that
150 exists and is readable. The -\b--\b-n\bno\bop\bpr\bro\bof\bfi\bil\ble\be option may be used when the
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151 shell is started to inhibit this behavior.
152
a0c0a00f 153 When an interactive login shell exits, or a non-interactive login shell
712f80b0 154 executes the e\bex\bxi\bit\bt builtin command, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reads and executes commands
a0c0a00f 155 from the file _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bl_\bo_\bg_\bo_\bu_\bt, if it exists.
17345e5a 156
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157 When an interactive shell that is not a login shell is started, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh
158 reads and executes commands from _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc, if that file exists. This
159 may be inhibited by using the -\b--\b-n\bno\bor\brc\bc option. The -\b--\b-r\brc\bcf\bfi\bil\ble\be _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be option
160 will force b\bba\bas\bsh\bh to read and execute commands from _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be instead of
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161 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc.
162
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163 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is started non-interactively, to run a shell script, for ex-
164 ample, it looks for the variable B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV in the environment, expands
165 its value if it appears there, and uses the expanded value as the name
166 of a file to read and execute. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh behaves as if the following com-
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167 mand were executed:
168 if [ -n "$BASH_ENV" ]; then . "$BASH_ENV"; fi
712f80b0 169 but the value of the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH variable is not used to search for the file-
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170 name.
171
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172 If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is invoked with the name s\bsh\bh, it tries to mimic the startup be-
173 havior of historical versions of s\bsh\bh as closely as possible, while con-
174 forming to the POSIX standard as well. When invoked as an interactive
175 login shell, or a non-interactive shell with the -\b--\b-l\blo\bog\bgi\bin\bn option, it
176 first attempts to read and execute commands from _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be and
177 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be, in that order. The -\b--\b-n\bno\bop\bpr\bro\bof\bfi\bil\ble\be option may be used to in-
178 hibit this behavior. When invoked as an interactive shell with the
179 name s\bsh\bh, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh looks for the variable E\bEN\bNV\bV, expands its value if it is
180 defined, and uses the expanded value as the name of a file to read and
17345e5a 181 execute. Since a shell invoked as s\bsh\bh does not attempt to read and exe-
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182 cute commands from any other startup files, the -\b--\b-r\brc\bcf\bfi\bil\ble\be option has no
183 effect. A non-interactive shell invoked with the name s\bsh\bh does not at-
184 tempt to read any other startup files. When invoked as s\bsh\bh, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh enters
185 _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx mode after the startup files are read.
17345e5a 186
712f80b0 187 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is started in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx mode, as with the -\b--\b-p\bpo\bos\bsi\bix\bx command line
17345e5a 188 option, it follows the POSIX standard for startup files. In this mode,
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189 interactive shells expand the E\bEN\bNV\bV variable and commands are read and
190 executed from the file whose name is the expanded value. No other
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191 startup files are read.
192
193 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh attempts to determine when it is being run with its standard input
495aee44 194 connected to a network connection, as when executed by the remote shell
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195 daemon, usually _\br_\bs_\bh_\bd, or the secure shell daemon _\bs_\bs_\bh_\bd. If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh deter-
196 mines it is being run in this fashion, it reads and executes commands
197 from _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc, if that file exists and is readable. It will not do
198 this if invoked as s\bsh\bh. The -\b--\b-n\bno\bor\brc\bc option may be used to inhibit this
199 behavior, and the -\b--\b-r\brc\bcf\bfi\bil\ble\be option may be used to force another file to
200 be read, but neither _\br_\bs_\bh_\bd nor _\bs_\bs_\bh_\bd generally invoke the shell with
ac50fbac 201 those options or allow them to be specified.
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202
203 If the shell is started with the effective user (group) id not equal to
204 the real user (group) id, and the -\b-p\bp option is not supplied, no startup
205 files are read, shell functions are not inherited from the environment,
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206 the S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bLO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS, B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS, C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, and G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE variables, if they ap-
207 pear in the environment, are ignored, and the effective user id is set
208 to the real user id. If the -\b-p\bp option is supplied at invocation, the
209 startup behavior is the same, but the effective user id is not reset.
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210
211D\bDE\bEF\bFI\bIN\bNI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS
d233b485 212 The following definitions are used throughout the rest of this docu-
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213 ment.
214 b\bbl\bla\ban\bnk\bk A space or tab.
d233b485 215 w\bwo\bor\brd\bd A sequence of characters considered as a single unit by the
17345e5a 216 shell. Also known as a t\bto\bok\bke\ben\bn.
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217 n\bna\bam\bme\be A _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd consisting only of alphanumeric characters and under-
218 scores, and beginning with an alphabetic character or an under-
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219 score. Also referred to as an i\bid\bde\ben\bnt\bti\bif\bfi\bie\ber\br.
220 m\bme\bet\bta\bac\bch\bha\bar\bra\bac\bct\bte\ber\br
d233b485 221 A character that, when unquoted, separates words. One of the
17345e5a 222 following:
a0c0a00f 223 |\b| &\b& ;\b; (\b( )\b) <\b< >\b> s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be t\bta\bab\bb n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be
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224 c\bco\bon\bnt\btr\bro\bol\bl o\bop\bpe\ber\bra\bat\bto\bor\br
225 A _\bt_\bo_\bk_\be_\bn that performs a control function. It is one of the fol-
226 lowing symbols:
a0c0a00f 227 |\b||\b| &\b& &\b&&\b& ;\b; ;\b;;\b; ;\b;&\b& ;\b;;\b;&\b& (\b( )\b) |\b| |\b|&\b& <\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b>
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228
229R\bRE\bES\bSE\bER\bRV\bVE\bED\bD W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDS\bS
230 _\bR_\be_\bs_\be_\br_\bv_\be_\bd _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bs are words that have a special meaning to the shell. The
231 following words are recognized as reserved when unquoted and either the
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232 first word of a command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR below), the third word of a
233 c\bca\bas\bse\be or s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt command (only i\bin\bn is valid), or the third word of a f\bfo\bor\br
234 command (only i\bin\bn and d\bdo\bo are valid):
17345e5a 235
712f80b0 236 !\b! c\bca\bas\bse\be c\bco\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bc d\bdo\bo d\bdo\bon\bne\be e\bel\bli\bif\bf e\bel\bls\bse\be e\bes\bsa\bac\bc f\bfi\bi f\bfo\bor\br f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn i\bif\bf i\bin\bn s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt
ac50fbac 237 t\bth\bhe\ben\bn u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be {\b{ }\b} t\bti\bim\bme\be [\b[[\b[ ]\b]]\b]
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238
239S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR
240 S\bSi\bim\bmp\bpl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs
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241 A _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is a sequence of optional variable assignments fol-
242 lowed by b\bbl\bla\ban\bnk\bk-separated words and redirections, and terminated by a
17345e5a 243 _\bc_\bo_\bn_\bt_\br_\bo_\bl _\bo_\bp_\be_\br_\ba_\bt_\bo_\br. The first word specifies the command to be executed,
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244 and is passed as argument zero. The remaining words are passed as ar-
245 guments to the invoked command.
17345e5a 246
712f80b0 247 The return value of a _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is its exit status, or 128+_\bn if
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248 the command is terminated by signal _\bn.
249
250 P\bPi\bip\bpe\bel\bli\bin\bne\bes\bs
712f80b0 251 A _\bp_\bi_\bp_\be_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be is a sequence of one or more commands separated by one of
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252 the control operators |\b| or |\b|&\b&. The format for a pipeline is:
253
254 [t\bti\bim\bme\be [-\b-p\bp]] [ ! ] _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [ [|\b|||\b|&\b&] _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2 ... ]
255
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256 The standard output of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is connected via a pipe to the standard
257 input of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2. This connection is performed before any redirec-
17345e5a 258 tions specified by the command (see R\bRE\bED\bDI\bIR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below). If |\b|&\b& is used,
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259 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd's standard error, in addition to its standard output, is con-
260 nected to _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2's standard input through the pipe; it is shorthand
261 for 2\b2>\b>&\b&1\b1 |\b|. This implicit redirection of the standard error to the
262 standard output is performed after any redirections specified by the
ac50fbac 263 command.
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264
265 The return status of a pipeline is the exit status of the last command,
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266 unless the p\bpi\bip\bpe\bef\bfa\bai\bil\bl option is enabled. If p\bpi\bip\bpe\bef\bfa\bai\bil\bl is enabled, the
267 pipeline's return status is the value of the last (rightmost) command
268 to exit with a non-zero status, or zero if all commands exit success-
17345e5a 269 fully. If the reserved word !\b! precedes a pipeline, the exit status of
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270 that pipeline is the logical negation of the exit status as described
271 above. The shell waits for all commands in the pipeline to terminate
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272 before returning a value.
273
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274 If the t\bti\bim\bme\be reserved word precedes a pipeline, the elapsed as well as
275 user and system time consumed by its execution are reported when the
276 pipeline terminates. The -\b-p\bp option changes the output format to that
277 specified by POSIX. When the shell is in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, it does not rec-
278 ognize t\bti\bim\bme\be as a reserved word if the next token begins with a `-'.
279 The T\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT variable may be set to a format string that specifies
280 how the timing information should be displayed; see the description of
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281 T\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT under S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl V\bVa\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs below.
282
283 When the shell is in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, t\bti\bim\bme\be may be followed by a newline. In
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284 this case, the shell displays the total user and system time consumed
285 by the shell and its children. The T\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT variable may be used to
495aee44 286 specify the format of the time information.
17345e5a 287
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288 Each command in a pipeline is executed as a separate process (i.e., in
289 a subshell). See C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN E\bEN\bNV\bVI\bIR\bRO\bON\bNM\bME\bEN\bNT\bT for a description of a
290 subshell environment. If the l\bla\bas\bst\btp\bpi\bip\bpe\be option is enabled using the
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291 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin (see the description of s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt below), the last element of
292 a pipeline may be run by the shell process.
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293
294 L\bLi\bis\bst\bts\bs
712f80b0 295 A _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is a sequence of one or more pipelines separated by one of the
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296 operators ;\b;, &\b&, &\b&&\b&, or |\b||\b|, and optionally terminated by one of ;\b;, &\b&, or
297 <\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b>.
298
299 Of these list operators, &\b&&\b& and |\b||\b| have equal precedence, followed by ;\b;
300 and &\b&, which have equal precedence.
301
712f80b0 302 A sequence of one or more newlines may appear in a _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt instead of a
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303 semicolon to delimit commands.
304
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305 If a command is terminated by the control operator &\b&, the shell exe-
306 cutes the command in the _\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk_\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd in a subshell. The shell does not
307 wait for the command to finish, and the return status is 0. These are
308 referred to as _\ba_\bs_\by_\bn_\bc_\bh_\br_\bo_\bn_\bo_\bu_\bs commands. Commands separated by a ;\b; are
d233b485 309 executed sequentially; the shell waits for each command to terminate in
712f80b0 310 turn. The return status is the exit status of the last command exe-
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311 cuted.
312
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313 AND and OR lists are sequences of one or more pipelines separated by
314 the &\b&&\b& and |\b||\b| control operators, respectively. AND and OR lists are
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315 executed with left associativity. An AND list has the form
316
317 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b1 &\b&&\b& _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2
318
712f80b0 319 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2 is executed if, and only if, _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b1 returns an exit status
d233b485 320 of zero (success).
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321
322 An OR list has the form
323
324 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b1 |\b||\b| _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2
325
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326 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b2 is executed if, and only if, _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd_\b1 returns a non-zero exit
327 status. The return status of AND and OR lists is the exit status of
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328 the last command executed in the list.
329
330 C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpo\bou\bun\bnd\bd C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs
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331 A _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is one of the following. In most cases a _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt in a
332 command's description may be separated from the rest of the command by
333 one or more newlines, and may be followed by a newline in place of a
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334 semicolon.
335
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336 (_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt) _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed in a subshell environment (see C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bU-\b-
337 T\bTI\bIO\bON\bN E\bEN\bNV\bVI\bIR\bRO\bON\bNM\bME\bEN\bNT\bT below). Variable assignments and builtin com-
338 mands that affect the shell's environment do not remain in ef-
339 fect after the command completes. The return status is the exit
340 status of _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt.
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341
342 { _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; }
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343 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is simply executed in the current shell environment. _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt
344 must be terminated with a newline or semicolon. This is known
345 as a _\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bp _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd. The return status is the exit status of
346 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt. Note that unlike the metacharacters (\b( and )\b), {\b{ and }\b} are
17345e5a 347 _\br_\be_\bs_\be_\br_\bv_\be_\bd _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bs and must occur where a reserved word is permitted
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348 to be recognized. Since they do not cause a word break, they
349 must be separated from _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt by whitespace or another shell
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350 metacharacter.
351
352 ((_\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn))
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353 The _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn is evaluated according to the rules described be-
354 low under A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN. If the value of the expression
355 is non-zero, the return status is 0; otherwise the return status
356 is 1. This is exactly equivalent to l\ble\bet\bt "\b"_\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn"\b".
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357
358 [\b[[\b[ _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn ]\b]]\b]
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359 Return a status of 0 or 1 depending on the evaluation of the
360 conditional expression _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn. Expressions are composed of
361 the primaries described below under C\bCO\bON\bND\bDI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNA\bAL\bL E\bEX\bXP\bPR\bRE\bES\bSS\bSI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS.
362 Word splitting and pathname expansion are not performed on the
363 words between the [\b[[\b[ and ]\b]]\b]; tilde expansion, parameter and
364 variable expansion, arithmetic expansion, command substitution,
365 process substitution, and quote removal are performed. Condi-
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366 tional operators such as -\b-f\bf must be unquoted to be recognized as
367 primaries.
368
712f80b0 369 When used with [\b[[\b[, the <\b< and >\b> operators sort lexicographically
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370 using the current locale.
371
712f80b0 372 When the =\b==\b= and !\b!=\b= operators are used, the string to the right
17345e5a 373 of the operator is considered a pattern and matched according to
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374 the rules described below under P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg, as if the e\bex\bxt\bt-\b-
375 g\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option were enabled. The =\b= operator is equivalent to
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376 =\b==\b=. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh shell option is enabled, the match is
377 performed without regard to the case of alphabetic characters.
378 The return value is 0 if the string matches (=\b==\b=) or does not
379 match (!\b!=\b=) the pattern, and 1 otherwise. Any part of the pat-
380 tern may be quoted to force the quoted portion to be matched as
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381 a string.
382
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383 An additional binary operator, =\b=~\b~, is available, with the same
384 precedence as =\b==\b= and !\b!=\b=. When it is used, the string to the
385 right of the operator is considered a POSIX extended regular ex-
386 pression and matched accordingly (using the POSIX _\br_\be_\bg_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp and
387 _\br_\be_\bg_\be_\bx_\be_\bc interfaces usually described in _\br_\be_\bg_\be_\bx(3)). The return
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388 value is 0 if the string matches the pattern, and 1 otherwise.
389 If the regular expression is syntactically incorrect, the condi-
390 tional expression's return value is 2. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh shell
391 option is enabled, the match is performed without regard to the
392 case of alphabetic characters. Any part of the pattern may be
393 quoted to force the quoted portion to be matched as a string.
394 Bracket expressions in regular expressions must be treated care-
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395 fully, since normal quoting characters lose their meanings be-
396 tween brackets. If the pattern is stored in a shell variable,
d233b485 397 quoting the variable expansion forces the entire pattern to be
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398 matched as a string.
399
400 The pattern will match if it matches any part of the string.
401 Anchor the pattern using the ^\b^ and $\b$ regular expression opera-
402 tors to force it to match the entire string. The array variable
403 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_R\bRE\bEM\bMA\bAT\bTC\bCH\bH records which parts of the string matched the pat-
404 tern. The element of B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_R\bRE\bEM\bMA\bAT\bTC\bCH\bH with index 0 contains the
405 portion of the string matching the entire regular expression.
406 Substrings matched by parenthesized subexpressions within the
407 regular expression are saved in the remaining B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_R\bRE\bEM\bMA\bAT\bTC\bCH\bH in-
408 dices. The element of B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_R\bRE\bEM\bMA\bAT\bTC\bCH\bH with index _\bn is the portion
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409 of the string matching the _\bnth parenthesized subexpression.
410
411 Expressions may be combined using the following operators,
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412 listed in decreasing order of precedence:
413
414 (\b( _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn )\b)
d233b485 415 Returns the value of _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn. This may be used to
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416 override the normal precedence of operators.
417 !\b! _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn
418 True if _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn is false.
419 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b1 &\b&&\b& _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b2
420 True if both _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b1 and _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b2 are true.
421 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b1 |\b||\b| _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b2
422 True if either _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b1 or _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b2 is true.
423
424 The &\b&&\b& and |\b||\b| operators do not evaluate _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b2 if the value
d233b485 425 of _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b1 is sufficient to determine the return value of
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426 the entire conditional expression.
427
0001803f 428 f\bfo\bor\br _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [ [ i\bin\bn [ _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd _\b._\b._\b. ] ] ; ] d\bdo\bo _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt ; d\bdo\bon\bne\be
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429 The list of words following i\bin\bn is expanded, generating a list of
430 items. The variable _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set to each element of this list in
d233b485 431 turn, and _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed each time. If the i\bin\bn _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is omit-
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432 ted, the f\bfo\bor\br command executes _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt once for each positional pa-
433 rameter that is set (see P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS below). The return status
d233b485 434 is the exit status of the last command that executes. If the
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435 expansion of the items following i\bin\bn results in an empty list, no
436 commands are executed, and the return status is 0.
437
438 f\bfo\bor\br (( _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 ; _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2 ; _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b3 )) ; d\bdo\bo _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt ; d\bdo\bon\bne\be
439 First, the arithmetic expression _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 is evaluated according to
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440 the rules described below under A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN. The
441 arithmetic expression _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2 is then evaluated repeatedly until
442 it evaluates to zero. Each time _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2 evaluates to a non-zero
443 value, _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed and the arithmetic expression _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b3 is
444 evaluated. If any expression is omitted, it behaves as if it
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445 evaluates to 1. The return value is the exit status of the last
446 command in _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt that is executed, or false if any of the expres-
447 sions is invalid.
448
449 s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [ i\bin\bn _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd ] ; d\bdo\bo _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt ; d\bdo\bon\bne\be
450 The list of words following i\bin\bn is expanded, generating a list of
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451 items. The set of expanded words is printed on the standard er-
452 ror, each preceded by a number. If the i\bin\bn _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is omitted, the
453 positional parameters are printed (see P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS below). The
454 P\bPS\bS3\b3 prompt is then displayed and a line read from the standard
455 input. If the line consists of a number corresponding to one of
456 the displayed words, then the value of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set to that word.
457 If the line is empty, the words and prompt are displayed again.
458 If EOF is read, the command completes. Any other value read
459 causes _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be to be set to null. The line read is saved in the
460 variable R\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY. The _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed after each selection until
461 a b\bbr\bre\bea\bak\bk command is executed. The exit status of s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt is the
462 exit status of the last command executed in _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt, or zero if no
463 commands were executed.
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464
465 c\bca\bas\bse\be _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd i\bin\bn [ [(] _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn [ |\b| _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn ] ... ) _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt ;; ] ... e\bes\bsa\bac\bc
466 A c\bca\bas\bse\be command first expands _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd, and tries to match it against
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467 each _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn in turn, using the matching rules described under
468 P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg below. The _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is expanded using tilde expan-
469 sion, parameter and variable expansion, arithmetic expansion,
470 command substitution, process substitution and quote removal.
471 Each _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn examined is expanded using tilde expansion, parame-
472 ter and variable expansion, arithmetic expansion, command sub-
473 stitution, and process substitution. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh shell
474 option is enabled, the match is performed without regard to the
475 case of alphabetic characters. When a match is found, the cor-
476 responding _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed. If the ;\b;;\b; operator is used, no
477 subsequent matches are attempted after the first pattern match.
478 Using ;\b;&\b& in place of ;\b;;\b; causes execution to continue with the
479 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt associated with the next set of patterns. Using ;\b;;\b;&\b& in
480 place of ;\b;;\b; causes the shell to test the next pattern list in
481 the statement, if any, and execute any associated _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt on a suc-
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482 cessful match, continuing the case statement execution as if the
483 pattern list had not matched. The exit status is zero if no
484 pattern matches. Otherwise, it is the exit status of the last
485 command executed in _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt.
17345e5a 486
ac50fbac 487 i\bif\bf _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; t\bth\bhe\ben\bn _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; [ e\bel\bli\bif\bf _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; t\bth\bhe\ben\bn _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; ] ... [ e\bel\bls\bse\be _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt; ] f\bfi\bi
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488 The i\bif\bf _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed. If its exit status is zero, the t\bth\bhe\ben\bn
489 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed. Otherwise, each e\bel\bli\bif\bf _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed in
490 turn, and if its exit status is zero, the corresponding t\bth\bhe\ben\bn
17345e5a 491 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed and the command completes. Otherwise, the e\bel\bls\bse\be
712f80b0 492 _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is executed, if present. The exit status is the exit sta-
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493 tus of the last command executed, or zero if no condition tested
494 true.
495
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496 w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b1; d\bdo\bo _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b2; d\bdo\bon\bne\be
497 u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b1; d\bdo\bo _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b2; d\bdo\bon\bne\be
712f80b0 498 The w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be command continuously executes the list _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b2 as long
495aee44 499 as the last command in the list _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b1 returns an exit status of
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500 zero. The u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl command is identical to the w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be command, ex-
501 cept that the test is negated: _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b2 is executed as long as the
502 last command in _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b1 returns a non-zero exit status. The exit
503 status of the w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be and u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl commands is the exit status of the
504 last command executed in _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt_\b-_\b2, or zero if none was executed.
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505
506 C\bCo\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bce\bes\bss\bse\bes\bs
507 A _\bc_\bo_\bp_\br_\bo_\bc_\be_\bs_\bs is a shell command preceded by the c\bco\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bc reserved word. A
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508 coprocess is executed asynchronously in a subshell, as if the command
509 had been terminated with the &\b& control operator, with a two-way pipe
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510 established between the executing shell and the coprocess.
511
512 The format for a coprocess is:
513
514 c\bco\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bc [_\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE] _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [_\br_\be_\bd_\bi_\br_\be_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\bs]
515
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516 This creates a coprocess named _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE. If _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE is not supplied, the de-
517 fault name is C\bCO\bOP\bPR\bRO\bOC\bC. _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE must not be supplied if _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is a _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be
518 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd (see above); otherwise, it is interpreted as the first word of
519 the simple command. When the coprocess is executed, the shell creates
520 an array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) named _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE in the context of the
521 executing shell. The standard output of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is connected via a
522 pipe to a file descriptor in the executing shell, and that file de-
523 scriptor is assigned to _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE[0]. The standard input of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is con-
524 nected via a pipe to a file descriptor in the executing shell, and that
525 file descriptor is assigned to _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE[1]. This pipe is established be-
526 fore any redirections specified by the command (see R\bRE\bED\bDI\bIR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below).
527 The file descriptors can be utilized as arguments to shell commands and
528 redirections using standard word expansions. Other than those created
529 to execute command and process substitutions, the file descriptors are
530 not available in subshells. The process ID of the shell spawned to ex-
531 ecute the coprocess is available as the value of the variable _\bN_\bA_\bM_\bE_PID.
532 The w\bwa\bai\bit\bt builtin command may be used to wait for the coprocess to ter-
533 minate.
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534
535 Since the coprocess is created as an asynchronous command, the c\bco\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bc
536 command always returns success. The return status of a coprocess is
537 the exit status of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd.
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538
539 S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl F\bFu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn D\bDe\bef\bfi\bin\bni\bit\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs
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540 A shell function is an object that is called like a simple command and
541 executes a compound command with a new set of positional parameters.
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542 Shell functions are declared as follows:
543
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544 _\bf_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be () _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [_\br_\be_\bd_\bi_\br_\be_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn]
545 f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn _\bf_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [()] _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [_\br_\be_\bd_\bi_\br_\be_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn]
546 This defines a function named _\bf_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. The reserved word f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn
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547 is optional. If the f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn reserved word is supplied, the
548 parentheses are optional. The _\bb_\bo_\bd_\by of the function is the com-
549 pound command _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd (see C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpo\bou\bun\bnd\bd C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs above).
550 That command is usually a _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt of commands between { and }, but
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551 may be any command listed under C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpo\bou\bun\bnd\bd C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs above, with
552 one exception: If the f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn reserved word is used, but the
553 parentheses are not supplied, the braces are required. _\bc_\bo_\bm_\b-
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554 _\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is executed whenever _\bf_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is specified as the
555 name of a simple command. When in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, _\bf_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be must be a
556 valid shell _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be and may not be the name of one of the POSIX
557 _\bs_\bp_\be_\bc_\bi_\ba_\bl _\bb_\bu_\bi_\bl_\bt_\bi_\bn_\bs. In default mode, a function name can be any
558 unquoted shell word that does not contain $\b$. Any redirections
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559 (see R\bRE\bED\bDI\bIR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below) specified when a function is defined are
560 performed when the function is executed. The exit status of a
561 function definition is zero unless a syntax error occurs or a
562 readonly function with the same name already exists. When exe-
563 cuted, the exit status of a function is the exit status of the
564 last command executed in the body. (See F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS below.)
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565
566C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bME\bEN\bNT\bTS\bS
567 In a non-interactive shell, or an interactive shell in which the i\bin\bnt\bte\ber\br-\b-
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568 a\bac\bct\bti\biv\bve\be_\b_c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs option to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin is enabled (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
569 B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below), a word beginning with #\b# causes that word and
570 all remaining characters on that line to be ignored. An interactive
571 shell without the i\bin\bnt\bte\ber\bra\bac\bct\bti\biv\bve\be_\b_c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs option enabled does not allow
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572 comments. The i\bin\bnt\bte\ber\bra\bac\bct\bti\biv\bve\be_\b_c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs option is on by default in interac-
573 tive shells.
574
575Q\bQU\bUO\bOT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG
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576 _\bQ_\bu_\bo_\bt_\bi_\bn_\bg is used to remove the special meaning of certain characters or
577 words to the shell. Quoting can be used to disable special treatment
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578 for special characters, to prevent reserved words from being recognized
579 as such, and to prevent parameter expansion.
580
ac50fbac 581 Each of the _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\be_\br_\bs listed above under D\bDE\bEF\bFI\bIN\bNI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS has special
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582 meaning to the shell and must be quoted if it is to represent itself.
583
ac50fbac 584 When the command history expansion facilities are being used (see H\bHI\bIS\bS-\b-
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585 T\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below), the _\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn character, usually !\b!, must
586 be quoted to prevent history expansion.
587
ac50fbac 588 There are three quoting mechanisms: the _\be_\bs_\bc_\ba_\bp_\be _\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\be_\br, single
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589 quotes, and double quotes.
590
ac50fbac 591 A non-quoted backslash (\\b\) is the _\be_\bs_\bc_\ba_\bp_\be _\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\be_\br. It preserves the
17345e5a 592 literal value of the next character that follows, with the exception of
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593 <newline>. If a \\b\<newline> pair appears, and the backslash is not it-
594 self quoted, the \\b\<newline> is treated as a line continuation (that is,
595 it is removed from the input stream and effectively ignored).
17345e5a 596
ac50fbac 597 Enclosing characters in single quotes preserves the literal value of
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598 each character within the quotes. A single quote may not occur between
599 single quotes, even when preceded by a backslash.
600
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601 Enclosing characters in double quotes preserves the literal value of
602 all characters within the quotes, with the exception of $\b$, `\b`, \\b\, and,
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603 when history expansion is enabled, !\b!. When the shell is in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be,
604 the !\b! has no special meaning within double quotes, even when history
605 expansion is enabled. The characters $\b$ and `\b` retain their special
606 meaning within double quotes. The backslash retains its special mean-
607 ing only when followed by one of the following characters: $\b$, `\b`, "\b", \\b\,
608 or <\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b>. A double quote may be quoted within double quotes by
609 preceding it with a backslash. If enabled, history expansion will be
610 performed unless an !\b! appearing in double quotes is escaped using a
611 backslash. The backslash preceding the !\b! is not removed.
17345e5a 612
ac50fbac 613 The special parameters *\b* and @\b@ have special meaning when in double
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614 quotes (see P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS below).
615
616 Words of the form $\b$'_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg' are treated specially. The word expands to
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617 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg, with backslash-escaped characters replaced as specified by the
618 ANSI C standard. Backslash escape sequences, if present, are decoded
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619 as follows:
620 \\b\a\ba alert (bell)
621 \\b\b\bb backspace
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622 \\b\e\be
623 \\b\E\bE an escape character
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624 \\b\f\bf form feed
625 \\b\n\bn new line
626 \\b\r\br carriage return
627 \\b\t\bt horizontal tab
628 \\b\v\bv vertical tab
629 \\b\\\b\ backslash
630 \\b\'\b' single quote
0001803f 631 \\b\"\b" double quote
a0c0a00f 632 \\b\?\b? question mark
ac50fbac 633 \\b\_\bn_\bn_\bn the eight-bit character whose value is the octal value
d233b485 634 _\bn_\bn_\bn (one to three octal digits)
ac50fbac 635 \\b\x\bx_\bH_\bH the eight-bit character whose value is the hexadecimal
17345e5a 636 value _\bH_\bH (one or two hex digits)
ac50fbac 637 \\b\u\bu_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH the Unicode (ISO/IEC 10646) character whose value is the
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638 hexadecimal value _\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH (one to four hex digits)
639 \\b\U\bU_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH
ac50fbac 640 the Unicode (ISO/IEC 10646) character whose value is the
495aee44 641 hexadecimal value _\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH (one to eight hex digits)
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642 \\b\c\bc_\bx a control-_\bx character
643
ac50fbac 644 The expanded result is single-quoted, as if the dollar sign had not
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645 been present.
646
0001803f 647 A double-quoted string preceded by a dollar sign ($\b$"_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg") will cause
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648 the string to be translated according to the current locale. The _\bg_\be_\bt_\b-
649 _\bt_\be_\bx_\bt infrastructure performs the message catalog lookup and transla-
650 tion, using the L\bLC\bC_\b_M\bME\bES\bSS\bSA\bAG\bGE\bES\bS and T\bTE\bEX\bXT\bTD\bDO\bOM\bMA\bAI\bIN\bN shell variables. If the
651 current locale is C\bC or P\bPO\bOS\bSI\bIX\bX, or if there are no translations avail-
652 able, the dollar sign is ignored. If the string is translated and re-
653 placed, the replacement is double-quoted.
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654
655P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS
712f80b0 656 A _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an entity that stores values. It can be a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, a num-
17345e5a 657 ber, or one of the special characters listed below under S\bSp\bpe\bec\bci\bia\bal\bl P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bm-\b-
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658 e\bet\bte\ber\brs\bs. A _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be is a parameter denoted by a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. A variable has a
659 _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be and zero or more _\ba_\bt_\bt_\br_\bi_\bb_\bu_\bt_\be_\bs. Attributes are assigned using the
a0c0a00f 660 d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin command (see d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be below in S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS).
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661
662 A parameter is set if it has been assigned a value. The null string is
712f80b0 663 a valid value. Once a variable is set, it may be unset only by using
17345e5a
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664 the u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
665
666 A _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be may be assigned to by a statement of the form
667
668 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=[_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be]
669
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670 If _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be is not given, the variable is assigned the null string. All
671 _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be_\bs undergo tilde expansion, parameter and variable expansion, com-
672 mand substitution, arithmetic expansion, and quote removal (see E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bN-\b-
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673 S\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below). If the variable has its i\bin\bnt\bte\beg\bge\ber\br attribute set, then _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be
674 is evaluated as an arithmetic expression even if the $((...)) expansion
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675 is not used (see A\bAr\bri\bit\bth\bhm\bme\bet\bti\bic\bc E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn below). Word splitting is not
676 performed, with the exception of "\b"$\b$@\b@"\b" as explained below under S\bSp\bpe\bec\bci\bia\bal\bl
677 P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\brs\bs. Pathname expansion is not performed. Assignment state-
678 ments may also appear as arguments to the a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs, d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be, t\bty\byp\bpe\bes\bse\bet\bt, e\bex\bx-\b-
679 p\bpo\bor\brt\bt, r\bre\bea\bad\bdo\bon\bnl\bly\by, and l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl builtin commands (_\bd_\be_\bc_\bl_\ba_\br_\ba_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn commands).
a0c0a00f 680 When in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, these builtins may appear in a command after one or
712f80b0 681 more instances of the c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd builtin and retain these assignment
a0c0a00f 682 statement properties.
ac50fbac 683
712f80b0 684 In the context where an assignment statement is assigning a value to a
17345e5a 685 shell variable or array index, the += operator can be used to append to
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686 or add to the variable's previous value. This includes arguments to
687 builtin commands such as d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be that accept assignment statements
a0c0a00f 688 (_\bd_\be_\bc_\bl_\ba_\br_\ba_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn commands). When += is applied to a variable for which the
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689 _\bi_\bn_\bt_\be_\bg_\be_\br attribute has been set, _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be is evaluated as an arithmetic ex-
690 pression and added to the variable's current value, which is also eval-
691 uated. When += is applied to an array variable using compound assign-
692 ment (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below), the variable's value is not unset (as it is
693 when using =), and new values are appended to the array beginning at
694 one greater than the array's maximum index (for indexed arrays) or
695 added as additional key-value pairs in an associative array. When ap-
696 plied to a string-valued variable, _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be is expanded and appended to
a0c0a00f 697 the variable's value.
17345e5a 698
ac50fbac 699 A variable can be assigned the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf attribute using the -\b-n\bn option to
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700 the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be or l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl builtin commands (see the descriptions of d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be
701 and l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl below) to create a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf, or a reference to another vari-
702 able. This allows variables to be manipulated indirectly. Whenever
703 the nameref variable is referenced, assigned to, unset, or has its at-
704 tributes modified (other than using or changing the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf attribute
705 itself), the operation is actually performed on the variable specified
706 by the nameref variable's value. A nameref is commonly used within
a0c0a00f 707 shell functions to refer to a variable whose name is passed as an argu-
712f80b0 708 ment to the function. For instance, if a variable name is passed to a
a0c0a00f 709 shell function as its first argument, running
ac50fbac 710 declare -n ref=$1
712f80b0 711 inside the function creates a nameref variable r\bre\bef\bf whose value is the
ac50fbac 712 variable name passed as the first argument. References and assignments
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713 to r\bre\bef\bf, and changes to its attributes, are treated as references, as-
714 signments, and attribute modifications to the variable whose name was
715 passed as $\b$1\b1. If the control variable in a f\bfo\bor\br loop has the nameref
716 attribute, the list of words can be a list of shell variables, and a
717 name reference will be established for each word in the list, in turn,
a0c0a00f 718 when the loop is executed. Array variables cannot be given the n\bna\bam\bme\ber\bre\bef\bf
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719 attribute. However, nameref variables can reference array variables
720 and subscripted array variables. Namerefs can be unset using the -\b-n\bn
721 option to the u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt builtin. Otherwise, if u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt is executed with the
722 name of a nameref variable as an argument, the variable referenced by
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723 the nameref variable will be unset.
724
17345e5a 725 P\bPo\bos\bsi\bit\bti\bio\bon\bna\bal\bl P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\brs\bs
712f80b0 726 A _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\ba_\bl _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is a parameter denoted by one or more digits,
17345e5a 727 other than the single digit 0. Positional parameters are assigned from
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728 the shell's arguments when it is invoked, and may be reassigned using
729 the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command. Positional parameters may not be assigned to
730 with assignment statements. The positional parameters are temporarily
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731 replaced when a shell function is executed (see F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS below).
732
712f80b0 733 When a positional parameter consisting of more than a single digit is
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734 expanded, it must be enclosed in braces (see E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below).
735
736 S\bSp\bpe\bec\bci\bia\bal\bl P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\brs\bs
712f80b0 737 The shell treats several parameters specially. These parameters may
17345e5a 738 only be referenced; assignment to them is not allowed.
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739 *\b* Expands to the positional parameters, starting from one. When
740 the expansion is not within double quotes, each positional pa-
741 rameter expands to a separate word. In contexts where it is
ac50fbac 742 performed, those words are subject to further word splitting and
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743 pathname expansion. When the expansion occurs within double
744 quotes, it expands to a single word with the value of each pa-
745 rameter separated by the first character of the I\bIF\bFS\bS special
746 variable. That is, "$\b$*\b*" is equivalent to "$\b$1\b1_\bc$\b$2\b2_\bc.\b..\b..\b.", where _\bc
ac50fbac 747 is the first character of the value of the I\bIF\bFS\bS variable. If I\bIF\bFS\bS
712f80b0 748 is unset, the parameters are separated by spaces. If I\bIF\bFS\bS is
a0c0a00f 749 null, the parameters are joined without intervening separators.
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750 @\b@ Expands to the positional parameters, starting from one. In
751 contexts where word splitting is performed, this expands each
752 positional parameter to a separate word; if not within double
753 quotes, these words are subject to word splitting. In contexts
754 where word splitting is not performed, this expands to a single
755 word with each positional parameter separated by a space. When
756 the expansion occurs within double quotes, each parameter ex-
757 pands to a separate word. That is, "$\b$@\b@" is equivalent to "$\b$1\b1"
758 "$\b$2\b2" ... If the double-quoted expansion occurs within a word,
759 the expansion of the first parameter is joined with the begin-
760 ning part of the original word, and the expansion of the last
761 parameter is joined with the last part of the original word.
762 When there are no positional parameters, "$\b$@\b@" and $\b$@\b@ expand to
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763 nothing (i.e., they are removed).
764 #\b# Expands to the number of positional parameters in decimal.
712f80b0 765 ?\b? Expands to the exit status of the most recently executed fore-
17345e5a 766 ground pipeline.
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767 -\b- Expands to the current option flags as specified upon invoca-
768 tion, by the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command, or those set by the shell it-
769 self (such as the -\b-i\bi option).
770 $\b$ Expands to the process ID of the shell. In a () subshell, it
771 expands to the process ID of the current shell, not the sub-
17345e5a 772 shell.
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773 !\b! Expands to the process ID of the job most recently placed into
774 the background, whether executed as an asynchronous command or
ac50fbac 775 using the b\bbg\bg builtin (see J\bJO\bOB\bB C\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL below).
712f80b0 776 0\b0 Expands to the name of the shell or shell script. This is set
17345e5a 777 at shell initialization. If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is invoked with a file of com-
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778 mands, $\b$0\b0 is set to the name of that file. If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is started
779 with the -\b-c\bc option, then $\b$0\b0 is set to the first argument after
780 the string to be executed, if one is present. Otherwise, it is
781 set to the filename used to invoke b\bba\bas\bsh\bh, as given by argument
17345e5a 782 zero.
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783
784 S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl V\bVa\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs
785 The following variables are set by the shell:
786
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787 _\b_ At shell startup, set to the pathname used to invoke the shell
788 or shell script being executed as passed in the environment or
789 argument list. Subsequently, expands to the last argument to
790 the previous simple command executed in the foreground, after
791 expansion. Also set to the full pathname used to invoke each
792 command executed and placed in the environment exported to that
793 command. When checking mail, this parameter holds the name of
794 the mail file currently being checked.
795 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH Expands to the full filename used to invoke this instance of
17345e5a 796 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh.
0001803f 797 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS
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798 A colon-separated list of enabled shell options. Each word in
799 the list is a valid argument for the -\b-s\bs option to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt
0001803f 800 builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). The options
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801 appearing in B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS are those reported as _\bo_\bn by s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt. If
802 this variable is in the environment when b\bba\bas\bsh\bh starts up, each
803 shell option in the list will be enabled before reading any
0001803f 804 startup files. This variable is read-only.
17345e5a 805 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHP\bPI\bID\bD
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806 Expands to the process ID of the current b\bba\bas\bsh\bh process. This
807 differs from $\b$$\b$ under certain circumstances, such as subshells
808 that do not require b\bba\bas\bsh\bh to be re-initialized. Assignments to
809 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHP\bPI\bID\bD have no effect. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHP\bPI\bID\bD is unset, it loses its spe-
d233b485 810 cial properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a 811 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS
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812 An associative array variable whose members correspond to the
813 internal list of aliases as maintained by the a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs builtin.
814 Elements added to this array appear in the alias list; however,
815 unsetting array elements currently does not cause aliases to be
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816 removed from the alias list. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS is unset, it loses
817 its special properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a 818 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGC\bC
712f80b0 819 An array variable whose values are the number of parameters in
17345e5a 820 each frame of the current b\bba\bas\bsh\bh execution call stack. The number
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821 of parameters to the current subroutine (shell function or
822 script executed with .\b. or s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be) is at the top of the stack.
823 When a subroutine is executed, the number of parameters passed
17345e5a 824 is pushed onto B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGC\bC. The shell sets B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGC\bC only when in
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825 extended debugging mode (see the description of the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg op-
826 tion to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin below). Setting e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg after the
d233b485 827 shell has started to execute a script, or referencing this vari-
712f80b0 828 able when e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg is not set, may result in inconsistent val-
d233b485 829 ues.
17345e5a 830 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV
712f80b0 831 An array variable containing all of the parameters in the cur-
17345e5a 832 rent b\bba\bas\bsh\bh execution call stack. The final parameter of the last
712f80b0 833 subroutine call is at the top of the stack; the first parameter
17345e5a 834 of the initial call is at the bottom. When a subroutine is exe-
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835 cuted, the parameters supplied are pushed onto B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV. The
836 shell sets B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV only when in extended debugging mode (see
837 the description of the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg option to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin be-
838 low). Setting e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg after the shell has started to execute a
839 script, or referencing this variable when e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg is not set,
d233b485
CR
840 may result in inconsistent values.
841 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV0\b0
712f80b0 842 When referenced, this variable expands to the name of the shell
d233b485 843 or shell script (identical to $\b$0\b0; see the description of special
712f80b0
CR
844 parameter 0 above). Assignment to B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV0\b0 causes the value
845 assigned to also be assigned to $\b$0\b0. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV0\b0 is unset, it
d233b485 846 loses its special properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a 847 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCM\bMD\bDS\bS
712f80b0
CR
848 An associative array variable whose members correspond to the
849 internal hash table of commands as maintained by the h\bha\bas\bsh\bh
17345e5a 850 builtin. Elements added to this array appear in the hash table;
712f80b0
CR
851 however, unsetting array elements currently does not cause com-
852 mand names to be removed from the hash table. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCM\bMD\bDS\bS is
853 unset, it loses its special properties, even if it is subse-
a0c0a00f 854 quently reset.
17345e5a 855 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD
712f80b0 856 The command currently being executed or about to be executed,
17345e5a 857 unless the shell is executing a command as the result of a trap,
712f80b0
CR
858 in which case it is the command executing at the time of the
859 trap. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD is unset, it loses its special proper-
860 ties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a
JA
861 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN_\b_S\bST\bTR\bRI\bIN\bNG\bG
862 The command argument to the -\b-c\bc invocation option.
863 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO
495aee44
CR
864 An array variable whose members are the line numbers in source
865 files where each corresponding member of F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE was invoked.
866 $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b} is the line number in the source file
867 ($\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi_\b+_\b1]\b]}\b}) where $\b${\b{F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b} was called (or
868 $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO[\b[_\b$_\bi_\b-_\b1]\b]}\b} if referenced within another shell func-
869 tion). Use L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO to obtain the current line number.
a0c0a00f
CR
870 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLO\bOA\bAD\bDA\bAB\bBL\bLE\bES\bS_\b_P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH
871 A colon-separated list of directories in which the shell looks
872 for dynamically loadable builtins specified by the e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be com-
873 mand.
17345e5a
JA
874 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_R\bRE\bEM\bMA\bAT\bTC\bCH\bH
875 An array variable whose members are assigned by the =\b=~\b~ binary
876 operator to the [\b[[\b[ conditional command. The element with index
712f80b0
CR
877 0 is the portion of the string matching the entire regular ex-
878 pression. The element with index _\bn is the portion of the string
879 matching the _\bnth parenthesized subexpression.
17345e5a 880 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE
712f80b0
CR
881 An array variable whose members are the source filenames where
882 the corresponding shell function names in the F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE array
883 variable are defined. The shell function $\b${\b{F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b} is de-
884 fined in the file $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b} and called from
495aee44 885 $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi_\b+_\b1]\b]}\b}.
17345e5a 886 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSU\bUB\bBS\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
712f80b0
CR
887 Incremented by one within each subshell or subshell environment
888 when the shell begins executing in that environment. The ini-
889 tial value is 0. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSU\bUB\bBS\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL is unset, it loses its spe-
890 cial properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a
JA
891 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO
892 A readonly array variable whose members hold version information
ac50fbac 893 for this instance of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. The values assigned to the array
17345e5a 894 members are as follows:
a0c0a00f
CR
895 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[0]\b] The major version number (the _\br_\be_\bl_\be_\ba_\bs_\be).
896 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[1]\b] The minor version number (the _\bv_\be_\br_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn).
17345e5a
JA
897 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[2]\b] The patch level.
898 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[3]\b] The build version.
899 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[4]\b] The release status (e.g., _\bb_\be_\bt_\ba_\b1).
900 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIN\bNF\bFO\bO[\b[5]\b] The value of M\bMA\bAC\bCH\bHT\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE.
17345e5a 901 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_V\bVE\bER\bRS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN
ac50fbac 902 Expands to a string describing the version of this instance of
17345e5a 903 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh.
17345e5a 904 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_C\bCW\bWO\bOR\bRD\bD
ac50fbac 905 An index into $\b${\b{C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDS\bS}\b} of the word containing the current
17345e5a 906 cursor position. This variable is available only in shell func-
ac50fbac 907 tions invoked by the programmable completion facilities (see
17345e5a 908 P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below).
17345e5a
JA
909 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_K\bKE\bEY\bY
910 The key (or final key of a key sequence) used to invoke the cur-
911 rent completion function.
17345e5a 912 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE
ac50fbac 913 The current command line. This variable is available only in
a0c0a00f
CR
914 shell functions and external commands invoked by the program-
915 mable completion facilities (see P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below).
17345e5a 916 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_P\bPO\bOI\bIN\bNT\bT
a0c0a00f
CR
917 The index of the current cursor position relative to the begin-
918 ning of the current command. If the current cursor position is
17345e5a 919 at the end of the current command, the value of this variable is
a0c0a00f
CR
920 equal to $\b${\b{#\b#C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE}\b}. This variable is available only in
921 shell functions and external commands invoked by the program-
922 mable completion facilities (see P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below).
17345e5a 923 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_T\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE
ac50fbac
CR
924 Set to an integer value corresponding to the type of completion
925 attempted that caused a completion function to be called: _\bT_\bA_\bB,
926 for normal completion, _\b?, for listing completions after succes-
927 sive tabs, _\b!, for listing alternatives on partial word comple-
928 tion, _\b@, to list completions if the word is not unmodified, or
929 _\b%, for menu completion. This variable is available only in
a0c0a00f
CR
930 shell functions and external commands invoked by the program-
931 mable completion facilities (see P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below).
17345e5a 932 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDB\bBR\bRE\bEA\bAK\bKS\bS
a0c0a00f
CR
933 The set of characters that the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be library treats as word
934 separators when performing word completion. If C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDB\bBR\bRE\bEA\bAK\bKS\bS
935 is unset, it loses its special properties, even if it is subse-
17345e5a 936 quently reset.
17345e5a 937 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDS\bS
a0c0a00f
CR
938 An array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) consisting of the individ-
939 ual words in the current command line. The line is split into
712f80b0
CR
940 words as r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be would split it, using C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDB\bBR\bRE\bEA\bAK\bKS\bS as de-
941 scribed above. This variable is available only in shell func-
a0c0a00f 942 tions invoked by the programmable completion facilities (see
0001803f 943 P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below).
a0c0a00f
CR
944 C\bCO\bOP\bPR\bRO\bOC\bC An array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) created to hold the file
945 descriptors for output from and input to an unnamed coprocess
495aee44 946 (see C\bCo\bop\bpr\bro\boc\bce\bes\bss\bse\bes\bs above).
17345e5a
JA
947 D\bDI\bIR\bRS\bST\bTA\bAC\bCK\bK
948 An array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) containing the current con-
a0c0a00f
CR
949 tents of the directory stack. Directories appear in the stack
950 in the order they are displayed by the d\bdi\bir\brs\bs builtin. Assigning
17345e5a 951 to members of this array variable may be used to modify directo-
a0c0a00f 952 ries already in the stack, but the p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd and p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd builtins must
17345e5a 953 be used to add and remove directories. Assignment to this vari-
712f80b0
CR
954 able will not change the current directory. If D\bDI\bIR\bRS\bST\bTA\bAC\bCK\bK is un-
955 set, it loses its special properties, even if it is subsequently
956 reset.
d233b485
CR
957 E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHR\bRE\bEA\bAL\bLT\bTI\bIM\bME\bE
958 Each time this parameter is referenced, it expands to the number
959 of seconds since the Unix Epoch (see _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3)) as a floating
960 point value with micro-second granularity. Assignments to
961 E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHR\bRE\bEA\bAL\bLT\bTI\bIM\bME\bE are ignored. If E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHR\bRE\bEA\bAL\bLT\bTI\bIM\bME\bE is unset, it loses
962 its special properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
963 E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHS\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS
964 Each time this parameter is referenced, it expands to the number
965 of seconds since the Unix Epoch (see _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3)). Assignments to
966 E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHS\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS are ignored. If E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHS\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS is unset, it loses
967 its special properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
968 E\bEU\bUI\bID\bD Expands to the effective user ID of the current user, initial-
17345e5a 969 ized at shell startup. This variable is readonly.
17345e5a 970 F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE
d233b485 971 An array variable containing the names of all shell functions
17345e5a
JA
972 currently in the execution call stack. The element with index 0
973 is the name of any currently-executing shell function. The bot-
d233b485
CR
974 tom-most element (the one with the highest index) is "main".
975 This variable exists only when a shell function is executing.
976 Assignments to F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE have no effect. If F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE is unset,
712f80b0
CR
977 it loses its special properties, even if it is subsequently re-
978 set.
495aee44 979
d233b485
CR
980 This variable can be used with B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO and B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE.
981 Each element of F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE has corresponding elements in
712f80b0
CR
982 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO and B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE to describe the call stack. For in-
983 stance, $\b${\b{F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b} was called from the file
d233b485 984 $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSO\bOU\bUR\bRC\bCE\bE[\b[_\b$_\bi_\b+_\b1]\b]}\b} at line number $\b${\b{B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO[\b[_\b$_\bi]\b]}\b}. The
495aee44
CR
985 c\bca\bal\bll\ble\ber\br builtin displays the current call stack using this infor-
986 mation.
d233b485 987 G\bGR\bRO\bOU\bUP\bPS\bS An array variable containing the list of groups of which the
a0c0a00f 988 current user is a member. Assignments to G\bGR\bRO\bOU\bUP\bPS\bS have no effect.
d233b485 989 If G\bGR\bRO\bOU\bUP\bPS\bS is unset, it loses its special properties, even if it
a0c0a00f 990 is subsequently reset.
17345e5a
JA
991 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCM\bMD\bD
992 The history number, or index in the history list, of the current
712f80b0
CR
993 command. Assignments to H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCM\bMD\bD are ignored. If H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCM\bMD\bD is un-
994 set, it loses its special properties, even if it is subsequently
995 reset.
17345e5a
JA
996 H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE
997 Automatically set to the name of the current host.
17345e5a 998 H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTT\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE
712f80b0
CR
999 Automatically set to a string that uniquely describes the type
1000 of machine on which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is executing. The default is system-
17345e5a 1001 dependent.
712f80b0
CR
1002 L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO Each time this parameter is referenced, the shell substitutes a
1003 decimal number representing the current sequential line number
1004 (starting with 1) within a script or function. When not in a
1005 script or function, the value substituted is not guaranteed to
17345e5a
JA
1006 be meaningful. If L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO is unset, it loses its special proper-
1007 ties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a 1008 M\bMA\bAC\bCH\bHT\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE
712f80b0
CR
1009 Automatically set to a string that fully describes the system
1010 type on which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is executing, in the standard GNU _\bc_\bp_\bu_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\b-
17345e5a 1011 _\bp_\ba_\bn_\by_\b-_\bs_\by_\bs_\bt_\be_\bm format. The default is system-dependent.
495aee44 1012 M\bMA\bAP\bPF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE
712f80b0 1013 An array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) created to hold the text
495aee44 1014 read by the m\bma\bap\bpf\bfi\bil\ble\be builtin when no variable name is supplied.
17345e5a 1015 O\bOL\bLD\bDP\bPW\bWD\bD The previous working directory as set by the c\bcd\bd command.
712f80b0 1016 O\bOP\bPT\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG The value of the last option argument processed by the g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs
17345e5a 1017 builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
712f80b0 1018 O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bND\bD The index of the next argument to be processed by the g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs
17345e5a 1019 builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
712f80b0
CR
1020 O\bOS\bST\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE Automatically set to a string that describes the operating sys-
1021 tem on which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is executing. The default is system-depen-
17345e5a 1022 dent.
17345e5a 1023 P\bPI\bIP\bPE\bES\bST\bTA\bAT\bTU\bUS\bS
712f80b0
CR
1024 An array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs below) containing a list of exit
1025 status values from the processes in the most-recently-executed
17345e5a 1026 foreground pipeline (which may contain only a single command).
712f80b0 1027 P\bPP\bPI\bID\bD The process ID of the shell's parent. This variable is read-
17345e5a 1028 only.
17345e5a 1029 P\bPW\bWD\bD The current working directory as set by the c\bcd\bd command.
712f80b0
CR
1030 R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM Each time this parameter is referenced, it expands to a random
1031 integer between 0 and 32767. Assigning a value to R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM ini-
1032 tializes (seeds) the sequence of random numbers. If R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM is
1033 unset, it loses its special properties, even if it is subse-
1034 quently reset.
495aee44
CR
1035 R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE
1036 The contents of the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be line buffer, for use with "bind -x"
1037 (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
712f80b0
CR
1038 R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_M\bMA\bAR\bRK\bK
1039 The position of the mark (saved insertion point) in the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be
1040 line buffer, for use with "bind -x" (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS
1041 below). The characters between the insertion point and the mark
1042 are often called the _\br_\be_\bg_\bi_\bo_\bn.
495aee44
CR
1043 R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_P\bPO\bOI\bIN\bNT\bT
1044 The position of the insertion point in the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be line buffer,
1045 for use with "bind -x" (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
d233b485 1046 R\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY Set to the line of input read by the r\bre\bea\bad\bd builtin command when
17345e5a 1047 no arguments are supplied.
17345e5a 1048 S\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS
d233b485
CR
1049 Each time this parameter is referenced, the number of seconds
1050 since shell invocation is returned. If a value is assigned to
1051 S\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS, the value returned upon subsequent references is the
1052 number of seconds since the assignment plus the value assigned.
712f80b0
CR
1053 The number of seconds at shell invocation and the current time
1054 is always determined by querying the system clock. If S\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS
1055 is unset, it loses its special properties, even if it is subse-
1056 quently reset.
17345e5a 1057 S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bLO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS
d233b485
CR
1058 A colon-separated list of enabled shell options. Each word in
1059 the list is a valid argument for the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt
17345e5a 1060 builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). The options
d233b485
CR
1061 appearing in S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bLO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS are those reported as _\bo_\bn by s\bse\bet\bt -\b-o\bo. If
1062 this variable is in the environment when b\bba\bas\bsh\bh starts up, each
1063 shell option in the list will be enabled before reading any
17345e5a 1064 startup files. This variable is read-only.
17345e5a 1065 S\bSH\bHL\bLV\bVL\bL Incremented by one each time an instance of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is started.
712f80b0
CR
1066 S\bSR\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM
1067 This variable expands to a 32-bit pseudo-random number each time
1068 it is referenced. The random number generator is not linear on
1069 systems that support /dev/urandom or _\ba_\br_\bc_\b4_\br_\ba_\bn_\bd_\bo_\bm, so each re-
1070 turned number has no relationship to the numbers preceding it.
1071 The random number generator cannot be seeded, so assignments to
1072 this variable have no effect. If S\bSR\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM is unset, it loses its
1073 special properties, even if it is subsequently reset.
17345e5a
JA
1074 U\bUI\bID\bD Expands to the user ID of the current user, initialized at shell
1075 startup. This variable is readonly.
1076
712f80b0
CR
1077 The following variables are used by the shell. In some cases, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh as-
1078 signs a default value to a variable; these cases are noted below.
17345e5a 1079
ac50fbac 1080 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT
d233b485 1081 The value is used to set the shell's compatibility level. See
712f80b0
CR
1082 S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bTI\bIB\bBI\bIL\bLI\bIT\bTY\bY M\bMO\bOD\bDE\bE below for a description of the various
1083 compatibility levels and their effects. The value may be a dec-
1084 imal number (e.g., 4.2) or an integer (e.g., 42) corresponding
1085 to the desired compatibility level. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT is unset or
1086 set to the empty string, the compatibility level is set to the
1087 default for the current version. If B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT is set to a
1088 value that is not one of the valid compatibility levels, the
1089 shell prints an error message and sets the compatibility level
1090 to the default for the current version. The valid values corre-
3eb0018e
CR
1091 spond to the compatibility levels described below under B\bBS\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL-\b-
1092 COMPATIBILITYM\bMO\bOD\bDE\bE. For example, 4.2 and 42 are valid values
712f80b0
CR
1093 that correspond to the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b42\b2 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt option and set the compat-
1094 ibility level to 42. The current version is also a valid value.
17345e5a 1095 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV
d233b485
CR
1096 If this parameter is set when b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is executing a shell script,
1097 its value is interpreted as a filename containing commands to
17345e5a 1098 initialize the shell, as in _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc. The value of B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV is
d233b485
CR
1099 subjected to parameter expansion, command substitution, and
1100 arithmetic expansion before being interpreted as a filename.
ac50fbac 1101 P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is not used to search for the resultant filename.
0001803f 1102 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_X\bXT\bTR\bRA\bAC\bCE\bEF\bFD\bD
d233b485 1103 If set to an integer corresponding to a valid file descriptor,
712f80b0
CR
1104 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh will write the trace output generated when _\bs_\be_\bt _\b-_\bx is en-
1105 abled to that file descriptor. The file descriptor is closed
d233b485
CR
1106 when B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_X\bXT\bTR\bRA\bAC\bCE\bEF\bFD\bD is unset or assigned a new value. Unsetting
1107 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_X\bXT\bTR\bRA\bAC\bCE\bEF\bFD\bD or assigning it the empty string causes the trace
1108 output to be sent to the standard error. Note that setting
0001803f
CR
1109 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_X\bXT\bTR\bRA\bAC\bCE\bEF\bFD\bD to 2 (the standard error file descriptor) and then
1110 unsetting it will result in the standard error being closed.
d233b485 1111 C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH The search path for the c\bcd\bd command. This is a colon-separated
712f80b0
CR
1112 list of directories in which the shell looks for destination di-
1113 rectories specified by the c\bcd\bd command. A sample value is
495aee44 1114 ".:~:/usr".
ac50fbac 1115 C\bCH\bHI\bIL\bLD\bD_\b_M\bMA\bAX\bX
d233b485
CR
1116 Set the number of exited child status values for the shell to
1117 remember. Bash will not allow this value to be decreased below
1118 a POSIX-mandated minimum, and there is a maximum value (cur-
1119 rently 8192) that this may not exceed. The minimum value is
ac50fbac 1120 system-dependent.
17345e5a 1121 C\bCO\bOL\bLU\bUM\bMN\bNS\bS
d233b485
CR
1122 Used by the s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt compound command to determine the terminal
1123 width when printing selection lists. Automatically set if the
1124 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkw\bwi\bin\bns\bsi\biz\bze\be option is enabled or in an interactive shell upon
495aee44 1125 receipt of a S\bSI\bIG\bGW\bWI\bIN\bNC\bCH\bH.
17345e5a
JA
1126 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPR\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY
1127 An array variable from which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reads the possible completions
d233b485 1128 generated by a shell function invoked by the programmable com-
712f80b0
CR
1129 pletion facility (see P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn below). Each ar-
1130 ray element contains one possible completion.
d233b485
CR
1131 E\bEM\bMA\bAC\bCS\bS If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh finds this variable in the environment when the shell
1132 starts with value "t", it assumes that the shell is running in
495aee44 1133 an Emacs shell buffer and disables line editing.
d233b485
CR
1134 E\bEN\bNV\bV Similar to B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV; used when the shell is invoked in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx
1135 _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be.
a0c0a00f 1136 E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE
d233b485
CR
1137 A colon-separated list of shell patterns (see P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg)
1138 defining the list of filenames to be ignored by command search
1139 using P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH. Files whose full pathnames match one of these pat-
1140 terns are not considered executable files for the purposes of
a0c0a00f
CR
1141 completion and command execution via P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH lookup. This does not
1142 affect the behavior of the [\b[, t\bte\bes\bst\bt, and [\b[[\b[ commands. Full path-
d233b485
CR
1143 names in the command hash table are not subject to E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE.
1144 Use this variable to ignore shared library files that have the
1145 executable bit set, but are not executable files. The pattern
a0c0a00f 1146 matching honors the setting of the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option.
17345e5a
JA
1147 F\bFC\bCE\bED\bDI\bIT\bT The default editor for the f\bfc\bc builtin command.
1148 F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE
d233b485 1149 A colon-separated list of suffixes to ignore when performing
17345e5a 1150 filename completion (see R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE below). A filename whose suf-
d233b485 1151 fix matches one of the entries in F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is excluded from the
17345e5a 1152 list of matched filenames. A sample value is ".o:~".
495aee44 1153 F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNE\bES\bST\bT
d233b485
CR
1154 If set to a numeric value greater than 0, defines a maximum
1155 function nesting level. Function invocations that exceed this
495aee44 1156 nesting level will cause the current command to abort.
17345e5a 1157 G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE
d233b485
CR
1158 A colon-separated list of patterns defining the set of file
1159 names to be ignored by pathname expansion. If a file name
1160 matched by a pathname expansion pattern also matches one of the
1161 patterns in G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE, it is removed from the list of matches.
17345e5a 1162 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL
d233b485 1163 A colon-separated list of values controlling how commands are
712f80b0
CR
1164 saved on the history list. If the list of values includes _\bi_\bg_\b-
1165 _\bn_\bo_\br_\be_\bs_\bp_\ba_\bc_\be, lines which begin with a s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be character are not
d233b485 1166 saved in the history list. A value of _\bi_\bg_\bn_\bo_\br_\be_\bd_\bu_\bp_\bs causes lines
17345e5a
JA
1167 matching the previous history entry to not be saved. A value of
1168 _\bi_\bg_\bn_\bo_\br_\be_\bb_\bo_\bt_\bh is shorthand for _\bi_\bg_\bn_\bo_\br_\be_\bs_\bp_\ba_\bc_\be and _\bi_\bg_\bn_\bo_\br_\be_\bd_\bu_\bp_\bs. A value
1169 of _\be_\br_\ba_\bs_\be_\bd_\bu_\bp_\bs causes all previous lines matching the current line
d233b485
CR
1170 to be removed from the history list before that line is saved.
1171 Any value not in the above list is ignored. If H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL is
1172 unset, or does not include a valid value, all lines read by the
17345e5a 1173 shell parser are saved on the history list, subject to the value
d233b485
CR
1174 of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE. The second and subsequent lines of a multi-line
1175 compound command are not tested, and are added to the history
17345e5a
JA
1176 regardless of the value of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL.
1177 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE
1178 The name of the file in which command history is saved (see H\bHI\bIS\bS-\b-
d233b485 1179 T\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY below). The default value is _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by. If unset,
ac50fbac 1180 the command history is not saved when a shell exits.
17345e5a
JA
1181 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bES\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE
1182 The maximum number of lines contained in the history file. When
d233b485
CR
1183 this variable is assigned a value, the history file is trun-
1184 cated, if necessary, to contain no more than that number of
1185 lines by removing the oldest entries. The history file is also
1186 truncated to this size after writing it when a shell exits. If
1187 the value is 0, the history file is truncated to zero size.
1188 Non-numeric values and numeric values less than zero inhibit
1189 truncation. The shell sets the default value to the value of
ac50fbac 1190 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE after reading any startup files.
17345e5a 1191 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE
d233b485 1192 A colon-separated list of patterns used to decide which command
712f80b0
CR
1193 lines should be saved on the history list. Each pattern is an-
1194 chored at the beginning of the line and must match the complete
1195 line (no implicit `*\b*' is appended). Each pattern is tested
1196 against the line after the checks specified by H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL are
1197 applied. In addition to the normal shell pattern matching char-
1198 acters, `&\b&' matches the previous history line. `&\b&' may be es-
1199 caped using a backslash; the backslash is removed before at-
1200 tempting a match. The second and subsequent lines of a multi-
1201 line compound command are not tested, and are added to the his-
1202 tory regardless of the value of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE. The pattern match-
1203 ing honors the setting of the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option.
17345e5a 1204 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE
d233b485
CR
1205 The number of commands to remember in the command history (see
1206 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY below). If the value is 0, commands are not saved in
ac50fbac 1207 the history list. Numeric values less than zero result in every
d233b485
CR
1208 command being saved on the history list (there is no limit).
1209 The shell sets the default value to 500 after reading any
ac50fbac 1210 startup files.
17345e5a 1211 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTT\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT
d233b485 1212 If this variable is set and not null, its value is used as a
17345e5a 1213 format string for _\bs_\bt_\br_\bf_\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3) to print the time stamp associated
d233b485
CR
1214 with each history entry displayed by the h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by builtin. If
1215 this variable is set, time stamps are written to the history
1216 file so they may be preserved across shell sessions. This uses
1217 the history comment character to distinguish timestamps from
17345e5a
JA
1218 other history lines.
1219 H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE The home directory of the current user; the default argument for
1220 the c\bcd\bd builtin command. The value of this variable is also used
1221 when performing tilde expansion.
1222 H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE
d233b485 1223 Contains the name of a file in the same format as _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt_\bs
17345e5a 1224 that should be read when the shell needs to complete a hostname.
d233b485 1225 The list of possible hostname completions may be changed while
712f80b0
CR
1226 the shell is running; the next time hostname completion is at-
1227 tempted after the value is changed, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh adds the contents of
d233b485
CR
1228 the new file to the existing list. If H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is set, but has
1229 no value, or does not name a readable file, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts to
1230 read _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt_\bs to obtain the list of possible hostname comple-
0001803f 1231 tions. When H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is unset, the hostname list is cleared.
712f80b0
CR
1232 I\bIF\bFS\bS The _\bI_\bn_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\ba_\bl _\bF_\bi_\be_\bl_\bd _\bS_\be_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bt_\bo_\br that is used for word splitting af-
1233 ter expansion and to split lines into words with the r\bre\bea\bad\bd
17345e5a
JA
1234 builtin command. The default value is ``<space><tab><new-
1235 line>''.
1236 I\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bEE\bEO\bOF\bF
1237 Controls the action of an interactive shell on receipt of an E\bEO\bOF\bF
1238 character as the sole input. If set, the value is the number of
d233b485
CR
1239 consecutive E\bEO\bOF\bF characters which must be typed as the first
1240 characters on an input line before b\bba\bas\bsh\bh exits. If the variable
1241 exists but does not have a numeric value, or has no value, the
1242 default value is 10. If it does not exist, E\bEO\bOF\bF signifies the
17345e5a
JA
1243 end of input to the shell.
1244 I\bIN\bNP\bPU\bUT\bTR\bRC\bC
712f80b0
CR
1245 The filename for the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be startup file, overriding the de-
1246 fault of _\b~_\b/_\b._\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc (see R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE below).
d233b485
CR
1247 I\bIN\bNS\bSI\bID\bDE\bE_\b_E\bEM\bMA\bAC\bCS\bS
1248 If this variable appears in the environment when the shell
1249 starts, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh assumes that it is running inside an Emacs shell
1250 buffer and may disable line editing, depending on the value of
1251 T\bTE\bER\bRM\bM.
a0c0a00f 1252 L\bLA\bAN\bNG\bG Used to determine the locale category for any category not
17345e5a 1253 specifically selected with a variable starting with L\bLC\bC_\b_.
a0c0a00f 1254 L\bLC\bC_\b_A\bAL\bLL\bL This variable overrides the value of L\bLA\bAN\bNG\bG and any other L\bLC\bC_\b_
17345e5a
JA
1255 variable specifying a locale category.
1256 L\bLC\bC_\b_C\bCO\bOL\bLL\bLA\bAT\bTE\bE
a0c0a00f
CR
1257 This variable determines the collation order used when sorting
1258 the results of pathname expansion, and determines the behavior
712f80b0
CR
1259 of range expressions, equivalence classes, and collating se-
1260 quences within pathname expansion and pattern matching.
17345e5a 1261 L\bLC\bC_\b_C\bCT\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE
a0c0a00f
CR
1262 This variable determines the interpretation of characters and
1263 the behavior of character classes within pathname expansion and
17345e5a
JA
1264 pattern matching.
1265 L\bLC\bC_\b_M\bME\bES\bSS\bSA\bAG\bGE\bES\bS
a0c0a00f 1266 This variable determines the locale used to translate double-
17345e5a
JA
1267 quoted strings preceded by a $\b$.
1268 L\bLC\bC_\b_N\bNU\bUM\bME\bER\bRI\bIC\bC
a0c0a00f 1269 This variable determines the locale category used for number
17345e5a 1270 formatting.
a0c0a00f
CR
1271 L\bLC\bC_\b_T\bTI\bIM\bME\bE
1272 This variable determines the locale category used for data and
1273 time formatting.
495aee44 1274 L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bES\bS Used by the s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt compound command to determine the column
ac50fbac
CR
1275 length for printing selection lists. Automatically set if the
1276 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkw\bwi\bin\bns\bsi\biz\bze\be option is enabled or in an interactive shell upon
0001803f 1277 receipt of a S\bSI\bIG\bGW\bWI\bIN\bNC\bCH\bH.
ac50fbac 1278 M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bL If this parameter is set to a file or directory name and the
712f80b0
CR
1279 M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bLP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH variable is not set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh informs the user of the ar-
1280 rival of mail in the specified file or Maildir-format directory.
17345e5a 1281 M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bLC\bCH\bHE\bEC\bCK\bK
712f80b0
CR
1282 Specifies how often (in seconds) b\bba\bas\bsh\bh checks for mail. The de-
1283 fault is 60 seconds. When it is time to check for mail, the
1284 shell does so before displaying the primary prompt. If this
1285 variable is unset, or set to a value that is not a number
17345e5a
JA
1286 greater than or equal to zero, the shell disables mail checking.
1287 M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bLP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH
ac50fbac
CR
1288 A colon-separated list of filenames to be checked for mail. The
1289 message to be printed when mail arrives in a particular file may
712f80b0
CR
1290 be specified by separating the filename from the message with a
1291 `?'. When used in the text of the message, $\b$_\b_ expands to the
ac50fbac 1292 name of the current mailfile. Example:
17345e5a
JA
1293 M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bLP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH='/var/mail/bfox?"You have mail":~/shell-mail?"$_ has
1294 mail!"'
712f80b0
CR
1295 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh can be configured to supply a default value for this vari-
1296 able (there is no value by default), but the location of the
a0c0a00f
CR
1297 user mail files that it uses is system dependent (e.g.,
1298 /var/mail/$\b$U\bUS\bSE\bER\bR).
17345e5a 1299 O\bOP\bPT\bTE\bER\bRR\bR If set to the value 1, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh displays error messages generated by
712f80b0
CR
1300 the g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
1301 O\bOP\bPT\bTE\bER\bRR\bR is initialized to 1 each time the shell is invoked or a
17345e5a 1302 shell script is executed.
712f80b0
CR
1303 P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH The search path for commands. It is a colon-separated list of
1304 directories in which the shell looks for commands (see C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD
1305 E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below). A zero-length (null) directory name in the
17345e5a 1306 value of P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH indicates the current directory. A null directory
712f80b0
CR
1307 name may appear as two adjacent colons, or as an initial or
1308 trailing colon. The default path is system-dependent, and is
a0c0a00f 1309 set by the administrator who installs b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. A common value is
712f80b0
CR
1310 ``/usr/local/bin:/usr/lo-
1311 cal/sbin:/usr/bin:/usr/sbin:/bin:/sbin''.
17345e5a 1312 P\bPO\bOS\bSI\bIX\bXL\bLY\bY_\b_C\bCO\bOR\bRR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bT
712f80b0
CR
1313 If this variable is in the environment when b\bba\bas\bsh\bh starts, the
1314 shell enters _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be before reading the startup files, as if
1315 the -\b--\b-p\bpo\bos\bsi\bix\bx invocation option had been supplied. If it is set
1316 while the shell is running, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh enables _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, as if the
1317 command _\bs_\be_\bt _\b-_\bo _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx had been executed. When the shell enters
d233b485 1318 _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, it sets this variable if it was not already set.
3eb0018e
CR
1319 P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bT_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD
1320 If this variable is set, and is an array, the value of each set
1321 element is executed as a command prior to issuing each primary
1322 prompt. If this is set but not an array variable, its value is
1323 used as a command to execute instead.
17345e5a 1324 P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bT_\b_D\bDI\bIR\bRT\bTR\bRI\bIM\bM
712f80b0 1325 If set to a number greater than zero, the value is used as the
17345e5a 1326 number of trailing directory components to retain when expanding
712f80b0 1327 the \\b\w\bw and \\b\W\bW prompt string escapes (see P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG below).
17345e5a 1328 Characters removed are replaced with an ellipsis.
712f80b0
CR
1329 P\bPS\bS0\b0 The value of this parameter is expanded (see P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG below)
1330 and displayed by interactive shells after reading a command and
a0c0a00f 1331 before the command is executed.
712f80b0
CR
1332 P\bPS\bS1\b1 The value of this parameter is expanded (see P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG below)
1333 and used as the primary prompt string. The default value is
17345e5a 1334 ``\\b\s\bs-\b-\\b\v\bv\\b\$\b$ ''.
712f80b0 1335 P\bPS\bS2\b2 The value of this parameter is expanded as with P\bPS\bS1\b1 and used as
17345e5a
JA
1336 the secondary prompt string. The default is ``>\b> ''.
1337 P\bPS\bS3\b3 The value of this parameter is used as the prompt for the s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt
1338 command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR above).
712f80b0
CR
1339 P\bPS\bS4\b4 The value of this parameter is expanded as with P\bPS\bS1\b1 and the
1340 value is printed before each command b\bba\bas\bsh\bh displays during an ex-
1341 ecution trace. The first character of the expanded value of P\bPS\bS4\b4
1342 is replicated multiple times, as necessary, to indicate multiple
1343 levels of indirection. The default is ``+\b+ ''.
1344 S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL This variable expands to the full pathname to the shell. If it
1345 is not set when the shell starts, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh assigns to it the full
1346 pathname of the current user's login shell.
17345e5a 1347 T\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT
712f80b0
CR
1348 The value of this parameter is used as a format string specify-
1349 ing how the timing information for pipelines prefixed with the
1350 t\bti\bim\bme\be reserved word should be displayed. The %\b% character intro-
1351 duces an escape sequence that is expanded to a time value or
1352 other information. The escape sequences and their meanings are
17345e5a
JA
1353 as follows; the braces denote optional portions.
1354 %\b%%\b% A literal %\b%.
1355 %\b%[\b[_\bp]\b][\b[l\bl]\b]R\bR The elapsed time in seconds.
1356 %\b%[\b[_\bp]\b][\b[l\bl]\b]U\bU The number of CPU seconds spent in user mode.
1357 %\b%[\b[_\bp]\b][\b[l\bl]\b]S\bS The number of CPU seconds spent in system mode.
1358 %\b%P\bP The CPU percentage, computed as (%U + %S) / %R.
1359
712f80b0 1360 The optional _\bp is a digit specifying the _\bp_\br_\be_\bc_\bi_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn, the number
17345e5a
JA
1361 of fractional digits after a decimal point. A value of 0 causes
1362 no decimal point or fraction to be output. At most three places
712f80b0
CR
1363 after the decimal point may be specified; values of _\bp greater
1364 than 3 are changed to 3. If _\bp is not specified, the value 3 is
17345e5a
JA
1365 used.
1366
712f80b0
CR
1367 The optional l\bl specifies a longer format, including minutes, of
1368 the form _\bM_\bMm_\bS_\bS._\bF_\bFs. The value of _\bp determines whether or not
17345e5a
JA
1369 the fraction is included.
1370
712f80b0
CR
1371 If this variable is not set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh acts as if it had the value
1372 $\b$'\b'\\b\n\bnr\bre\bea\bal\bl\\b\t\bt%\b%3\b3l\blR\bR\\b\n\bnu\bus\bse\ber\br\\b\t\bt%\b%3\b3l\blU\bU\\b\n\bns\bsy\bys\bs\\b\t\bt%\b%3\b3l\blS\bS'\b'. If the value is null,
ac50fbac 1373 no timing information is displayed. A trailing newline is added
17345e5a 1374 when the format string is displayed.
712f80b0
CR
1375 T\bTM\bMO\bOU\bUT\bT If set to a value greater than zero, T\bTM\bMO\bOU\bUT\bT is treated as the de-
1376 fault timeout for the r\bre\bea\bad\bd builtin. The s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt command termi-
17345e5a 1377 nates if input does not arrive after T\bTM\bMO\bOU\bUT\bT seconds when input is
712f80b0 1378 coming from a terminal. In an interactive shell, the value is
ac50fbac
CR
1379 interpreted as the number of seconds to wait for a line of input
1380 after issuing the primary prompt. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh terminates after waiting
712f80b0 1381 for that number of seconds if a complete line of input does not
ac50fbac 1382 arrive.
712f80b0 1383 T\bTM\bMP\bPD\bDI\bIR\bR If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh uses its value as the name of a directory in which
495aee44 1384 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh creates temporary files for the shell's use.
17345e5a
JA
1385 a\bau\but\bto\bo_\b_r\bre\bes\bsu\bum\bme\be
1386 This variable controls how the shell interacts with the user and
712f80b0 1387 job control. If this variable is set, single word simple com-
17345e5a
JA
1388 mands without redirections are treated as candidates for resump-
1389 tion of an existing stopped job. There is no ambiguity allowed;
712f80b0
CR
1390 if there is more than one job beginning with the string typed,
1391 the job most recently accessed is selected. The _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be of a
1392 stopped job, in this context, is the command line used to start
1393 it. If set to the value _\be_\bx_\ba_\bc_\bt, the string supplied must match
1394 the name of a stopped job exactly; if set to _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg, the
1395 string supplied needs to match a substring of the name of a
1396 stopped job. The _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg value provides functionality analo-
1397 gous to the %\b%?\b? job identifier (see J\bJO\bOB\bB C\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL below). If set
1398 to any other value, the supplied string must be a prefix of a
17345e5a
JA
1399 stopped job's name; this provides functionality analogous to the
1400 %\b%_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg job identifier.
17345e5a 1401 h\bhi\bis\bst\btc\bch\bha\bar\brs\bs
712f80b0 1402 The two or three characters which control history expansion and
17345e5a 1403 tokenization (see H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below). The first character
712f80b0
CR
1404 is the _\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn character, the character which signals
1405 the start of a history expansion, normally `!\b!'. The second
1406 character is the _\bq_\bu_\bi_\bc_\bk _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\bi_\bt_\bu_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn character, which is used as
1407 shorthand for re-running the previous command entered, substi-
1408 tuting one string for another in the command. The default is
1409 `^\b^'. The optional third character is the character which indi-
1410 cates that the remainder of the line is a comment when found as
1411 the first character of a word, normally `#\b#'. The history com-
17345e5a 1412 ment character causes history substitution to be skipped for the
712f80b0 1413 remaining words on the line. It does not necessarily cause the
17345e5a
JA
1414 shell parser to treat the rest of the line as a comment.
1415
1416 A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs
712f80b0
CR
1417 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh provides one-dimensional indexed and associative array variables.
1418 Any variable may be used as an indexed array; the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin will
1419 explicitly declare an array. There is no maximum limit on the size of
1420 an array, nor any requirement that members be indexed or assigned con-
1421 tiguously. Indexed arrays are referenced using integers (including
a0c0a00f
CR
1422 arithmetic expressions) and are zero-based; associative arrays are ref-
1423 erenced using arbitrary strings. Unless otherwise noted, indexed array
1424 indices must be non-negative integers.
17345e5a 1425
712f80b0 1426 An indexed array is created automatically if any variable is assigned
17345e5a 1427 to using the syntax _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be. The _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt is treated as
ac50fbac 1428 an arithmetic expression that must evaluate to a number. To explicitly
712f80b0
CR
1429 declare an indexed array, use d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-a\ba _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bM-\b-
1430 M\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-a\ba _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[\b[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]\b] is also accepted; the _\bs_\bu_\bb_\b-
ac50fbac 1431 _\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt is ignored.
17345e5a
JA
1432
1433 Associative arrays are created using d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-A\bA _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
1434
1435 Attributes may be specified for an array variable using the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be and
a0c0a00f 1436 r\bre\bea\bad\bdo\bon\bnl\bly\by builtins. Each attribute applies to all members of an array.
17345e5a 1437
712f80b0
CR
1438 Arrays are assigned to using compound assignments of the form
1439 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=(\b(value_\b1 ... value_\bn)\b), where each _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be may be of the form [_\bs_\bu_\bb_\b-
1440 _\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]=_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. Indexed array assignments do not require anything but
1441 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. Each _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be in the list is expanded using all the shell expan-
1442 sions described below under E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN. When assigning to indexed ar-
1443 rays, if the optional brackets and subscript are supplied, that index
1444 is assigned to; otherwise the index of the element assigned is the last
1445 index assigned to by the statement plus one. Indexing starts at zero.
1446
1447 When assigning to an associative array, the words in a compound assign-
1448 ment may be either assignment statements, for which the subscript is
1449 required, or a list of words that is interpreted as a sequence of al-
1450 ternating keys and values: _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=(\b( _\bk_\be_\by_\b1 _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be_\b1 _\bk_\be_\by_\b2 _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be_\b2 ...)\b). These
1451 are treated identically to _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=(\b( [_\bk_\be_\by_\b1]=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be_\b1 [_\bk_\be_\by_\b2]=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be_\b2 ...)\b).
1452 The first word in the list determines how the remaining words are in-
1453 terpreted; all assignments in a list must be of the same type. When
1454 using key/value pairs, the keys may not be missing or empty; a final
1455 missing value is treated like the empty string.
17345e5a 1456
d233b485 1457 This syntax is also accepted by the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin. Individual array
712f80b0
CR
1458 elements may be assigned to using the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be syntax in-
1459 troduced above. When assigning to an indexed array, if _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is sub-
d233b485
CR
1460 scripted by a negative number, that number is interpreted as relative
1461 to one greater than the maximum index of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, so negative indices
ac50fbac
CR
1462 count back from the end of the array, and an index of -1 references the
1463 last element.
17345e5a 1464
d233b485 1465 Any element of an array may be referenced using ${_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]}.
17345e5a 1466 The braces are required to avoid conflicts with pathname expansion. If
d233b485
CR
1467 _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt is @\b@ or *\b*, the word expands to all members of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. These
1468 subscripts differ only when the word appears within double quotes. If
17345e5a 1469 the word is double-quoted, ${_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[*]} expands to a single word with the
d233b485 1470 value of each array member separated by the first character of the I\bIF\bFS\bS
17345e5a 1471 special variable, and ${_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[@]} expands each element of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be to a sep-
d233b485 1472 arate word. When there are no array members, ${_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[@]} expands to
712f80b0
CR
1473 nothing. If the double-quoted expansion occurs within a word, the ex-
1474 pansion of the first parameter is joined with the beginning part of the
1475 original word, and the expansion of the last parameter is joined with
1476 the last part of the original word. This is analogous to the expansion
1477 of the special parameters *\b* and @\b@ (see S\bSp\bpe\bec\bci\bia\bal\bl P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\brs\bs above).
1478 ${#_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]} expands to the length of ${_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt]}. If
1479 _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt is *\b* or @\b@, the expansion is the number of elements in the ar-
1480 ray. If the _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt used to reference an element of an indexed array
1481 evaluates to a number less than zero, it is interpreted as relative to
1482 one greater than the maximum index of the array, so negative indices
1483 count back from the end of the array, and an index of -1 references the
1484 last element.
a0c0a00f
CR
1485
1486 Referencing an array variable without a subscript is equivalent to ref-
d233b485 1487 erencing the array with a subscript of 0. Any reference to a variable
a0c0a00f
CR
1488 using a valid subscript is legal, and b\bba\bas\bsh\bh will create an array if nec-
1489 essary.
17345e5a 1490
d233b485 1491 An array variable is considered set if a subscript has been assigned a
0001803f
CR
1492 value. The null string is a valid value.
1493
d233b485
CR
1494 It is possible to obtain the keys (indices) of an array as well as the
1495 values. ${!\b!_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\b@]} and ${!\b!_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\b*]} expand to the indices assigned in
ac50fbac
CR
1496 array variable _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. The treatment when in double quotes is similar to
1497 the expansion of the special parameters _\b@ and _\b* within double quotes.
1498
712f80b0
CR
1499 The u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt builtin is used to destroy arrays. u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt] de-
1500 stroys the array element at index _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt, for both indexed and asso-
1501 ciative arrays. Negative subscripts to indexed arrays are interpreted
1502 as described above. Unsetting the last element of an array variable
1503 does not unset the variable. u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, where _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is an array, or
1504 u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt], where _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt is *\b* or @\b@, removes the entire
1505 array.
d233b485
CR
1506
1507 When using a variable name with a subscript as an argument to a com-
712f80b0
CR
1508 mand, such as with u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt, without using the word expansion syntax de-
1509 scribed above, the argument is subject to pathname expansion. If path-
1510 name expansion is not desired, the argument should be quoted.
d233b485
CR
1511
1512 The d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be, l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl, and r\bre\bea\bad\bdo\bon\bnl\bly\by builtins each accept a -\b-a\ba option to
712f80b0
CR
1513 specify an indexed array and a -\b-A\bA option to specify an associative ar-
1514 ray. If both options are supplied, -\b-A\bA takes precedence. The r\bre\bea\bad\bd
d233b485 1515 builtin accepts a -\b-a\ba option to assign a list of words read from the
ac50fbac
CR
1516 standard input to an array. The s\bse\bet\bt and d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtins display array
1517 values in a way that allows them to be reused as assignments.
17345e5a
JA
1518
1519E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN
1520 Expansion is performed on the command line after it has been split into
d233b485
CR
1521 words. There are seven kinds of expansion performed: _\bb_\br_\ba_\bc_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn,
1522 _\bt_\bi_\bl_\bd_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn, _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br _\ba_\bn_\bd _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn, _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\bi_\bt_\bu_\b-
17345e5a
JA
1523 _\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn, _\ba_\br_\bi_\bt_\bh_\bm_\be_\bt_\bi_\bc _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn, _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd _\bs_\bp_\bl_\bi_\bt_\bt_\bi_\bn_\bg, and _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bh_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn.
1524
ac50fbac 1525 The order of expansions is: brace expansion; tilde expansion, parameter
d233b485
CR
1526 and variable expansion, arithmetic expansion, and command substitution
1527 (done in a left-to-right fashion); word splitting; and pathname expan-
ac50fbac 1528 sion.
17345e5a
JA
1529
1530 On systems that can support it, there is an additional expansion avail-
d233b485
CR
1531 able: _\bp_\br_\bo_\bc_\be_\bs_\bs _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\bi_\bt_\bu_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn. This is performed at the same time as
1532 tilde, parameter, variable, and arithmetic expansion and command sub-
ac50fbac 1533 stitution.
17345e5a 1534
d233b485
CR
1535 After these expansions are performed, quote characters present in the
1536 original word are removed unless they have been quoted themselves
a0c0a00f
CR
1537 (_\bq_\bu_\bo_\bt_\be _\br_\be_\bm_\bo_\bv_\ba_\bl).
1538
712f80b0
CR
1539 Only brace expansion, word splitting, and pathname expansion can in-
1540 crease the number of words of the expansion; other expansions expand a
1541 single word to a single word. The only exceptions to this are the ex-
1542 pansions of "$\b$@\b@" and "$\b${\b{_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[\b[@\b@]\b]}\b}", and, in most cases, $\b$*\b* and
d233b485 1543 $\b${\b{_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[\b[*\b*]\b]}\b} as explained above (see P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS).
17345e5a
JA
1544
1545 B\bBr\bra\bac\bce\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
1546 _\bB_\br_\ba_\bc_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn is a mechanism by which arbitrary strings may be gener-
1547 ated. This mechanism is similar to _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bh_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn, but the file-
1548 names generated need not exist. Patterns to be brace expanded take the
1549 form of an optional _\bp_\br_\be_\ba_\bm_\bb_\bl_\be, followed by either a series of comma-sep-
1550 arated strings or a sequence expression between a pair of braces, fol-
1551 lowed by an optional _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bt_\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt. The preamble is prefixed to each
1552 string contained within the braces, and the postscript is then appended
1553 to each resulting string, expanding left to right.
1554
1555 Brace expansions may be nested. The results of each expanded string
1556 are not sorted; left to right order is preserved. For example,
1557 a{\b{d,c,b}\b}e expands into `ade ace abe'.
1558
1559 A sequence expression takes the form {\b{_\bx.\b..\b._\by[\b[.\b..\b._\bi_\bn_\bc_\br]\b]}\b}, where _\bx and _\by are
1560 either integers or single characters, and _\bi_\bn_\bc_\br, an optional increment,
1561 is an integer. When integers are supplied, the expression expands to
1562 each number between _\bx and _\by, inclusive. Supplied integers may be pre-
1563 fixed with _\b0 to force each term to have the same width. When either _\bx
1564 or _\by begins with a zero, the shell attempts to force all generated
1565 terms to contain the same number of digits, zero-padding where neces-
1566 sary. When characters are supplied, the expression expands to each
712f80b0
CR
1567 character lexicographically between _\bx and _\by, inclusive, using the de-
1568 fault C locale. Note that both _\bx and _\by must be of the same type. When
1569 the increment is supplied, it is used as the difference between each
1570 term. The default increment is 1 or -1 as appropriate.
17345e5a
JA
1571
1572 Brace expansion is performed before any other expansions, and any char-
1573 acters special to other expansions are preserved in the result. It is
1574 strictly textual. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh does not apply any syntactic interpretation to
1575 the context of the expansion or the text between the braces.
1576
1577 A correctly-formed brace expansion must contain unquoted opening and
712f80b0
CR
1578 closing braces, and at least one unquoted comma or a valid sequence ex-
1579 pression. Any incorrectly formed brace expansion is left unchanged. A
1580 {\b{ or ,\b, may be quoted with a backslash to prevent its being considered
17345e5a 1581 part of a brace expression. To avoid conflicts with parameter expan-
d233b485
CR
1582 sion, the string $\b${\b{ is not considered eligible for brace expansion, and
1583 inhibits brace expansion until the closing }\b}.
17345e5a
JA
1584
1585 This construct is typically used as shorthand when the common prefix of
1586 the strings to be generated is longer than in the above example:
1587
1588 mkdir /usr/local/src/bash/{old,new,dist,bugs}
1589 or
1590 chown root /usr/{ucb/{ex,edit},lib/{ex?.?*,how_ex}}
1591
d233b485
CR
1592 Brace expansion introduces a slight incompatibility with historical
1593 versions of s\bsh\bh. s\bsh\bh does not treat opening or closing braces specially
1594 when they appear as part of a word, and preserves them in the output.
1595 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh removes braces from words as a consequence of brace expansion.
1596 For example, a word entered to s\bsh\bh as _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b{_\b1_\b,_\b2_\b} appears identically in
1597 the output. The same word is output as _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2 after expansion by
1598 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. If strict compatibility with s\bsh\bh is desired, start b\bba\bas\bsh\bh with the
17345e5a
JA
1599 +\b+B\bB option or disable brace expansion with the +\b+B\bB option to the s\bse\bet\bt com-
1600 mand (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
1601
1602 T\bTi\bil\bld\bde\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
d233b485
CR
1603 If a word begins with an unquoted tilde character (`~\b~'), all of the
1604 characters preceding the first unquoted slash (or all characters, if
1605 there is no unquoted slash) are considered a _\bt_\bi_\bl_\bd_\be_\b-_\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx. If none of
1606 the characters in the tilde-prefix are quoted, the characters in the
1607 tilde-prefix following the tilde are treated as a possible _\bl_\bo_\bg_\bi_\bn _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
1608 If this login name is the null string, the tilde is replaced with the
1609 value of the shell parameter H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE. If H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE is unset, the home direc-
1610 tory of the user executing the shell is substituted instead. Other-
1611 wise, the tilde-prefix is replaced with the home directory associated
17345e5a
JA
1612 with the specified login name.
1613
712f80b0
CR
1614 If the tilde-prefix is a `~+', the value of the shell variable P\bPW\bWD\bD re-
1615 places the tilde-prefix. If the tilde-prefix is a `~-', the value of
d233b485
CR
1616 the shell variable O\bOL\bLD\bDP\bPW\bWD\bD, if it is set, is substituted. If the char-
1617 acters following the tilde in the tilde-prefix consist of a number _\bN,
1618 optionally prefixed by a `+' or a `-', the tilde-prefix is replaced
17345e5a
JA
1619 with the corresponding element from the directory stack, as it would be
1620 displayed by the d\bdi\bir\brs\bs builtin invoked with the tilde-prefix as an argu-
d233b485 1621 ment. If the characters following the tilde in the tilde-prefix con-
17345e5a
JA
1622 sist of a number without a leading `+' or `-', `+' is assumed.
1623
1624 If the login name is invalid, or the tilde expansion fails, the word is
1625 unchanged.
1626
1627 Each variable assignment is checked for unquoted tilde-prefixes immedi-
1628 ately following a :\b: or the first =\b=. In these cases, tilde expansion is
712f80b0
CR
1629 also performed. Consequently, one may use filenames with tildes in as-
1630 signments to P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, M\bMA\bAI\bIL\bLP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, and C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, and the shell assigns the ex-
1631 panded value.
17345e5a 1632
d233b485
CR
1633 Bash also performs tilde expansion on words satisfying the conditions
1634 of variable assignments (as described above under P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS) when they
1635 appear as arguments to simple commands. Bash does not do this, except
1636 for the _\bd_\be_\bc_\bl_\ba_\br_\ba_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn commands listed above, when in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be.
1637
17345e5a
JA
1638 P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\br E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
1639 The `$\b$' character introduces parameter expansion, command substitution,
1640 or arithmetic expansion. The parameter name or symbol to be expanded
1641 may be enclosed in braces, which are optional but serve to protect the
1642 variable to be expanded from characters immediately following it which
1643 could be interpreted as part of the name.
1644
1645 When braces are used, the matching ending brace is the first `}\b}' not
712f80b0
CR
1646 escaped by a backslash or within a quoted string, and not within an em-
1647 bedded arithmetic expansion, command substitution, or parameter expan-
1648 sion.
17345e5a
JA
1649
1650 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br}
1651 The value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is substituted. The braces are required
1652 when _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is a positional parameter with more than one
1653 digit, or when _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is followed by a character which is not
ac50fbac
CR
1654 to be interpreted as part of its name. The _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is a shell
1655 parameter as described above P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS) or an array reference
1656 (A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs).
1657
a0c0a00f 1658 If the first character of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an exclamation point (!\b!), and
d233b485 1659 _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is not a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf, it introduces a level of indirection. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh
712f80b0
CR
1660 uses the value formed by expanding the rest of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br as the new _\bp_\ba_\b-
1661 _\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br; this is then expanded and that value is used in the rest of
d233b485 1662 the expansion, rather than the expansion of the original _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br.
712f80b0
CR
1663 This is known as _\bi_\bn_\bd_\bi_\br_\be_\bc_\bt _\be_\bx_\bp_\ba_\bn_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn. The value is subject to tilde ex-
1664 pansion, parameter expansion, command substitution, and arithmetic ex-
1665 pansion. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is a nameref, this expands to the name of the
d233b485
CR
1666 parameter referenced by _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br instead of performing the complete
1667 indirect expansion. The exceptions to this are the expansions of
1668 ${!\b!_\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx*\b*} and ${!\b!_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\b@]} described below. The exclamation point
1669 must immediately follow the left brace in order to introduce indirec-
1670 tion.
17345e5a
JA
1671
1672 In each of the cases below, _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is subject to tilde expansion, parame-
1673 ter expansion, command substitution, and arithmetic expansion.
1674
712f80b0
CR
1675 When not performing substring expansion, using the forms documented be-
1676 low (e.g., :\b:-\b-), b\bba\bas\bsh\bh tests for a parameter that is unset or null.
1677 Omitting the colon results in a test only for a parameter that is un-
1678 set.
17345e5a
JA
1679
1680 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:-\b-_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
ac50fbac
CR
1681 U\bUs\bse\be D\bDe\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt V\bVa\bal\blu\bue\bes\bs. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is unset or null, the expan-
1682 sion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is substituted. Otherwise, the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
17345e5a
JA
1683 is substituted.
1684 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:=\b=_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
712f80b0
CR
1685 A\bAs\bss\bsi\big\bgn\bn D\bDe\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt V\bVa\bal\blu\bue\bes\bs. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is unset or null, the ex-
1686 pansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is assigned to _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br. The value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\b-
1687 _\bt_\be_\br is then substituted. Positional parameters and special pa-
1688 rameters may not be assigned to in this way.
17345e5a 1689 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:?\b?_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
ac50fbac
CR
1690 D\bDi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by E\bEr\brr\bro\bor\br i\bif\bf N\bNu\bul\bll\bl o\bor\br U\bUn\bns\bse\bet\bt. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is null or unset,
1691 the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd (or a message to that effect if _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is
1692 not present) is written to the standard error and the shell, if
17345e5a
JA
1693 it is not interactive, exits. Otherwise, the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1694 is substituted.
1695 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:+\b+_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
ac50fbac 1696 U\bUs\bse\be A\bAl\blt\bte\ber\brn\bna\bat\bte\be V\bVa\bal\blu\bue\be. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is null or unset, nothing is
17345e5a
JA
1697 substituted, otherwise the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is substituted.
1698 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:_\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt}
1699 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br:\b:_\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt:\b:_\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh}
ac50fbac
CR
1700 S\bSu\bub\bbs\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn. Expands to up to _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh characters of the
1701 value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br starting at the character specified by _\bo_\bf_\bf_\b-
1702 _\bs_\be_\bt. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@, an indexed array subscripted by @\b@ or *\b*,
1703 or an associative array name, the results differ as described
1704 below. If _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh is omitted, expands to the substring of the
1705 value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br starting at the character specified by _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt
1706 and extending to the end of the value. _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh and _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt are
1707 arithmetic expressions (see A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN below).
1708
1709 If _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt evaluates to a number less than zero, the value is
712f80b0
CR
1710 used as an offset in characters from the end of the value of _\bp_\ba_\b-
1711 _\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br. If _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh evaluates to a number less than zero, it is
1712 interpreted as an offset in characters from the end of the value
1713 of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br rather than a number of characters, and the expan-
1714 sion is the characters between _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt and that result. Note
1715 that a negative offset must be separated from the colon by at
1716 least one space to avoid being confused with the :\b:-\b- expansion.
1717
1718 If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@, the result is _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh positional parameters
ac50fbac 1719 beginning at _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt. A negative _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt is taken relative to one
712f80b0
CR
1720 greater than the greatest positional parameter, so an offset of
1721 -1 evaluates to the last positional parameter. It is an expan-
ac50fbac
CR
1722 sion error if _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh evaluates to a number less than zero.
1723
1724 If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an indexed array name subscripted by @ or *, the
712f80b0
CR
1725 result is the _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh members of the array beginning with ${_\bp_\ba_\b-
1726 _\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br[_\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt]}. A negative _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt is taken relative to one
1727 greater than the maximum index of the specified array. It is an
1728 expansion error if _\bl_\be_\bn_\bg_\bt_\bh evaluates to a number less than zero.
ac50fbac 1729
712f80b0
CR
1730 Substring expansion applied to an associative array produces un-
1731 defined results.
ac50fbac
CR
1732
1733 Substring indexing is zero-based unless the positional parame-
712f80b0
CR
1734 ters are used, in which case the indexing starts at 1 by de-
1735 fault. If _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt is 0, and the positional parameters are used,
1736 $\b$0\b0 is prefixed to the list.
17345e5a
JA
1737
1738 ${!\b!_\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx*\b*}
1739 ${!\b!_\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx@\b@}
495aee44 1740 N\bNa\bam\bme\bes\bs m\bma\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx. Expands to the names of variables whose
17345e5a 1741 names begin with _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx, separated by the first character of the
495aee44
CR
1742 I\bIF\bFS\bS special variable. When _\b@ is used and the expansion appears
1743 within double quotes, each variable name expands to a separate
17345e5a
JA
1744 word.
1745
1746 ${!\b!_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\b@]}
1747 ${!\b!_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[_\b*]}
495aee44
CR
1748 L\bLi\bis\bst\bt o\bof\bf a\bar\brr\bra\bay\by k\bke\bey\bys\bs. If _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is an array variable, expands to
1749 the list of array indices (keys) assigned in _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is
1750 not an array, expands to 0 if _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set and null otherwise.
1751 When _\b@ is used and the expansion appears within double quotes,
17345e5a
JA
1752 each key expands to a separate word.
1753
1754 ${#\b#_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br}
712f80b0
CR
1755 P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\br l\ble\ben\bng\bgt\bth\bh. The length in characters of the value of _\bp_\ba_\b-
1756 _\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is substituted. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is *\b* or @\b@, the value sub-
1757 stituted is the number of positional parameters. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1758 is an array name subscripted by *\b* or @\b@, the value substituted is
1759 the number of elements in the array. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an indexed
1760 array name subscripted by a negative number, that number is in-
1761 terpreted as relative to one greater than the maximum index of
1762 _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br, so negative indices count back from the end of the
1763 array, and an index of -1 references the last element.
17345e5a
JA
1764
1765 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br#\b#_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
1766 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br#\b##\b#_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
495aee44 1767 R\bRe\bem\bmo\bov\bve\be m\bma\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx p\bpa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn. The _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is expanded to produce
d233b485
CR
1768 a pattern just as in pathname expansion, and matched against the
1769 expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br using the rules described under P\bPa\bat\bt-\b-
712f80b0
CR
1770 t\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg below. If the pattern matches the beginning of
1771 the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br, then the result of the expansion is the
1772 expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br with the shortest matching pattern
1773 (the ``#\b#'' case) or the longest matching pattern (the ``#\b##\b#''
1774 case) deleted. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@ or *\b*, the pattern removal op-
1775 eration is applied to each positional parameter in turn, and the
1776 expansion is the resultant list. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an array vari-
1777 able subscripted with @\b@ or *\b*, the pattern removal operation is
1778 applied to each member of the array in turn, and the expansion
1779 is the resultant list.
d233b485
CR
1780
1781 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br%\b%_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
1782 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br%\b%%\b%_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd}
1783 R\bRe\bem\bmo\bov\bve\be m\bma\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg s\bsu\buf\bff\bfi\bix\bx p\bpa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn. The _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is expanded to produce
1784 a pattern just as in pathname expansion, and matched against the
1785 expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br using the rules described under P\bPa\bat\bt-\b-
712f80b0
CR
1786 t\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg below. If the pattern matches a trailing portion
1787 of the expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br, then the result of the ex-
1788 pansion is the expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br with the shortest
1789 matching pattern (the ``%\b%'' case) or the longest matching pat-
1790 tern (the ``%\b%%\b%'' case) deleted. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@ or *\b*, the
1791 pattern removal operation is applied to each positional parame-
17345e5a 1792 ter in turn, and the expansion is the resultant list. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\b-
712f80b0
CR
1793 _\be_\bt_\be_\br is an array variable subscripted with @\b@ or *\b*, the pattern
1794 removal operation is applied to each member of the array in
17345e5a
JA
1795 turn, and the expansion is the resultant list.
1796
17345e5a 1797 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br/\b/_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn/\b/_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg}
495aee44 1798 P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn s\bsu\bub\bbs\bst\bti\bit\btu\but\bti\bio\bon\bn. The _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn is expanded to produce a pat-
712f80b0
CR
1799 tern just as in pathname expansion, _\bP_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is expanded and
1800 the longest match of _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn against its value is replaced with
1801 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. The match is performed using the rules described under
1802 P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg below. If _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn begins with /\b/, all matches
1803 of _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn are replaced with _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. Normally only the first
1804 match is replaced. If _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn begins with #\b#, it must match at
1805 the beginning of the expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br. If _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn
d233b485 1806 begins with %\b%, it must match at the end of the expanded value of
712f80b0
CR
1807 _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br. If _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is null, matches of _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn are deleted
1808 and the /\b/ following _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn may be omitted. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh
1809 shell option is enabled, the match is performed without regard
1810 to the case of alphabetic characters. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@ or *\b*,
d233b485
CR
1811 the substitution operation is applied to each positional parame-
1812 ter in turn, and the expansion is the resultant list. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\b-
1813 _\be_\bt_\be_\br is an array variable subscripted with @\b@ or *\b*, the substitu-
712f80b0 1814 tion operation is applied to each member of the array in turn,
d233b485 1815 and the expansion is the resultant list.
17345e5a
JA
1816
1817 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br^\b^_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn}
1818 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br^\b^^\b^_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn}
1819 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br,\b,_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn}
1820 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br,\b,,\b,_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn}
712f80b0
CR
1821 C\bCa\bas\bse\be m\bmo\bod\bdi\bif\bfi\bic\bca\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn. This expansion modifies the case of alpha-
1822 betic characters in _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br. The _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn is expanded to pro-
ac50fbac 1823 duce a pattern just as in pathname expansion. Each character in
712f80b0
CR
1824 the expanded value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is tested against _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn, and,
1825 if it matches the pattern, its case is converted. The pattern
1826 should not attempt to match more than one character. The ^\b^ op-
1827 erator converts lowercase letters matching _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn to uppercase;
1828 the ,\b, operator converts matching uppercase letters to lowercase.
1829 The ^\b^^\b^ and ,\b,,\b, expansions convert each matched character in the
1830 expanded value; the ^\b^ and ,\b, expansions match and convert only
1831 the first character in the expanded value. If _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn is omit-
1832 ted, it is treated like a ?\b?, which matches every character. If
1833 _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@ or *\b*, the case modification operation is applied
1834 to each positional parameter in turn, and the expansion is the
1835 resultant list. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an array variable subscripted
1836 with @\b@ or *\b*, the case modification operation is applied to each
1837 member of the array in turn, and the expansion is the resultant
1838 list.
17345e5a 1839
a0c0a00f
CR
1840 ${_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br@\b@_\bo_\bp_\be_\br_\ba_\bt_\bo_\br}
1841 P\bPa\bar\bra\bam\bme\bet\bte\ber\br t\btr\bra\ban\bns\bsf\bfo\bor\brm\bma\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn. The expansion is either a transforma-
712f80b0
CR
1842 tion of the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br or information about _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1843 itself, depending on the value of _\bo_\bp_\be_\br_\ba_\bt_\bo_\br. Each _\bo_\bp_\be_\br_\ba_\bt_\bo_\br is a
a0c0a00f
CR
1844 single letter:
1845
712f80b0
CR
1846 U\bU The expansion is a string that is the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1847 with lowercase alphabetic characters converted to upper-
1848 case.
1849 u\bu The expansion is a string that is the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1850 with the first character converted to uppercase, if it is
1851 alphabetic.
1852 L\bL The expansion is a string that is the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1853 with uppercase alphabetic characters converted to lower-
1854 case.
1855 Q\bQ The expansion is a string that is the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
a0c0a00f 1856 quoted in a format that can be reused as input.
712f80b0
CR
1857 E\bE The expansion is a string that is the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br
1858 with backslash escape sequences expanded as with the
d233b485 1859 $\b$'\b'.\b..\b..\b.'\b' quoting mechanism.
a0c0a00f
CR
1860 P\bP The expansion is a string that is the result of expanding
1861 the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br as if it were a prompt string (see
1862 P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG below).
712f80b0
CR
1863 A\bA The expansion is a string in the form of an assignment
1864 statement or d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be command that, if evaluated, will
a0c0a00f 1865 recreate _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br with its attributes and value.
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1866 K\bK Produces a possibly-quoted version of the value of _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\b-
1867 _\be_\bt_\be_\br, except that it prints the values of indexed and as-
1868 sociative arrays as a sequence of quoted key-value pairs
1869 (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs above).
d233b485 1870 a\ba The expansion is a string consisting of flag values rep-
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1871 resenting _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br's attributes.
1872
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1873 If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is @\b@ or *\b*, the operation is applied to each posi-
1874 tional parameter in turn, and the expansion is the resultant
1875 list. If _\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br is an array variable subscripted with @\b@ or
1876 *\b*, the operation is applied to each member of the array in turn,
1877 and the expansion is the resultant list.
a0c0a00f 1878
d233b485 1879 The result of the expansion is subject to word splitting and
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1880 pathname expansion as described below.
1881
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1882 C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd S\bSu\bub\bbs\bst\bti\bit\btu\but\bti\bio\bon\bn
1883 _\bC_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\bi_\bt_\bu_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn allows the output of a command to replace the com-
1884 mand name. There are two forms:
1885
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1886 $\b$(\b(_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd)\b)
1887 or
1888 `\b`_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd`\b`
1889
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1890 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh performs the expansion by executing _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd in a subshell environ-
1891 ment and replacing the command substitution with the standard output of
1892 the command, with any trailing newlines deleted. Embedded newlines are
d233b485
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1893 not deleted, but they may be removed during word splitting. The com-
1894 mand substitution $\b$(\b(c\bca\bat\bt _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be)\b) can be replaced by the equivalent but
a0c0a00f 1895 faster $\b$(\b(<\b< _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be)\b).
17345e5a 1896
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1897 When the old-style backquote form of substitution is used, backslash
1898 retains its literal meaning except when followed by $\b$, `\b`, or \\b\. The
17345e5a 1899 first backquote not preceded by a backslash terminates the command sub-
d233b485 1900 stitution. When using the $(_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd) form, all characters between the
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1901 parentheses make up the command; none are treated specially.
1902
1903 Command substitutions may be nested. To nest when using the backquoted
1904 form, escape the inner backquotes with backslashes.
1905
d233b485 1906 If the substitution appears within double quotes, word splitting and
17345e5a
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1907 pathname expansion are not performed on the results.
1908
1909 A\bAr\bri\bit\bth\bhm\bme\bet\bti\bic\bc E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
d233b485
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1910 Arithmetic expansion allows the evaluation of an arithmetic expression
1911 and the substitution of the result. The format for arithmetic expan-
17345e5a
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1912 sion is:
1913
1914 $\b$(\b((\b(_\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn)\b))\b)
1915
d233b485 1916 The _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn is treated as if it were within double quotes, but a
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1917 double quote inside the parentheses is not treated specially. All to-
1918 kens in the expression undergo parameter and variable expansion, com-
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1919 mand substitution, and quote removal. The result is treated as the
1920 arithmetic expression to be evaluated. Arithmetic expansions may be
17345e5a
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1921 nested.
1922
d233b485 1923 The evaluation is performed according to the rules listed below under
17345e5a
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1924 A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN. If _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn is invalid, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh prints a message
1925 indicating failure and no substitution occurs.
1926
1927 P\bPr\bro\boc\bce\bes\bss\bs S\bSu\bub\bbs\bst\bti\bit\btu\but\bti\bio\bon\bn
d233b485
CR
1928 _\bP_\br_\bo_\bc_\be_\bs_\bs _\bs_\bu_\bb_\bs_\bt_\bi_\bt_\bu_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn allows a process's input or output to be referred
1929 to using a filename. It takes the form of <\b<(\b(_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b) or >\b>(\b(_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b). The
1930 process _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is run asynchronously, and its input or output appears as
a0c0a00f 1931 a filename. This filename is passed as an argument to the current com-
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1932 mand as the result of the expansion. If the >\b>(\b(_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b) form is used,
1933 writing to the file will provide input for _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt. If the <\b<(\b(_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b) form
1934 is used, the file passed as an argument should be read to obtain the
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1935 output of _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt. Process substitution is supported on systems that sup-
1936 port named pipes (_\bF_\bI_\bF_\bO_\bs) or the /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/f\bfd\bd method of naming open files.
17345e5a 1937
d233b485
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1938 When available, process substitution is performed simultaneously with
1939 parameter and variable expansion, command substitution, and arithmetic
17345e5a
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1940 expansion.
1941
1942 W\bWo\bor\brd\bd S\bSp\bpl\bli\bit\btt\bti\bin\bng\bg
d233b485
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1943 The shell scans the results of parameter expansion, command substitu-
1944 tion, and arithmetic expansion that did not occur within double quotes
17345e5a
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1945 for _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd _\bs_\bp_\bl_\bi_\bt_\bt_\bi_\bn_\bg.
1946
d233b485
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1947 The shell treats each character of I\bIF\bFS\bS as a delimiter, and splits the
1948 results of the other expansions into words using these characters as
1949 field terminators. If I\bIF\bFS\bS is unset, or its value is exactly
1950 <\b<s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be>\b><\b<t\bta\bab\bb>\b><\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b>, the default, then sequences of <\b<s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be>\b>, <\b<t\bta\bab\bb>\b>,
1951 and <\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b> at the beginning and end of the results of the previous
1952 expansions are ignored, and any sequence of I\bIF\bFS\bS characters not at the
1953 beginning or end serves to delimit words. If I\bIF\bFS\bS has a value other
1954 than the default, then sequences of the whitespace characters s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be,
1955 t\bta\bab\bb, and n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be are ignored at the beginning and end of the word, as
1956 long as the whitespace character is in the value of I\bIF\bFS\bS (an I\bIF\bFS\bS white-
1957 space character). Any character in I\bIF\bFS\bS that is not I\bIF\bFS\bS whitespace,
a0c0a00f 1958 along with any adjacent I\bIF\bFS\bS whitespace characters, delimits a field. A
d233b485 1959 sequence of I\bIF\bFS\bS whitespace characters is also treated as a delimiter.
a0c0a00f
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1960 If the value of I\bIF\bFS\bS is null, no word splitting occurs.
1961
d233b485 1962 Explicit null arguments ("\b""\b" or '\b''\b') are retained and passed to commands
a0c0a00f
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1963 as empty strings. Unquoted implicit null arguments, resulting from the
1964 expansion of parameters that have no values, are removed. If a parame-
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CR
1965 ter with no value is expanded within double quotes, a null argument re-
1966 sults and is retained and passed to a command as an empty string. When
1967 a quoted null argument appears as part of a word whose expansion is
1968 non-null, the null argument is removed. That is, the word -d'' becomes
1969 -d after word splitting and null argument removal.
17345e5a
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1970
1971 Note that if no expansion occurs, no splitting is performed.
1972
1973 P\bPa\bat\bth\bhn\bna\bam\bme\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
d233b485
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1974 After word splitting, unless the -\b-f\bf option has been set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh scans
1975 each word for the characters *\b*, ?\b?, and [\b[. If one of these characters
712f80b0
CR
1976 appears, and is not quoted, then the word is regarded as a _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn, and
1977 replaced with an alphabetically sorted list of filenames matching the
1978 pattern (see P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg below). If no matching filenames are
1979 found, and the shell option n\bnu\bul\bll\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb is not enabled, the word is left
1980 unchanged. If the n\bnu\bul\bll\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb option is set, and no matches are found,
1981 the word is removed. If the f\bfa\bai\bil\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option is set, and no
1982 matches are found, an error message is printed and the command is not
1983 executed. If the shell option n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\beg\bgl\blo\bob\bb is enabled, the match is per-
1984 formed without regard to the case of alphabetic characters. When a
1985 pattern is used for pathname expansion, the character `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b' at the
1986 start of a name or immediately following a slash must be matched ex-
1987 plicitly, unless the shell option d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb is set. The filenames `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b'
1988 and `\b``\b`.\b..\b.'\b''\b' must always be matched explicitly, even if d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb is set.
1989 In other cases, the `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b' character is not treated specially. When
1990 matching a pathname, the slash character must always be matched explic-
1991 itly by a slash in the pattern, but in other matching contexts it can
1992 be matched by a special pattern character as described below under P\bPa\bat\bt-\b-
1993 t\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg. See the description of s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt below under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN
1994 C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS for a description of the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\beg\bgl\blo\bob\bb, n\bnu\bul\bll\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb, f\bfa\bai\bil\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb, and
1995 d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell options.
d233b485
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1996
1997 The G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE shell variable may be used to restrict the set of file
1998 names matching a _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn. If G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is set, each matching file
1999 name that also matches one of the patterns in G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is removed
2000 from the list of matches. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\beg\bgl\blo\bob\bb option is set, the match-
2001 ing against the patterns in G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is performed without regard to
2002 case. The filenames `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b' and `\b``\b`.\b..\b.'\b''\b' are always ignored when G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bG-\b-
2003 N\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is set and not null. However, setting G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE to a non-null
2004 value has the effect of enabling the d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option, so all other
2005 filenames beginning with a `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b' will match. To get the old behavior
2006 of ignoring filenames beginning with a `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b', make `\b``\b`.\b.*\b*'\b''\b' one of the
2007 patterns in G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE. The d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb option is disabled when G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE
2008 is unset. The pattern matching honors the setting of the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell
a0c0a00f 2009 option.
17345e5a
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2010
2011 P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg
2012
2013 Any character that appears in a pattern, other than the special pattern
d233b485
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2014 characters described below, matches itself. The NUL character may not
2015 occur in a pattern. A backslash escapes the following character; the
2016 escaping backslash is discarded when matching. The special pattern
17345e5a
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2017 characters must be quoted if they are to be matched literally.
2018
2019 The special pattern characters have the following meanings:
2020
d233b485
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2021 *\b* Matches any string, including the null string. When the
2022 g\bgl\blo\bob\bbs\bst\bta\bar\br shell option is enabled, and *\b* is used in a
2023 pathname expansion context, two adjacent *\b*s used as a
712f80b0
CR
2024 single pattern will match all files and zero or more di-
2025 rectories and subdirectories. If followed by a /\b/, two
d233b485 2026 adjacent *\b*s will match only directories and subdirecto-
495aee44
CR
2027 ries.
2028 ?\b? Matches any single character.
d233b485
CR
2029 [\b[.\b..\b..\b.]\b] Matches any one of the enclosed characters. A pair of
2030 characters separated by a hyphen denotes a _\br_\ba_\bn_\bg_\be _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\be_\bs_\b-
2031 _\bs_\bi_\bo_\bn; any character that falls between those two charac-
712f80b0
CR
2032 ters, inclusive, using the current locale's collating se-
2033 quence and character set, is matched. If the first char-
2034 acter following the [\b[ is a !\b! or a ^\b^ then any character
2035 not enclosed is matched. The sorting order of characters
2036 in range expressions is determined by the current locale
2037 and the values of the L\bLC\bC_\b_C\bCO\bOL\bLL\bLA\bAT\bTE\bE or L\bLC\bC_\b_A\bAL\bLL\bL shell vari-
2038 ables, if set. To obtain the traditional interpretation
2039 of range expressions, where [\b[a\ba-\b-d\bd]\b] is equivalent to
d233b485
CR
2040 [\b[a\bab\bbc\bcd\bd]\b], set value of the L\bLC\bC_\b_A\bAL\bLL\bL shell variable to C\bC, or
2041 enable the g\bgl\blo\bob\bba\bas\bsc\bci\bii\bir\bra\ban\bng\bge\bes\bs shell option. A -\b- may be
ac50fbac
CR
2042 matched by including it as the first or last character in
2043 the set. A ]\b] may be matched by including it as the first
2044 character in the set.
2045
d233b485 2046 Within [\b[ and ]\b], _\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\be_\br _\bc_\bl_\ba_\bs_\bs_\be_\bs can be specified using
495aee44
CR
2047 the syntax [\b[:\b:_\bc_\bl_\ba_\bs_\bs:\b:]\b], where _\bc_\bl_\ba_\bs_\bs is one of the following
2048 classes defined in the POSIX standard:
d233b485 2049 a\bal\bln\bnu\bum\bm a\bal\blp\bph\bha\ba a\bas\bsc\bci\bii\bi b\bbl\bla\ban\bnk\bk c\bcn\bnt\btr\brl\bl d\bdi\big\bgi\bit\bt g\bgr\bra\bap\bph\bh l\blo\bow\bwe\ber\br p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\bt
495aee44
CR
2050 p\bpu\bun\bnc\bct\bt s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be u\bup\bpp\bpe\ber\br w\bwo\bor\brd\bd x\bxd\bdi\big\bgi\bit\bt
2051 A character class matches any character belonging to that
2052 class. The w\bwo\bor\brd\bd character class matches letters, digits,
2053 and the character _.
2054
712f80b0
CR
2055 Within [\b[ and ]\b], an _\be_\bq_\bu_\bi_\bv_\ba_\bl_\be_\bn_\bc_\be _\bc_\bl_\ba_\bs_\bs can be specified us-
2056 ing the syntax [\b[=\b=_\bc=\b=]\b], which matches all characters with
2057 the same collation weight (as defined by the current lo-
2058 cale) as the character _\bc.
495aee44
CR
2059
2060 Within [\b[ and ]\b], the syntax [\b[.\b._\bs_\by_\bm_\bb_\bo_\bl.\b.]\b] matches the collat-
2061 ing symbol _\bs_\by_\bm_\bb_\bo_\bl.
17345e5a
JA
2062
2063 If the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option is enabled using the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin, several
d233b485 2064 extended pattern matching operators are recognized. In the following
17345e5a
JA
2065 description, a _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is a list of one or more patterns separated
2066 by a |\b|. Composite patterns may be formed using one or more of the fol-
2067 lowing sub-patterns:
2068
2069 ?\b?(\b(_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b)
2070 Matches zero or one occurrence of the given patterns
2071 *\b*(\b(_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b)
2072 Matches zero or more occurrences of the given patterns
2073 +\b+(\b(_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b)
2074 Matches one or more occurrences of the given patterns
2075 @\b@(\b(_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b)
2076 Matches one of the given patterns
2077 !\b!(\b(_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn_\b-_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt)\b)
2078 Matches anything except one of the given patterns
2079
712f80b0
CR
2080 Complicated extended pattern matching against long strings is slow, es-
2081 pecially when the patterns contain alternations and the strings contain
2082 multiple matches. Using separate matches against shorter strings, or
2083 using arrays of strings instead of a single long string, may be faster.
d233b485 2084
17345e5a
JA
2085 Q\bQu\buo\bot\bte\be R\bRe\bem\bmo\bov\bva\bal\bl
2086 After the preceding expansions, all unquoted occurrences of the charac-
712f80b0 2087 ters \\b\, '\b', and "\b" that did not result from one of the above expansions
17345e5a
JA
2088 are removed.
2089
2090R\bRE\bED\bDI\bIR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN
712f80b0
CR
2091 Before a command is executed, its input and output may be _\br_\be_\bd_\bi_\br_\be_\bc_\bt_\be_\bd
2092 using a special notation interpreted by the shell. Redirection allows
2093 commands' file handles to be duplicated, opened, closed, made to refer
ac50fbac 2094 to different files, and can change the files the command reads from and
712f80b0
CR
2095 writes to. Redirection may also be used to modify file handles in the
2096 current shell execution environment. The following redirection opera-
ac50fbac 2097 tors may precede or appear anywhere within a _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd or may fol-
712f80b0 2098 low a _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd. Redirections are processed in the order they appear,
ac50fbac 2099 from left to right.
17345e5a 2100
712f80b0 2101 Each redirection that may be preceded by a file descriptor number may
0001803f
CR
2102 instead be preceded by a word of the form {_\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be}. In this case, for
2103 each redirection operator except >&- and <&-, the shell will allocate a
712f80b0
CR
2104 file descriptor greater than or equal to 10 and assign it to _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
2105 If >&- or <&- is preceded by {_\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be}, the value of _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be defines
2106 the file descriptor to close. If {_\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be} is supplied, the redirect-
2107 ion persists beyond the scope of the command, allowing the shell pro-
d233b485
CR
2108 grammer to manage the file descriptor himself.
2109
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CR
2110 In the following descriptions, if the file descriptor number is omit-
2111 ted, and the first character of the redirection operator is <\b<, the re-
2112 direction refers to the standard input (file descriptor 0). If the
2113 first character of the redirection operator is >\b>, the redirection
17345e5a
JA
2114 refers to the standard output (file descriptor 1).
2115
712f80b0
CR
2116 The word following the redirection operator in the following descrip-
2117 tions, unless otherwise noted, is subjected to brace expansion, tilde
2118 expansion, parameter and variable expansion, command substitution,
2119 arithmetic expansion, quote removal, pathname expansion, and word
ac50fbac 2120 splitting. If it expands to more than one word, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reports an error.
17345e5a 2121
712f80b0 2122 Note that the order of redirections is significant. For example, the
17345e5a
JA
2123 command
2124
2125 ls >\b> dirlist 2>\b>&\b&1
2126
712f80b0 2127 directs both standard output and standard error to the file _\bd_\bi_\br_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt,
17345e5a
JA
2128 while the command
2129
2130 ls 2>\b>&\b&1 >\b> dirlist
2131
712f80b0
CR
2132 directs only the standard output to file _\bd_\bi_\br_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt, because the standard
2133 error was duplicated from the standard output before the standard out-
0001803f 2134 put was redirected to _\bd_\bi_\br_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt.
17345e5a
JA
2135
2136 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh handles several filenames specially when they are used in redirec-
a0c0a00f
CR
2137 tions, as described in the following table. If the operating system on
2138 which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is running provides these special files, bash will use them;
712f80b0 2139 otherwise it will emulate them internally with the behavior described
a0c0a00f 2140 below.
17345e5a
JA
2141
2142 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/f\bfd\bd/\b/_\bf_\bd
712f80b0 2143 If _\bf_\bd is a valid integer, file descriptor _\bf_\bd is dupli-
17345e5a
JA
2144 cated.
2145 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/s\bst\btd\bdi\bin\bn
2146 File descriptor 0 is duplicated.
2147 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/s\bst\btd\bdo\bou\but\bt
2148 File descriptor 1 is duplicated.
2149 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/s\bst\btd\bde\ber\brr\br
2150 File descriptor 2 is duplicated.
2151 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/t\btc\bcp\bp/\b/_\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt/\b/_\bp_\bo_\br_\bt
2152 If _\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt is a valid hostname or Internet address, and _\bp_\bo_\br_\bt
712f80b0 2153 is an integer port number or service name, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts
ac50fbac 2154 to open the corresponding TCP socket.
17345e5a
JA
2155 /\b/d\bde\bev\bv/\b/u\bud\bdp\bp/\b/_\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt/\b/_\bp_\bo_\br_\bt
2156 If _\bh_\bo_\bs_\bt is a valid hostname or Internet address, and _\bp_\bo_\br_\bt
712f80b0 2157 is an integer port number or service name, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts
ac50fbac 2158 to open the corresponding UDP socket.
17345e5a
JA
2159
2160 A failure to open or create a file causes the redirection to fail.
2161
712f80b0
CR
2162 Redirections using file descriptors greater than 9 should be used with
2163 care, as they may conflict with file descriptors the shell uses inter-
17345e5a
JA
2164 nally.
2165
2166 R\bRe\bed\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bti\bin\bng\bg I\bIn\bnp\bpu\but\bt
2167 Redirection of input causes the file whose name results from the expan-
712f80b0 2168 sion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd to be opened for reading on file descriptor _\bn, or the
17345e5a
JA
2169 standard input (file descriptor 0) if _\bn is not specified.
2170
2171 The general format for redirecting input is:
2172
2173 [_\bn]<\b<_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2174
2175 R\bRe\bed\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bti\bin\bng\bg O\bOu\but\btp\bpu\but\bt
712f80b0
CR
2176 Redirection of output causes the file whose name results from the ex-
2177 pansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd to be opened for writing on file descriptor _\bn, or the
17345e5a 2178 standard output (file descriptor 1) if _\bn is not specified. If the file
712f80b0 2179 does not exist it is created; if it does exist it is truncated to zero
17345e5a
JA
2180 size.
2181
2182 The general format for redirecting output is:
2183
2184 [_\bn]>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2185
712f80b0
CR
2186 If the redirection operator is >\b>, and the n\bno\boc\bcl\blo\bob\bbb\bbe\ber\br option to the s\bse\bet\bt
2187 builtin has been enabled, the redirection will fail if the file whose
2188 name results from the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd exists and is a regular file.
17345e5a
JA
2189 If the redirection operator is >\b>|\b|, or the redirection operator is >\b> and
2190 the n\bno\boc\bcl\blo\bob\bbb\bbe\ber\br option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command is not enabled, the re-
2191 direction is attempted even if the file named by _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd exists.
2192
2193 A\bAp\bpp\bpe\ben\bnd\bdi\bin\bng\bg R\bRe\bed\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bte\bed\bd O\bOu\but\btp\bpu\but\bt
712f80b0
CR
2194 Redirection of output in this fashion causes the file whose name re-
2195 sults from the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd to be opened for appending on file de-
2196 scriptor _\bn, or the standard output (file descriptor 1) if _\bn is not
17345e5a
JA
2197 specified. If the file does not exist it is created.
2198
2199 The general format for appending output is:
2200
2201 [_\bn]>\b>>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2202
17345e5a 2203 R\bRe\bed\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bti\bin\bng\bg S\bSt\bta\ban\bnd\bda\bar\brd\bd O\bOu\but\btp\bpu\but\bt a\ban\bnd\bd S\bSt\bta\ban\bnd\bda\bar\brd\bd E\bEr\brr\bro\bor\br
712f80b0
CR
2204 This construct allows both the standard output (file descriptor 1) and
2205 the standard error output (file descriptor 2) to be redirected to the
17345e5a
JA
2206 file whose name is the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd.
2207
712f80b0
CR
2208 There are two formats for redirecting standard output and standard er-
2209 ror:
17345e5a
JA
2210
2211 &\b&>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2212 and
2213 >\b>&\b&_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2214
2215 Of the two forms, the first is preferred. This is semantically equiva-
2216 lent to
2217
2218 >\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd 2>\b>&\b&1
2219
712f80b0
CR
2220 When using the second form, _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd may not expand to a number or -\b-. If
2221 it does, other redirection operators apply (see D\bDu\bup\bpl\bli\bic\bca\bat\bti\bin\bng\bg F\bFi\bil\ble\be D\bDe\be-\b-
2222 s\bsc\bcr\bri\bip\bpt\bto\bor\brs\bs below) for compatibility reasons.
17345e5a
JA
2223
2224 A\bAp\bpp\bpe\ben\bnd\bdi\bin\bng\bg S\bSt\bta\ban\bnd\bda\bar\brd\bd O\bOu\but\btp\bpu\but\bt a\ban\bnd\bd S\bSt\bta\ban\bnd\bda\bar\brd\bd E\bEr\brr\bro\bor\br
712f80b0
CR
2225 This construct allows both the standard output (file descriptor 1) and
2226 the standard error output (file descriptor 2) to be appended to the
17345e5a
JA
2227 file whose name is the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd.
2228
2229 The format for appending standard output and standard error is:
2230
2231 &\b&>\b>>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2232
2233 This is semantically equivalent to
2234
2235 >\b>>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd 2>\b>&\b&1
2236
ac50fbac
CR
2237 (see D\bDu\bup\bpl\bli\bic\bca\bat\bti\bin\bng\bg F\bFi\bil\ble\be D\bDe\bes\bsc\bcr\bri\bip\bpt\bto\bor\brs\bs below).
2238
17345e5a 2239 H\bHe\ber\bre\be D\bDo\boc\bcu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs
712f80b0 2240 This type of redirection instructs the shell to read input from the
17345e5a 2241 current source until a line containing only _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt_\be_\br (with no trailing
712f80b0
CR
2242 blanks) is seen. All of the lines read up to that point are then used
2243 as the standard input (or file descriptor _\bn if _\bn is specified) for a
a0c0a00f 2244 command.
17345e5a
JA
2245
2246 The format of here-documents is:
2247
a0c0a00f 2248 [_\bn]<\b<<\b<[-\b-]_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
17345e5a
JA
2249 _\bh_\be_\br_\be_\b-_\bd_\bo_\bc_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt
2250 _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt_\be_\br
2251
712f80b0
CR
2252 No parameter and variable expansion, command substitution, arithmetic
2253 expansion, or pathname expansion is performed on _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd. If any part of
2254 _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is quoted, the _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt_\be_\br is the result of quote removal on _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd,
2255 and the lines in the here-document are not expanded. If _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is un-
2256 quoted, all lines of the here-document are subjected to parameter ex-
2257 pansion, command substitution, and arithmetic expansion, the character
2258 sequence \\b\<\b<n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be>\b> is ignored, and \\b\ must be used to quote the charac-
2259 ters \\b\, $\b$, and `\b`.
17345e5a
JA
2260
2261 If the redirection operator is <\b<<\b<-\b-, then all leading tab characters are
712f80b0
CR
2262 stripped from input lines and the line containing _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt_\be_\br. This al-
2263 lows here-documents within shell scripts to be indented in a natural
17345e5a
JA
2264 fashion.
2265
2266 H\bHe\ber\bre\be S\bSt\btr\bri\bin\bng\bgs\bs
2267 A variant of here documents, the format is:
2268
a0c0a00f 2269 [_\bn]<\b<<\b<<\b<_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
17345e5a 2270
712f80b0
CR
2271 The _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd undergoes tilde expansion, parameter and variable expansion,
2272 command substitution, arithmetic expansion, and quote removal. Path-
2273 name expansion and word splitting are not performed. The result is
d233b485
CR
2274 supplied as a single string, with a newline appended, to the command on
2275 its standard input (or file descriptor _\bn if _\bn is specified).
17345e5a
JA
2276
2277 D\bDu\bup\bpl\bli\bic\bca\bat\bti\bin\bng\bg F\bFi\bil\ble\be D\bDe\bes\bsc\bcr\bri\bip\bpt\bto\bor\brs\bs
2278 The redirection operator
2279
2280 [_\bn]<\b<&\b&_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2281
2282 is used to duplicate input file descriptors. If _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd expands to one or
712f80b0
CR
2283 more digits, the file descriptor denoted by _\bn is made to be a copy of
2284 that file descriptor. If the digits in _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd do not specify a file de-
2285 scriptor open for input, a redirection error occurs. If _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd evaluates
2286 to -\b-, file descriptor _\bn is closed. If _\bn is not specified, the standard
2287 input (file descriptor 0) is used.
17345e5a
JA
2288
2289 The operator
2290
2291 [_\bn]>\b>&\b&_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2292
712f80b0
CR
2293 is used similarly to duplicate output file descriptors. If _\bn is not
2294 specified, the standard output (file descriptor 1) is used. If the
2295 digits in _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd do not specify a file descriptor open for output, a re-
2296 direction error occurs. If _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd evaluates to -\b-, file descriptor _\bn is
2297 closed. As a special case, if _\bn is omitted, and _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd does not expand
2298 to one or more digits or -\b-, the standard output and standard error are
ac50fbac 2299 redirected as described previously.
17345e5a
JA
2300
2301 M\bMo\bov\bvi\bin\bng\bg F\bFi\bil\ble\be D\bDe\bes\bsc\bcr\bri\bip\bpt\bto\bor\brs\bs
2302 The redirection operator
2303
2304 [_\bn]<\b<&\b&_\bd_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bt-\b-
2305
712f80b0 2306 moves the file descriptor _\bd_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bt to file descriptor _\bn, or the standard
17345e5a
JA
2307 input (file descriptor 0) if _\bn is not specified. _\bd_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bt is closed after
2308 being duplicated to _\bn.
2309
2310 Similarly, the redirection operator
2311
2312 [_\bn]>\b>&\b&_\bd_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bt-\b-
2313
712f80b0 2314 moves the file descriptor _\bd_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bt to file descriptor _\bn, or the standard
17345e5a
JA
2315 output (file descriptor 1) if _\bn is not specified.
2316
2317 O\bOp\bpe\ben\bni\bin\bng\bg F\bFi\bil\ble\be D\bDe\bes\bsc\bcr\bri\bip\bpt\bto\bor\brs\bs f\bfo\bor\br R\bRe\bea\bad\bdi\bin\bng\bg a\ban\bnd\bd W\bWr\bri\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg
2318 The redirection operator
2319
2320 [_\bn]<\b<>\b>_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd
2321
712f80b0
CR
2322 causes the file whose name is the expansion of _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd to be opened for
2323 both reading and writing on file descriptor _\bn, or on file descriptor 0
17345e5a
JA
2324 if _\bn is not specified. If the file does not exist, it is created.
2325
2326A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS
712f80b0
CR
2327 _\bA_\bl_\bi_\ba_\bs_\be_\bs allow a string to be substituted for a word when it is used as
2328 the first word of a simple command. The shell maintains a list of
2329 aliases that may be set and unset with the a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs and u\bun\bna\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs builtin
2330 commands (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). The first word of each
2331 simple command, if unquoted, is checked to see if it has an alias. If
2332 so, that word is replaced by the text of the alias. The characters /\b/,
2333 $\b$, `\b`, and =\b= and any of the shell _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\bt_\be_\br_\bs or quoting characters
17345e5a 2334 listed above may not appear in an alias name. The replacement text may
712f80b0
CR
2335 contain any valid shell input, including shell metacharacters. The
2336 first word of the replacement text is tested for aliases, but a word
2337 that is identical to an alias being expanded is not expanded a second
2338 time. This means that one may alias l\bls\bs to l\bls\bs -\b-F\bF, for instance, and
2339 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh does not try to recursively expand the replacement text. If the
2340 last character of the alias value is a _\bb_\bl_\ba_\bn_\bk, then the next command
17345e5a
JA
2341 word following the alias is also checked for alias expansion.
2342
2343 Aliases are created and listed with the a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs command, and removed with
2344 the u\bun\bna\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs command.
2345
712f80b0
CR
2346 There is no mechanism for using arguments in the replacement text. If
2347 arguments are needed, a shell function should be used (see F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS
17345e5a
JA
2348 below).
2349
712f80b0
CR
2350 Aliases are not expanded when the shell is not interactive, unless the
2351 e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd_\b_a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bse\bes\bs shell option is set using s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt (see the description of
17345e5a
JA
2352 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
2353
712f80b0
CR
2354 The rules concerning the definition and use of aliases are somewhat
2355 confusing. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh always reads at least one complete line of input, and
2356 all lines that make up a compound command, before executing any of the
2357 commands on that line or the compound command. Aliases are expanded
2358 when a command is read, not when it is executed. Therefore, an alias
2359 definition appearing on the same line as another command does not take
2360 effect until the next line of input is read. The commands following
2361 the alias definition on that line are not affected by the new alias.
2362 This behavior is also an issue when functions are executed. Aliases
2363 are expanded when a function definition is read, not when the function
2364 is executed, because a function definition is itself a command. As a
2365 consequence, aliases defined in a function are not available until af-
2366 ter that function is executed. To be safe, always put alias defini-
d233b485 2367 tions on a separate line, and do not use a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs in compound commands.
17345e5a
JA
2368
2369 For almost every purpose, aliases are superseded by shell functions.
2370
2371F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS
712f80b0
CR
2372 A shell function, defined as described above under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR,
2373 stores a series of commands for later execution. When the name of a
2374 shell function is used as a simple command name, the list of commands
17345e5a 2375 associated with that function name is executed. Functions are executed
712f80b0
CR
2376 in the context of the current shell; no new process is created to in-
2377 terpret them (contrast this with the execution of a shell script).
2378 When a function is executed, the arguments to the function become the
17345e5a 2379 positional parameters during its execution. The special parameter #\b# is
712f80b0
CR
2380 updated to reflect the change. Special parameter 0\b0 is unchanged. The
2381 first element of the F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNA\bAM\bME\bE variable is set to the name of the func-
0001803f
CR
2382 tion while the function is executing.
2383
712f80b0
CR
2384 All other aspects of the shell execution environment are identical be-
2385 tween a function and its caller with these exceptions: the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and
2386 R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN traps (see the description of the t\btr\bra\bap\bp builtin under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
2387 B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below) are not inherited unless the function has been
2388 given the t\btr\bra\bac\bce\be attribute (see the description of the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin
2389 below) or the -\b-o\bo f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\btr\bra\bac\bce\be shell option has been enabled with the s\bse\bet\bt
2390 builtin (in which case all functions inherit the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN
2391 traps), and the E\bER\bRR\bR trap is not inherited unless the -\b-o\bo e\ber\brr\brt\btr\bra\bac\bce\be shell
0001803f 2392 option has been enabled.
17345e5a 2393
712f80b0 2394 Variables local to the function may be declared with the l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl builtin
17345e5a 2395 command. Ordinarily, variables and their values are shared between the
712f80b0
CR
2396 function and its caller. If a variable is declared l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl, the vari-
2397 able's visible scope is restricted to that function and its children
d233b485 2398 (including the functions it calls). Local variables "shadow" variables
712f80b0
CR
2399 with the same name declared at previous scopes. For instance, a local
2400 variable declared in a function hides a global variable of the same
2401 name: references and assignments refer to the local variable, leaving
2402 the global variable unmodified. When the function returns, the global
d233b485
CR
2403 variable is once again visible.
2404
712f80b0
CR
2405 The shell uses _\bd_\by_\bn_\ba_\bm_\bi_\bc _\bs_\bc_\bo_\bp_\bi_\bn_\bg to control a variable's visibility
2406 within functions. With dynamic scoping, visible variables and their
2407 values are a result of the sequence of function calls that caused exe-
2408 cution to reach the current function. The value of a variable that a
2409 function sees depends on its value within its caller, if any, whether
2410 that caller is the "global" scope or another shell function. This is
2411 also the value that a local variable declaration "shadows", and the
d233b485
CR
2412 value that is restored when the function returns.
2413
712f80b0
CR
2414 For example, if a variable _\bv_\ba_\br is declared as local in function _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\b1,
2415 and _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\b1 calls another function _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\b2, references to _\bv_\ba_\br made from
d233b485
CR
2416 within _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\b2 will resolve to the local variable _\bv_\ba_\br from _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\b1, shadow-
2417 ing any global variable named _\bv_\ba_\br.
2418
2419 The u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt builtin also acts using the same dynamic scope: if a variable
2420 is local to the current scope, u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt will unset it; otherwise the unset
712f80b0
CR
2421 will refer to the variable found in any calling scope as described
2422 above. If a variable at the current local scope is unset, it will re-
2423 main so until it is reset in that scope or until the function returns.
2424 Once the function returns, any instance of the variable at a previous
2425 scope will become visible. If the unset acts on a variable at a previ-
2426 ous scope, any instance of a variable with that name that had been
2427 shadowed will become visible.
2428
2429 The F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNE\bES\bST\bT variable, if set to a numeric value greater than 0, de-
2430 fines a maximum function nesting level. Function invocations that ex-
2431 ceed the limit cause the entire command to abort.
2432
2433 If the builtin command r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn is executed in a function, the function
2434 completes and execution resumes with the next command after the func-
2435 tion call. Any command associated with the R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN trap is executed be-
2436 fore execution resumes. When a function completes, the values of the
2437 positional parameters and the special parameter #\b# are restored to the
17345e5a
JA
2438 values they had prior to the function's execution.
2439
712f80b0 2440 Function names and definitions may be listed with the -\b-f\bf option to the
17345e5a 2441 d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be or t\bty\byp\bpe\bes\bse\bet\bt builtin commands. The -\b-F\bF option to d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be or t\bty\byp\bpe\be-\b-
712f80b0
CR
2442 s\bse\bet\bt will list the function names only (and optionally the source file
2443 and line number, if the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg shell option is enabled). Functions
2444 may be exported so that subshells automatically have them defined with
2445 the -\b-f\bf option to the e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt builtin. A function definition may be
d233b485 2446 deleted using the -\b-f\bf option to the u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt builtin.
17345e5a 2447
495aee44 2448 Functions may be recursive. The F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCN\bNE\bES\bST\bT variable may be used to limit
712f80b0
CR
2449 the depth of the function call stack and restrict the number of func-
2450 tion invocations. By default, no limit is imposed on the number of re-
2451 cursive calls.
17345e5a
JA
2452
2453A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN
712f80b0
CR
2454 The shell allows arithmetic expressions to be evaluated, under certain
2455 circumstances (see the l\ble\bet\bt and d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin commands, the (\b((\b( com-
a0c0a00f 2456 pound command, and A\bAr\bri\bit\bth\bhm\bme\bet\bti\bic\bc E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn). Evaluation is done in fixed-
712f80b0
CR
2457 width integers with no check for overflow, though division by 0 is
2458 trapped and flagged as an error. The operators and their precedence,
2459 associativity, and values are the same as in the C language. The fol-
2460 lowing list of operators is grouped into levels of equal-precedence op-
2461 erators. The levels are listed in order of decreasing precedence.
17345e5a
JA
2462
2463 _\bi_\bd+\b++\b+ _\bi_\bd-\b--\b-
2464 variable post-increment and post-decrement
d233b485 2465 -\b- +\b+ unary minus and plus
17345e5a
JA
2466 +\b++\b+_\bi_\bd -\b--\b-_\bi_\bd
2467 variable pre-increment and pre-decrement
17345e5a
JA
2468 !\b! ~\b~ logical and bitwise negation
2469 *\b**\b* exponentiation
2470 *\b* /\b/ %\b% multiplication, division, remainder
2471 +\b+ -\b- addition, subtraction
2472 <\b<<\b< >\b>>\b> left and right bitwise shifts
2473 <\b<=\b= >\b>=\b= <\b< >\b>
2474 comparison
2475 =\b==\b= !\b!=\b= equality and inequality
2476 &\b& bitwise AND
2477 ^\b^ bitwise exclusive OR
2478 |\b| bitwise OR
2479 &\b&&\b& logical AND
2480 |\b||\b| logical OR
2481 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br?\b?_\be_\bx_\bp_\br:\b:_\be_\bx_\bp_\br
2482 conditional operator
2483 =\b= *\b*=\b= /\b/=\b= %\b%=\b= +\b+=\b= -\b-=\b= <\b<<\b<=\b= >\b>>\b>=\b= &\b&=\b= ^\b^=\b= |\b|=\b=
2484 assignment
2485 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 ,\b, _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2
2486 comma
2487
712f80b0 2488 Shell variables are allowed as operands; parameter expansion is per-
17345e5a 2489 formed before the expression is evaluated. Within an expression, shell
712f80b0
CR
2490 variables may also be referenced by name without using the parameter
2491 expansion syntax. A shell variable that is null or unset evaluates to
17345e5a 2492 0 when referenced by name without using the parameter expansion syntax.
712f80b0
CR
2493 The value of a variable is evaluated as an arithmetic expression when
2494 it is referenced, or when a variable which has been given the _\bi_\bn_\bt_\be_\bg_\be_\br
17345e5a 2495 attribute using d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-i\bi is assigned a value. A null value evaluates
712f80b0 2496 to 0. A shell variable need not have its _\bi_\bn_\bt_\be_\bg_\be_\br attribute turned on
17345e5a
JA
2497 to be used in an expression.
2498
712f80b0
CR
2499 Integer constants follow the C language definition, without suffixes or
2500 character constants. Constants with a leading 0 are interpreted as oc-
2501 tal numbers. A leading 0x or 0X denotes hexadecimal. Otherwise, num-
2502 bers take the form [_\bb_\ba_\bs_\be_\b#]n, where the optional _\bb_\ba_\bs_\be is a decimal num-
2503 ber between 2 and 64 representing the arithmetic base, and _\bn is a num-
2504 ber in that base. If _\bb_\ba_\bs_\be_\b# is omitted, then base 10 is used. When
2505 specifying _\bn, if a non-digit is required, the digits greater than 9 are
2506 represented by the lowercase letters, the uppercase letters, @, and _,
2507 in that order. If _\bb_\ba_\bs_\be is less than or equal to 36, lowercase and up-
2508 percase letters may be used interchangeably to represent numbers be-
2509 tween 10 and 35.
2510
2511 Operators are evaluated in order of precedence. Sub-expressions in
2512 parentheses are evaluated first and may override the precedence rules
17345e5a
JA
2513 above.
2514
2515C\bCO\bON\bND\bDI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNA\bAL\bL E\bEX\bXP\bPR\bRE\bES\bSS\bSI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS
712f80b0
CR
2516 Conditional expressions are used by the [\b[[\b[ compound command and the
2517 t\bte\bes\bst\bt and [\b[ builtin commands to test file attributes and perform string
2518 and arithmetic comparisons. The t\bte\bes\bst\bt and [\b[ commands determine their
2519 behavior based on the number of arguments; see the descriptions of
d233b485
CR
2520 those commands for any other command-specific actions.
2521
712f80b0
CR
2522 Expressions are formed from the following unary or binary primaries.
2523 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh handles several filenames specially when they are used in expres-
d233b485 2524 sions. If the operating system on which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is running provides these
712f80b0
CR
2525 special files, bash will use them; otherwise it will emulate them in-
2526 ternally with this behavior: If any _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be argument to one of the pri-
d233b485 2527 maries is of the form _\b/_\bd_\be_\bv_\b/_\bf_\bd_\b/_\bn, then file descriptor _\bn is checked. If
712f80b0
CR
2528 the _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be argument to one of the primaries is one of _\b/_\bd_\be_\bv_\b/_\bs_\bt_\bd_\bi_\bn,
2529 _\b/_\bd_\be_\bv_\b/_\bs_\bt_\bd_\bo_\bu_\bt, or _\b/_\bd_\be_\bv_\b/_\bs_\bt_\bd_\be_\br_\br, file descriptor 0, 1, or 2, respectively,
d233b485 2530 is checked.
17345e5a
JA
2531
2532 Unless otherwise specified, primaries that operate on files follow sym-
2533 bolic links and operate on the target of the link, rather than the link
2534 itself.
2535
712f80b0 2536 When used with [\b[[\b[, the <\b< and >\b> operators sort lexicographically using
495aee44 2537 the current locale. The t\bte\bes\bst\bt command sorts using ASCII ordering.
0001803f 2538
17345e5a
JA
2539 -\b-a\ba _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2540 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists.
2541 -\b-b\bb _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2542 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a block special file.
2543 -\b-c\bc _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2544 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a character special file.
2545 -\b-d\bd _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2546 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a directory.
2547 -\b-e\be _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2548 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists.
2549 -\b-f\bf _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2550 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a regular file.
2551 -\b-g\bg _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2552 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is set-group-id.
2553 -\b-h\bh _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2554 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a symbolic link.
2555 -\b-k\bk _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2556 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and its ``sticky'' bit is set.
2557 -\b-p\bp _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2558 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a named pipe (FIFO).
2559 -\b-r\br _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2560 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is readable.
2561 -\b-s\bs _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2562 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and has a size greater than zero.
2563 -\b-t\bt _\bf_\bd True if file descriptor _\bf_\bd is open and refers to a terminal.
2564 -\b-u\bu _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2565 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and its set-user-id bit is set.
2566 -\b-w\bw _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2567 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is writable.
2568 -\b-x\bx _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2569 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is executable.
17345e5a
JA
2570 -\b-G\bG _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2571 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is owned by the effective group id.
2572 -\b-L\bL _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2573 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a symbolic link.
17345e5a 2574 -\b-N\bN _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
712f80b0 2575 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and has been modified since it was last
17345e5a 2576 read.
495aee44
CR
2577 -\b-O\bO _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2578 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is owned by the effective user id.
2579 -\b-S\bS _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
2580 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be exists and is a socket.
2581 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 -\b-e\bef\bf _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2
712f80b0 2582 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 and _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2 refer to the same device and inode num-
495aee44 2583 bers.
17345e5a 2584 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 -n\bnt\bt _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2
712f80b0 2585 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 is newer (according to modification date) than
17345e5a
JA
2586 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2, or if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 exists and _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2 does not.
2587 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 -o\bot\bt _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2
712f80b0 2588 True if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1 is older than _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2, or if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b2 exists and _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\b1
17345e5a 2589 does not.
17345e5a 2590 -\b-o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
712f80b0
CR
2591 True if the shell option _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is enabled. See the list of
2592 options under the description of the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt
17345e5a 2593 builtin below.
495aee44 2594 -\b-v\bv _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
712f80b0 2595 True if the shell variable _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set (has been assigned a
495aee44 2596 value).
ac50fbac 2597 -\b-R\bR _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
712f80b0 2598 True if the shell variable _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set and is a name refer-
ac50fbac 2599 ence.
17345e5a
JA
2600 -\b-z\bz _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg
2601 True if the length of _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is zero.
2602 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg
2603 -\b-n\bn _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg
2604 True if the length of _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is non-zero.
2605
2606 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 =\b==\b= _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2
0001803f 2607 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 =\b= _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2
712f80b0
CR
2608 True if the strings are equal. =\b= should be used with the t\bte\bes\bst\bt
2609 command for POSIX conformance. When used with the [\b[[\b[ command,
ac50fbac
CR
2610 this performs pattern matching as described above (C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpo\bou\bun\bnd\bd C\bCo\bom\bm-\b-
2611 m\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs).
17345e5a
JA
2612
2613 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 !\b!=\b= _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2
2614 True if the strings are not equal.
2615
2616 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 <\b< _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2
0001803f 2617 True if _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 sorts before _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2 lexicographically.
17345e5a
JA
2618
2619 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 >\b> _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2
0001803f 2620 True if _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 sorts after _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2 lexicographically.
17345e5a
JA
2621
2622 _\ba_\br_\bg_\b1 O\bOP\bP _\ba_\br_\bg_\b2
712f80b0
CR
2623 O\bOP\bP is one of -\b-e\beq\bq, -\b-n\bne\be, -\b-l\blt\bt, -\b-l\ble\be, -\b-g\bgt\bt, or -\b-g\bge\be. These arithmetic
2624 binary operators return true if _\ba_\br_\bg_\b1 is equal to, not equal to,
2625 less than, less than or equal to, greater than, or greater than
2626 or equal to _\ba_\br_\bg_\b2, respectively. _\bA_\br_\bg_\b1 and _\ba_\br_\bg_\b2 may be positive
2627 or negative integers. When used with the [\b[[\b[ command, _\bA_\br_\bg_\b1 and
2628 _\bA_\br_\bg_\b2 are evaluated as arithmetic expressions (see A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC
d233b485 2629 E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN above).
17345e5a
JA
2630
2631S\bSI\bIM\bMP\bPL\bLE\bE C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN
712f80b0
CR
2632 When a simple command is executed, the shell performs the following ex-
2633 pansions, assignments, and redirections, from left to right, in the
2634 following order.
17345e5a 2635
0001803f
CR
2636 1. The words that the parser has marked as variable assignments
2637 (those preceding the command name) and redirections are saved
17345e5a
JA
2638 for later processing.
2639
0001803f
CR
2640 2. The words that are not variable assignments or redirections are
2641 expanded. If any words remain after expansion, the first word
2642 is taken to be the name of the command and the remaining words
17345e5a
JA
2643 are the arguments.
2644
2645 3. Redirections are performed as described above under R\bRE\bED\bDI\bIR\bRE\bEC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN.
2646
2647 4. The text after the =\b= in each variable assignment undergoes tilde
2648 expansion, parameter expansion, command substitution, arithmetic
a0c0a00f 2649 expansion, and quote removal before being assigned to the vari-
17345e5a
JA
2650 able.
2651
2652 If no command name results, the variable assignments affect the current
a0c0a00f
CR
2653 shell environment. Otherwise, the variables are added to the environ-
2654 ment of the executed command and do not affect the current shell envi-
2655 ronment. If any of the assignments attempts to assign a value to a
2656 readonly variable, an error occurs, and the command exits with a non-
17345e5a
JA
2657 zero status.
2658
712f80b0
CR
2659 If no command name results, redirections are performed, but do not af-
2660 fect the current shell environment. A redirection error causes the
17345e5a
JA
2661 command to exit with a non-zero status.
2662
a0c0a00f
CR
2663 If there is a command name left after expansion, execution proceeds as
2664 described below. Otherwise, the command exits. If one of the expan-
2665 sions contained a command substitution, the exit status of the command
2666 is the exit status of the last command substitution performed. If
17345e5a
JA
2667 there were no command substitutions, the command exits with a status of
2668 zero.
2669
2670C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN
a0c0a00f
CR
2671 After a command has been split into words, if it results in a simple
2672 command and an optional list of arguments, the following actions are
17345e5a
JA
2673 taken.
2674
a0c0a00f
CR
2675 If the command name contains no slashes, the shell attempts to locate
2676 it. If there exists a shell function by that name, that function is
2677 invoked as described above in F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bCT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS. If the name does not match a
2678 function, the shell searches for it in the list of shell builtins. If
17345e5a
JA
2679 a match is found, that builtin is invoked.
2680
a0c0a00f
CR
2681 If the name is neither a shell function nor a builtin, and contains no
2682 slashes, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh searches each element of the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH for a directory con-
712f80b0
CR
2683 taining an executable file by that name. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh uses a hash table to re-
2684 member the full pathnames of executable files (see h\bha\bas\bsh\bh under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
a0c0a00f
CR
2685 B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). A full search of the directories in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is
2686 performed only if the command is not found in the hash table. If the
17345e5a
JA
2687 search is unsuccessful, the shell searches for a defined shell function
2688 named c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd_\b_n\bno\bot\bt_\b_f\bfo\bou\bun\bnd\bd_\b_h\bha\ban\bnd\bdl\ble\be. If that function exists, it is invoked
d233b485
CR
2689 in a separate execution environment with the original command and the
2690 original command's arguments as its arguments, and the function's exit
2691 status becomes the exit status of that subshell. If that function is
2692 not defined, the shell prints an error message and returns an exit sta-
2693 tus of 127.
17345e5a 2694
d233b485 2695 If the search is successful, or if the command name contains one or
17345e5a
JA
2696 more slashes, the shell executes the named program in a separate execu-
2697 tion environment. Argument 0 is set to the name given, and the remain-
2698 ing arguments to the command are set to the arguments given, if any.
2699
d233b485
CR
2700 If this execution fails because the file is not in executable format,
2701 and the file is not a directory, it is assumed to be a _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl _\bs_\bc_\br_\bi_\bp_\bt, a
2702 file containing shell commands. A subshell is spawned to execute it.
2703 This subshell reinitializes itself, so that the effect is as if a new
2704 shell had been invoked to handle the script, with the exception that
712f80b0
CR
2705 the locations of commands remembered by the parent (see h\bha\bas\bsh\bh below un-
2706 der S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS) are retained by the child.
17345e5a 2707
d233b485
CR
2708 If the program is a file beginning with #\b#!\b!, the remainder of the first
2709 line specifies an interpreter for the program. The shell executes the
17345e5a
JA
2710 specified interpreter on operating systems that do not handle this exe-
2711 cutable format themselves. The arguments to the interpreter consist of
d233b485
CR
2712 a single optional argument following the interpreter name on the first
2713 line of the program, followed by the name of the program, followed by
17345e5a
JA
2714 the command arguments, if any.
2715
2716C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN E\bEN\bNV\bVI\bIR\bRO\bON\bNM\bME\bEN\bNT\bT
d233b485 2717 The shell has an _\be_\bx_\be_\bc_\bu_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn _\be_\bn_\bv_\bi_\br_\bo_\bn_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt, which consists of the follow-
17345e5a
JA
2718 ing:
2719
d233b485 2720 +\bo open files inherited by the shell at invocation, as modified by
17345e5a
JA
2721 redirections supplied to the e\bex\bxe\bec\bc builtin
2722
d233b485 2723 +\bo the current working directory as set by c\bcd\bd, p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd, or p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd, or
17345e5a
JA
2724 inherited by the shell at invocation
2725
d233b485 2726 +\bo the file creation mode mask as set by u\bum\bma\bas\bsk\bk or inherited from
17345e5a
JA
2727 the shell's parent
2728
2729 +\bo current traps set by t\btr\bra\bap\bp
2730
2731 +\bo shell parameters that are set by variable assignment or with s\bse\bet\bt
2732 or inherited from the shell's parent in the environment
2733
d233b485 2734 +\bo shell functions defined during execution or inherited from the
17345e5a
JA
2735 shell's parent in the environment
2736
d233b485 2737 +\bo options enabled at invocation (either by default or with com-
17345e5a
JA
2738 mand-line arguments) or by s\bse\bet\bt
2739
2740 +\bo options enabled by s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt
2741
2742 +\bo shell aliases defined with a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs
2743
d233b485 2744 +\bo various process IDs, including those of background jobs, the
0001803f 2745 value of $\b$$\b$, and the value of P\bPP\bPI\bID\bD
17345e5a 2746
d233b485
CR
2747 When a simple command other than a builtin or shell function is to be
2748 executed, it is invoked in a separate execution environment that con-
2749 sists of the following. Unless otherwise noted, the values are inher-
17345e5a
JA
2750 ited from the shell.
2751
2752
d233b485 2753 +\bo the shell's open files, plus any modifications and additions
17345e5a
JA
2754 specified by redirections to the command
2755
2756 +\bo the current working directory
2757
2758 +\bo the file creation mode mask
2759
d233b485 2760 +\bo shell variables and functions marked for export, along with
17345e5a
JA
2761 variables exported for the command, passed in the environment
2762
2763 +\bo traps caught by the shell are reset to the values inherited from
2764 the shell's parent, and traps ignored by the shell are ignored
2765
d233b485 2766 A command invoked in this separate environment cannot affect the
17345e5a
JA
2767 shell's execution environment.
2768
d233b485 2769 Command substitution, commands grouped with parentheses, and asynchro-
17345e5a 2770 nous commands are invoked in a subshell environment that is a duplicate
712f80b0
CR
2771 of the shell environment, except that traps caught by the shell are re-
2772 set to the values that the shell inherited from its parent at invoca-
17345e5a
JA
2773 tion. Builtin commands that are invoked as part of a pipeline are also
2774 executed in a subshell environment. Changes made to the subshell envi-
2775 ronment cannot affect the shell's execution environment.
2776
2777 Subshells spawned to execute command substitutions inherit the value of
d233b485 2778 the -\b-e\be option from the parent shell. When not in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh
17345e5a
JA
2779 clears the -\b-e\be option in such subshells.
2780
712f80b0
CR
2781 If a command is followed by a &\b& and job control is not active, the de-
2782 fault standard input for the command is the empty file _\b/_\bd_\be_\bv_\b/_\bn_\bu_\bl_\bl. Oth-
2783 erwise, the invoked command inherits the file descriptors of the call-
2784 ing shell as modified by redirections.
17345e5a
JA
2785
2786E\bEN\bNV\bVI\bIR\bRO\bON\bNM\bME\bEN\bNT\bT
d233b485 2787 When a program is invoked it is given an array of strings called the
17345e5a
JA
2788 _\be_\bn_\bv_\bi_\br_\bo_\bn_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt. This is a list of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be-_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be pairs, of the form
2789 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be.
2790
712f80b0
CR
2791 The shell provides several ways to manipulate the environment. On in-
2792 vocation, the shell scans its own environment and creates a parameter
d233b485 2793 for each name found, automatically marking it for _\be_\bx_\bp_\bo_\br_\bt to child pro-
712f80b0
CR
2794 cesses. Executed commands inherit the environment. The e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt and d\bde\be-\b-
2795 c\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-x\bx commands allow parameters and functions to be added to and
17345e5a 2796 deleted from the environment. If the value of a parameter in the envi-
712f80b0
CR
2797 ronment is modified, the new value becomes part of the environment, re-
2798 placing the old. The environment inherited by any executed command
d233b485
CR
2799 consists of the shell's initial environment, whose values may be modi-
2800 fied in the shell, less any pairs removed by the u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt command, plus
17345e5a
JA
2801 any additions via the e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt and d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be -\b-x\bx commands.
2802
d233b485
CR
2803 The environment for any _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd or function may be augmented
2804 temporarily by prefixing it with parameter assignments, as described
17345e5a
JA
2805 above in P\bPA\bAR\bRA\bAM\bME\bET\bTE\bER\bRS\bS. These assignment statements affect only the envi-
2806 ronment seen by that command.
2807
d233b485
CR
2808 If the -\b-k\bk option is set (see the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command below), then _\ba_\bl_\bl
2809 parameter assignments are placed in the environment for a command, not
17345e5a
JA
2810 just those that precede the command name.
2811
d233b485 2812 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh invokes an external command, the variable _\b_ is set to the
ac50fbac
CR
2813 full filename of the command and passed to that command in its environ-
2814 ment.
17345e5a
JA
2815
2816E\bEX\bXI\bIT\bT S\bST\bTA\bAT\bTU\bUS\bS
d233b485 2817 The exit status of an executed command is the value returned by the
17345e5a 2818 _\bw_\ba_\bi_\bt_\bp_\bi_\bd system call or equivalent function. Exit statuses fall between
d233b485 2819 0 and 255, though, as explained below, the shell may use values above
17345e5a 2820 125 specially. Exit statuses from shell builtins and compound commands
a0c0a00f 2821 are also limited to this range. Under certain circumstances, the shell
17345e5a
JA
2822 will use special values to indicate specific failure modes.
2823
2824 For the shell's purposes, a command which exits with a zero exit status
d233b485
CR
2825 has succeeded. An exit status of zero indicates success. A non-zero
2826 exit status indicates failure. When a command terminates on a fatal
17345e5a
JA
2827 signal _\bN, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh uses the value of 128+_\bN as the exit status.
2828
712f80b0
CR
2829 If a command is not found, the child process created to execute it re-
2830 turns a status of 127. If a command is found but is not executable,
17345e5a
JA
2831 the return status is 126.
2832
2833 If a command fails because of an error during expansion or redirection,
2834 the exit status is greater than zero.
2835
d233b485
CR
2836 Shell builtin commands return a status of 0 (_\bt_\br_\bu_\be) if successful, and
2837 non-zero (_\bf_\ba_\bl_\bs_\be) if an error occurs while they execute. All builtins
712f80b0
CR
2838 return an exit status of 2 to indicate incorrect usage, generally in-
2839 valid options or missing arguments.
17345e5a 2840
712f80b0
CR
2841 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh itself returns the exit status of the last command executed, un-
2842 less a syntax error occurs, in which case it exits with a non-zero
17345e5a
JA
2843 value. See also the e\bex\bxi\bit\bt builtin command below.
2844
2845S\bSI\bIG\bGN\bNA\bAL\bLS\bS
d233b485 2846 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is interactive, in the absence of any traps, it ignores
17345e5a 2847 S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTE\bER\bRM\bM (so that k\bki\bil\bll\bl 0\b0 does not kill an interactive shell), and S\bSI\bIG\bGI\bIN\bNT\bT
d233b485 2848 is caught and handled (so that the w\bwa\bai\bit\bt builtin is interruptible). In
712f80b0
CR
2849 all cases, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh ignores S\bSI\bIG\bGQ\bQU\bUI\bIT\bT. If job control is in effect, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh ig-
2850 nores S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTT\bTI\bIN\bN, S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTT\bTO\bOU\bU, and S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTS\bST\bTP\bP.
17345e5a
JA
2851
2852 Non-builtin commands run by b\bba\bas\bsh\bh have signal handlers set to the values
712f80b0
CR
2853 inherited by the shell from its parent. When job control is not in ef-
2854 fect, asynchronous commands ignore S\bSI\bIG\bGI\bIN\bNT\bT and S\bSI\bIG\bGQ\bQU\bUI\bIT\bT in addition to
d233b485 2855 these inherited handlers. Commands run as a result of command substi-
17345e5a
JA
2856 tution ignore the keyboard-generated job control signals S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTT\bTI\bIN\bN, S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bT-\b-
2857 T\bTO\bOU\bU, and S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTS\bST\bTP\bP.
2858
d233b485
CR
2859 The shell exits by default upon receipt of a S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP. Before exiting,
2860 an interactive shell resends the S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP to all jobs, running or
17345e5a 2861 stopped. Stopped jobs are sent S\bSI\bIG\bGC\bCO\bON\bNT\bT to ensure that they receive the
d233b485
CR
2862 S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP. To prevent the shell from sending the signal to a particular
2863 job, it should be removed from the jobs table with the d\bdi\bis\bso\bow\bwn\bn builtin
712f80b0
CR
2864 (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below) or marked to not receive S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP us-
2865 ing d\bdi\bis\bso\bow\bwn\bn -\b-h\bh.
17345e5a 2866
d233b485 2867 If the h\bhu\bup\bpo\bon\bne\bex\bxi\bit\bt shell option has been set with s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh sends a
17345e5a
JA
2868 S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP to all jobs when an interactive login shell exits.
2869
d233b485 2870 If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is waiting for a command to complete and receives a signal for
17345e5a 2871 which a trap has been set, the trap will not be executed until the com-
d233b485
CR
2872 mand completes. When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is waiting for an asynchronous command via
2873 the w\bwa\bai\bit\bt builtin, the reception of a signal for which a trap has been
17345e5a
JA
2874 set will cause the w\bwa\bai\bit\bt builtin to return immediately with an exit sta-
2875 tus greater than 128, immediately after which the trap is executed.
2876
2877J\bJO\bOB\bB C\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL
712f80b0
CR
2878 _\bJ_\bo_\bb _\bc_\bo_\bn_\bt_\br_\bo_\bl refers to the ability to selectively stop (_\bs_\bu_\bs_\bp_\be_\bn_\bd) the ex-
2879 ecution of processes and continue (_\br_\be_\bs_\bu_\bm_\be) their execution at a later
2880 point. A user typically employs this facility via an interactive in-
2881 terface supplied jointly by the operating system kernel's terminal
0001803f 2882 driver and b\bba\bas\bsh\bh.
17345e5a 2883
d233b485
CR
2884 The shell associates a _\bj_\bo_\bb with each pipeline. It keeps a table of
2885 currently executing jobs, which may be listed with the j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs command.
2886 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh starts a job asynchronously (in the _\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk_\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd), it prints a
17345e5a
JA
2887 line that looks like:
2888
2889 [1] 25647
2890
2891 indicating that this job is job number 1 and that the process ID of the
2892 last process in the pipeline associated with this job is 25647. All of
d233b485 2893 the processes in a single pipeline are members of the same job. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh
17345e5a
JA
2894 uses the _\bj_\bo_\bb abstraction as the basis for job control.
2895
d233b485 2896 To facilitate the implementation of the user interface to job control,
17345e5a
JA
2897 the operating system maintains the notion of a _\bc_\bu_\br_\br_\be_\bn_\bt _\bt_\be_\br_\bm_\bi_\bn_\ba_\bl _\bp_\br_\bo_\bc_\be_\bs_\bs
2898 _\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bp _\bI_\bD. Members of this process group (processes whose process group
2899 ID is equal to the current terminal process group ID) receive keyboard-
d233b485
CR
2900 generated signals such as S\bSI\bIG\bGI\bIN\bNT\bT. These processes are said to be in
2901 the _\bf_\bo_\br_\be_\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd. _\bB_\ba_\bc_\bk_\bg_\br_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd processes are those whose process group ID
17345e5a 2902 differs from the terminal's; such processes are immune to keyboard-gen-
0001803f 2903 erated signals. Only foreground processes are allowed to read from or,
d233b485
CR
2904 if the user so specifies with stty tostop, write to the terminal.
2905 Background processes which attempt to read from (write to when stty
2906 tostop is in effect) the terminal are sent a S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTT\bTI\bIN\bN (\b(S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTT\bTO\bOU\bU)\b) signal
2907 by the kernel's terminal driver, which, unless caught, suspends the
0001803f 2908 process.
17345e5a 2909
d233b485 2910 If the operating system on which b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is running supports job control,
17345e5a
JA
2911 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh contains facilities to use it. Typing the _\bs_\bu_\bs_\bp_\be_\bn_\bd character (typ-
2912 ically ^\b^Z\bZ, Control-Z) while a process is running causes that process to
d233b485
CR
2913 be stopped and returns control to b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. Typing the _\bd_\be_\bl_\ba_\by_\be_\bd _\bs_\bu_\bs_\bp_\be_\bn_\bd
2914 character (typically ^\b^Y\bY, Control-Y) causes the process to be stopped
712f80b0
CR
2915 when it attempts to read input from the terminal, and control to be re-
2916 turned to b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. The user may then manipulate the state of this job,
d233b485 2917 using the b\bbg\bg command to continue it in the background, the f\bfg\bg command
17345e5a
JA
2918 to continue it in the foreground, or the k\bki\bil\bll\bl command to kill it. A ^\b^Z\bZ
2919 takes effect immediately, and has the additional side effect of causing
2920 pending output and typeahead to be discarded.
2921
2922 There are a number of ways to refer to a job in the shell. The charac-
d233b485 2923 ter %\b% introduces a job specification (_\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc). Job number _\bn may be
17345e5a
JA
2924 referred to as %\b%n\bn. A job may also be referred to using a prefix of the
2925 name used to start it, or using a substring that appears in its command
712f80b0
CR
2926 line. For example, %\b%c\bce\be refers to a stopped job whose command name be-
2927 gins with c\bce\be. If a prefix matches more than one job, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reports an
2928 error. Using %\b%?\b?c\bce\be, on the other hand, refers to any job containing the
2929 string c\bce\be in its command line. If the substring matches more than one
2930 job, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reports an error. The symbols %\b%%\b% and %\b%+\b+ refer to the shell's
2931 notion of the _\bc_\bu_\br_\br_\be_\bn_\bt _\bj_\bo_\bb, which is the last job stopped while it was
2932 in the foreground or started in the background. The _\bp_\br_\be_\bv_\bi_\bo_\bu_\bs _\bj_\bo_\bb may
2933 be referenced using %\b%-\b-. If there is only a single job, %\b%+\b+ and %\b%-\b- can
2934 both be used to refer to that job. In output pertaining to jobs (e.g.,
2935 the output of the j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs command), the current job is always flagged with
2936 a +\b+, and the previous job with a -\b-. A single % (with no accompanying
2937 job specification) also refers to the current job.
17345e5a 2938
d233b485
CR
2939 Simply naming a job can be used to bring it into the foreground: %\b%1\b1 is
2940 a synonym for `\b``\b`f\bfg\bg %\b%1\b1'\b''\b', bringing job 1 from the background into the
2941 foreground. Similarly, `\b``\b`%\b%1\b1 &\b&'\b''\b' resumes job 1 in the background,
17345e5a
JA
2942 equivalent to `\b``\b`b\bbg\bg %\b%1\b1'\b''\b'.
2943
d233b485 2944 The shell learns immediately whenever a job changes state. Normally,
17345e5a 2945 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh waits until it is about to print a prompt before reporting changes
d233b485 2946 in a job's status so as to not interrupt any other output. If the -\b-b\bb
17345e5a 2947 option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command is enabled, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh reports such changes
712f80b0
CR
2948 immediately. Any trap on S\bSI\bIG\bGC\bCH\bHL\bLD\bD is executed for each child that ex-
2949 its.
17345e5a 2950
d233b485
CR
2951 If an attempt to exit b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is made while jobs are stopped (or, if the
2952 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkj\bjo\bob\bbs\bs shell option has been enabled using the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin, run-
17345e5a 2953 ning), the shell prints a warning message, and, if the c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkj\bjo\bob\bbs\bs option
d233b485
CR
2954 is enabled, lists the jobs and their statuses. The j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs command may
2955 then be used to inspect their status. If a second attempt to exit is
2956 made without an intervening command, the shell does not print another
17345e5a
JA
2957 warning, and any stopped jobs are terminated.
2958
d233b485
CR
2959 When the shell is waiting for a job or process using the w\bwa\bai\bit\bt builtin,
2960 and job control is enabled, w\bwa\bai\bit\bt will return when the job changes
712f80b0
CR
2961 state. The -\b-f\bf option causes w\bwa\bai\bit\bt to wait until the job or process ter-
2962 minates before returning.
d233b485 2963
17345e5a
JA
2964P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG
2965 When executing interactively, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh displays the primary prompt P\bPS\bS1\b1 when
2966 it is ready to read a command, and the secondary prompt P\bPS\bS2\b2 when it
a0c0a00f 2967 needs more input to complete a command. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh displays P\bPS\bS0\b0 after it
712f80b0
CR
2968 reads a command but before executing it. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh displays P\bPS\bS4\b4 as de-
2969 scribed above before tracing each command when the -\b-x\bx option is en-
2970 abled. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh allows these prompt strings to be customized by inserting
2971 a number of backslash-escaped special characters that are decoded as
2972 follows:
17345e5a 2973 \\b\a\ba an ASCII bell character (07)
a0c0a00f 2974 \\b\d\bd the date in "Weekday Month Date" format (e.g., "Tue May
17345e5a
JA
2975 26")
2976 \\b\D\bD{\b{_\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt}\b}
712f80b0
CR
2977 the _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt is passed to _\bs_\bt_\br_\bf_\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3) and the result is in-
2978 serted into the prompt string; an empty _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt results in
2979 a locale-specific time representation. The braces are
17345e5a
JA
2980 required
2981 \\b\e\be an ASCII escape character (033)
2982 \\b\h\bh the hostname up to the first `.'
2983 \\b\H\bH the hostname
2984 \\b\j\bj the number of jobs currently managed by the shell
2985 \\b\l\bl the basename of the shell's terminal device name
2986 \\b\n\bn newline
2987 \\b\r\br carriage return
a0c0a00f 2988 \\b\s\bs the name of the shell, the basename of $\b$0\b0 (the portion
17345e5a
JA
2989 following the final slash)
2990 \\b\t\bt the current time in 24-hour HH:MM:SS format
2991 \\b\T\bT the current time in 12-hour HH:MM:SS format
2992 \\b\@\b@ the current time in 12-hour am/pm format
2993 \\b\A\bA the current time in 24-hour HH:MM format
2994 \\b\u\bu the username of the current user
2995 \\b\v\bv the version of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh (e.g., 2.00)
2996 \\b\V\bV the release of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh, version + patch level (e.g., 2.00.0)
2997 \\b\w\bw the current working directory, with $\b$H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE abbreviated
0001803f
CR
2998 with a tilde (uses the value of the P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bT_\b_D\bDI\bIR\bRT\bTR\bRI\bIM\bM vari-
2999 able)
17345e5a
JA
3000 \\b\W\bW the basename of the current working directory, with $\b$H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE
3001 abbreviated with a tilde
3002 \\b\!\b! the history number of this command
3003 \\b\#\b# the command number of this command
3004 \\b\$\b$ if the effective UID is 0, a #\b#, otherwise a $\b$
3005 \\b\_\bn_\bn_\bn the character corresponding to the octal number _\bn_\bn_\bn
3006 \\b\\\b\ a backslash
0001803f
CR
3007 \\b\[\b[ begin a sequence of non-printing characters, which could
3008 be used to embed a terminal control sequence into the
17345e5a
JA
3009 prompt
3010 \\b\]\b] end a sequence of non-printing characters
3011
0001803f
CR
3012 The command number and the history number are usually different: the
3013 history number of a command is its position in the history list, which
712f80b0
CR
3014 may include commands restored from the history file (see H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY be-
3015 low), while the command number is the position in the sequence of com-
3016 mands executed during the current shell session. After the string is
3017 decoded, it is expanded via parameter expansion, command substitution,
3018 arithmetic expansion, and quote removal, subject to the value of the
3019 p\bpr\bro\bom\bmp\bpt\btv\bva\bar\brs\bs shell option (see the description of the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt command under
3020 S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). This can have unwanted side effects if
3021 escaped portions of the string appear within command substitution or
3022 contain characters special to word expansion.
17345e5a
JA
3023
3024R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE
0001803f 3025 This is the library that handles reading input when using an interac-
17345e5a
JA
3026 tive shell, unless the -\b--\b-n\bno\boe\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg option is given at shell invocation.
3027 Line editing is also used when using the -\b-e\be option to the r\bre\bea\bad\bd builtin.
495aee44 3028 By default, the line editing commands are similar to those of Emacs. A
17345e5a 3029 vi-style line editing interface is also available. Line editing can be
0001803f
CR
3030 enabled at any time using the -\b-o\bo e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs or -\b-o\bo v\bvi\bi options to the s\bse\bet\bt
3031 builtin (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). To turn off line editing
3032 after the shell is running, use the +\b+o\bo e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs or +\b+o\bo v\bvi\bi options to the
17345e5a
JA
3033 s\bse\bet\bt builtin.
3034
3035 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be N\bNo\bot\bta\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn
495aee44 3036 In this section, the Emacs-style notation is used to denote keystrokes.
0001803f
CR
3037 Control keys are denoted by C-_\bk_\be_\by, e.g., C-n means Control-N. Simi-
3038 larly, _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba keys are denoted by M-_\bk_\be_\by, so M-x means Meta-X. (On key-
3039 boards without a _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba key, M-_\bx means ESC _\bx, i.e., press the Escape key
17345e5a 3040 then the _\bx key. This makes ESC the _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx. The combination M-C-_\bx
0001803f 3041 means ESC-Control-_\bx, or press the Escape key then hold the Control key
17345e5a
JA
3042 while pressing the _\bx key.)
3043
3044 Readline commands may be given numeric _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs, which normally act as
0001803f
CR
3045 a repeat count. Sometimes, however, it is the sign of the argument
3046 that is significant. Passing a negative argument to a command that
3047 acts in the forward direction (e.g., k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be) causes that command to
3048 act in a backward direction. Commands whose behavior with arguments
17345e5a
JA
3049 deviates from this are noted below.
3050
0001803f 3051 When a command is described as _\bk_\bi_\bl_\bl_\bi_\bn_\bg text, the text deleted is saved
17345e5a
JA
3052 for possible future retrieval (_\by_\ba_\bn_\bk_\bi_\bn_\bg). The killed text is saved in a
3053 _\bk_\bi_\bl_\bl _\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. Consecutive kills cause the text to be accumulated into one
3054 unit, which can be yanked all at once. Commands which do not kill text
3055 separate the chunks of text on the kill ring.
3056
3057 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be I\bIn\bni\bit\bti\bia\bal\bli\biz\bza\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn
0001803f
CR
3058 Readline is customized by putting commands in an initialization file
3059 (the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file). The name of this file is taken from the value of
712f80b0
CR
3060 the I\bIN\bNP\bPU\bUT\bTR\bRC\bC variable. If that variable is unset, the default is _\b~_\b/_\b._\bi_\bn_\b-
3061 _\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc. If that file does not exist or cannot be read, the ultimate
3062 default is _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc. When a program which uses the readline li-
3063 brary starts up, the initialization file is read, and the key bindings
3064 and variables are set. There are only a few basic constructs allowed
3065 in the readline initialization file. Blank lines are ignored. Lines
3066 beginning with a #\b# are comments. Lines beginning with a $\b$ indicate
3067 conditional constructs. Other lines denote key bindings and variable
3068 settings.
17345e5a 3069
0001803f 3070 The default key-bindings may be changed with an _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file. Other
17345e5a
JA
3071 programs that use this library may add their own commands and bindings.
3072
3073 For example, placing
3074
3075 M-Control-u: universal-argument
3076 or
3077 C-Meta-u: universal-argument
a0c0a00f 3078 into the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc would make M-C-u execute the readline command _\bu_\bn_\bi_\bv_\be_\br_\b-
17345e5a
JA
3079 _\bs_\ba_\bl_\b-_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt.
3080
a0c0a00f 3081 The following symbolic character names are recognized: _\bR_\bU_\bB_\bO_\bU_\bT, _\bD_\bE_\bL,
17345e5a
JA
3082 _\bE_\bS_\bC, _\bL_\bF_\bD, _\bN_\bE_\bW_\bL_\bI_\bN_\bE, _\bR_\bE_\bT, _\bR_\bE_\bT_\bU_\bR_\bN, _\bS_\bP_\bC, _\bS_\bP_\bA_\bC_\bE, and _\bT_\bA_\bB.
3083
a0c0a00f 3084 In addition to command names, readline allows keys to be bound to a
17345e5a
JA
3085 string that is inserted when the key is pressed (a _\bm_\ba_\bc_\br_\bo).
3086
3087 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be K\bKe\bey\by B\bBi\bin\bnd\bdi\bin\bng\bgs\bs
a0c0a00f
CR
3088 The syntax for controlling key bindings in the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file is simple.
3089 All that is required is the name of the command or the text of a macro
3090 and a key sequence to which it should be bound. The name may be speci-
17345e5a
JA
3091 fied in one of two ways: as a symbolic key name, possibly with _\bM_\be_\bt_\ba_\b- or
3092 _\bC_\bo_\bn_\bt_\br_\bo_\bl_\b- prefixes, or as a key sequence.
3093
3094 When using the form k\bke\bey\byn\bna\bam\bme\be:_\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be or _\bm_\ba_\bc_\br_\bo, _\bk_\be_\by_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is the name
3095 of a key spelled out in English. For example:
3096
3097 Control-u: universal-argument
3098 Meta-Rubout: backward-kill-word
3099 Control-o: "> output"
3100
a0c0a00f
CR
3101 In the above example, _\bC_\b-_\bu is bound to the function u\bun\bni\biv\bve\ber\brs\bsa\bal\bl-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt,
3102 _\bM_\b-_\bD_\bE_\bL is bound to the function b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd, and _\bC_\b-_\bo is bound to
3103 run the macro expressed on the right hand side (that is, to insert the
17345e5a
JA
3104 text ``> output'' into the line).
3105
a0c0a00f
CR
3106 In the second form, "\b"k\bke\bey\bys\bse\beq\bq"\b":_\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be or _\bm_\ba_\bc_\br_\bo, k\bke\bey\bys\bse\beq\bq differs
3107 from k\bke\bey\byn\bna\bam\bme\be above in that strings denoting an entire key sequence may
3108 be specified by placing the sequence within double quotes. Some GNU
3109 Emacs style key escapes can be used, as in the following example, but
17345e5a
JA
3110 the symbolic character names are not recognized.
3111
3112 "\C-u": universal-argument
3113 "\C-x\C-r": re-read-init-file
3114 "\e[11~": "Function Key 1"
3115
3116 In this example, _\bC_\b-_\bu is again bound to the function u\bun\bni\biv\bve\ber\brs\bsa\bal\bl-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt.
a0c0a00f 3117 _\bC_\b-_\bx _\bC_\b-_\br is bound to the function r\bre\be-\b-r\bre\bea\bad\bd-\b-i\bin\bni\bit\bt-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\be, and _\bE_\bS_\bC _\b[ _\b1 _\b1 _\b~ is
17345e5a
JA
3118 bound to insert the text ``Function Key 1''.
3119
3120 The full set of GNU Emacs style escape sequences is
3121 \\b\C\bC-\b- control prefix
3122 \\b\M\bM-\b- meta prefix
3123 \\b\e\be an escape character
3124 \\b\\\b\ backslash
3125 \\b\"\b" literal "
3126 \\b\'\b' literal '
3127
a0c0a00f 3128 In addition to the GNU Emacs style escape sequences, a second set of
17345e5a
JA
3129 backslash escapes is available:
3130 \\b\a\ba alert (bell)
3131 \\b\b\bb backspace
3132 \\b\d\bd delete
3133 \\b\f\bf form feed
3134 \\b\n\bn newline
3135 \\b\r\br carriage return
3136 \\b\t\bt horizontal tab
3137 \\b\v\bv vertical tab
a0c0a00f 3138 \\b\_\bn_\bn_\bn the eight-bit character whose value is the octal value
17345e5a 3139 _\bn_\bn_\bn (one to three digits)
a0c0a00f 3140 \\b\x\bx_\bH_\bH the eight-bit character whose value is the hexadecimal
17345e5a
JA
3141 value _\bH_\bH (one or two hex digits)
3142
3143 When entering the text of a macro, single or double quotes must be used
3144 to indicate a macro definition. Unquoted text is assumed to be a func-
a0c0a00f
CR
3145 tion name. In the macro body, the backslash escapes described above
3146 are expanded. Backslash will quote any other character in the macro
17345e5a
JA
3147 text, including " and '.
3148
a0c0a00f
CR
3149 B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh allows the current readline key bindings to be displayed or modi-
3150 fied with the b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd builtin command. The editing mode may be switched
3151 during interactive use by using the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin com-
17345e5a
JA
3152 mand (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
3153
3154 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be V\bVa\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs
3155 Readline has variables that can be used to further customize its behav-
3156 ior. A variable may be set in the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file with a statement of the
3157 form
3158
3159 s\bse\bet\bt _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be
712f80b0 3160 or using the b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd builtin command (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below).
17345e5a 3161
a0c0a00f
CR
3162 Except where noted, readline variables can take the values O\bOn\bn or O\bOf\bff\bf
3163 (without regard to case). Unrecognized variable names are ignored.
3164 When a variable value is read, empty or null values, "on" (case-insen-
17345e5a
JA
3165 sitive), and "1" are equivalent to O\bOn\bn. All other values are equivalent
3166 to O\bOf\bff\bf. The variables and their default values are:
3167
3168 b\bbe\bel\bll\bl-\b-s\bst\bty\byl\ble\be (\b(a\bau\bud\bdi\bib\bbl\ble\be)\b)
a0c0a00f 3169 Controls what happens when readline wants to ring the terminal
17345e5a 3170 bell. If set to n\bno\bon\bne\be, readline never rings the bell. If set to
a0c0a00f 3171 v\bvi\bis\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be, readline uses a visible bell if one is available. If
17345e5a
JA
3172 set to a\bau\bud\bdi\bib\bbl\ble\be, readline attempts to ring the terminal's bell.
3173 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd-\b-t\btt\bty\by-\b-s\bsp\bpe\bec\bci\bia\bal\bl-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\brs\bs (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
a0c0a00f 3174 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline attempts to bind the control characters
17345e5a
JA
3175 treated specially by the kernel's terminal driver to their read-
3176 line equivalents.
a0c0a00f
CR
3177 b\bbl\bli\bin\bnk\bk-\b-m\bma\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg-\b-p\bpa\bar\bre\ben\bn (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3178 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline attempts to briefly move the cursor to an
3179 opening parenthesis when a closing parenthesis is inserted.
3180 c\bco\bol\blo\bor\bre\bed\bd-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3181 If set to O\bOn\bn, when listing completions, readline displays the
3182 common prefix of the set of possible completions using a differ-
3183 ent color. The color definitions are taken from the value of
3184 the L\bLS\bS_\b_C\bCO\bOL\bLO\bOR\bRS\bS environment variable.
ac50fbac 3185 c\bco\bol\blo\bor\bre\bed\bd-\b-s\bst\bta\bat\bts\bs (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
a0c0a00f
CR
3186 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline displays possible completions using dif-
3187 ferent colors to indicate their file type. The color defini-
3188 tions are taken from the value of the L\bLS\bS_\b_C\bCO\bOL\bLO\bOR\bRS\bS environment
ac50fbac 3189 variable.
17345e5a 3190 c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt-\b-b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bn (\b(`\b``\b`#\b#'\b''\b')\b)
a0c0a00f 3191 The string that is inserted when the readline i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt-\b-c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt
17345e5a
JA
3192 command is executed. This command is bound to M\bM-\b-#\b# in emacs mode
3193 and to #\b# in vi command mode.
a0c0a00f
CR
3194 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-d\bdi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by-\b-w\bwi\bid\bdt\bth\bh (\b(-\b-1\b1)\b)
3195 The number of screen columns used to display possible matches
3196 when performing completion. The value is ignored if it is less
3197 than 0 or greater than the terminal screen width. A value of 0
3198 will cause matches to be displayed one per line. The default
3199 value is -1.
17345e5a
JA
3200 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-i\big\bgn\bno\bor\bre\be-\b-c\bca\bas\bse\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3201 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline performs filename matching and completion
3202 in a case-insensitive fashion.
a0c0a00f
CR
3203 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-m\bma\bap\bp-\b-c\bca\bas\bse\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3204 If set to O\bOn\bn, and c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-i\big\bgn\bno\bor\bre\be-\b-c\bca\bas\bse\be is enabled, readline
3205 treats hyphens (_\b-) and underscores (_\b_) as equivalent when per-
3206 forming case-insensitive filename matching and completion.
17345e5a 3207 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx-\b-d\bdi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by-\b-l\ble\ben\bng\bgt\bth\bh (\b(0\b0)\b)
a0c0a00f
CR
3208 The length in characters of the common prefix of a list of pos-
3209 sible completions that is displayed without modification. When
3210 set to a value greater than zero, common prefixes longer than
3211 this value are replaced with an ellipsis when displaying possi-
17345e5a
JA
3212 ble completions.
3213 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn-\b-q\bqu\bue\ber\bry\by-\b-i\bit\bte\bem\bms\bs (\b(1\b10\b00\b0)\b)
a0c0a00f
CR
3214 This determines when the user is queried about viewing the num-
3215 ber of possible completions generated by the p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\be-\b-
3216 t\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs command. It may be set to any integer value greater than
3217 or equal to zero. If the number of possible completions is
3eb0018e
CR
3218 greater than or equal to the value of this variable, readline
3219 will ask whether or not the user wishes to view them; otherwise
3220 they are simply listed on the terminal.
17345e5a 3221 c\bco\bon\bnv\bve\ber\brt\bt-\b-m\bme\bet\bta\ba (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
a0c0a00f 3222 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will convert characters with the eighth
17345e5a 3223 bit set to an ASCII key sequence by stripping the eighth bit and
a0c0a00f
CR
3224 prefixing an escape character (in effect, using escape as the
3225 _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx). The default is _\bO_\bn, but readline will set it to
3226 _\bO_\bf_\bf if the locale contains eight-bit characters.
17345e5a
JA
3227 d\bdi\bis\bsa\bab\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3228 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will inhibit word completion. Completion
ac50fbac 3229 characters will be inserted into the line as if they had been
17345e5a 3230 mapped to s\bse\bel\blf\bf-\b-i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt.
0001803f 3231 e\bec\bch\bho\bo-\b-c\bco\bon\bnt\btr\bro\bol\bl-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\bra\bac\bct\bte\ber\brs\bs (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
ac50fbac 3232 When set to O\bOn\bn, on operating systems that indicate they support
0001803f
CR
3233 it, readline echoes a character corresponding to a signal gener-
3234 ated from the keyboard.
a0c0a00f
CR
3235 e\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be (\b(e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs)\b)
3236 Controls whether readline begins with a set of key bindings sim-
3237 ilar to _\bE_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs or _\bv_\bi. e\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be can be set to either e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs or
3238 v\bvi\bi.
d233b485
CR
3239 e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be-\b-s\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg (\b(@\b@)\b)
3240 If the _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bw_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bd_\be_\b-_\bi_\bn_\b-_\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt variable is enabled, this string is
3241 displayed immediately before the last line of the primary prompt
3242 when emacs editing mode is active. The value is expanded like a
3243 key binding, so the standard set of meta- and control prefixes
3244 and backslash escape sequences is available. Use the \1 and \2
3245 escapes to begin and end sequences of non-printing characters,
3246 which can be used to embed a terminal control sequence into the
3247 mode string.
a0c0a00f 3248 e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be-\b-b\bbr\bra\bac\bck\bke\bet\bte\bed\bd-\b-p\bpa\bas\bst\bte\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
d233b485 3249 When set to O\bOn\bn, readline will configure the terminal in a way
a0c0a00f
CR
3250 that will enable it to insert each paste into the editing buffer
3251 as a single string of characters, instead of treating each char-
d233b485
CR
3252 acter as if it had been read from the keyboard. This can pre-
3253 vent pasted characters from being interpreted as editing com-
a0c0a00f 3254 mands.
17345e5a
JA
3255 e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be-\b-k\bke\bey\byp\bpa\bad\bd (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3256 When set to O\bOn\bn, readline will try to enable the application key-
712f80b0
CR
3257 pad when it is called. Some systems need this to enable the ar-
3258 row keys.
0001803f 3259 e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be-\b-m\bme\bet\bta\ba-\b-k\bke\bey\by (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
d233b485
CR
3260 When set to O\bOn\bn, readline will try to enable any meta modifier
3261 key the terminal claims to support when it is called. On many
0001803f 3262 terminals, the meta key is used to send eight-bit characters.
17345e5a 3263 e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-t\bti\bil\bld\bde\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3264 If set to O\bOn\bn, tilde expansion is performed when readline at-
3265 tempts word completion.
17345e5a 3266 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-p\bpr\bre\bes\bse\ber\brv\bve\be-\b-p\bpo\boi\bin\bnt\bt (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
d233b485
CR
3267 If set to O\bOn\bn, the history code attempts to place point at the
3268 same location on each history line retrieved with p\bpr\bre\bev\bvi\bio\bou\bus\bs-\b-h\bhi\bis\bs-\b-
17345e5a 3269 t\bto\bor\bry\by or n\bne\bex\bxt\bt-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by.
a0c0a00f 3270 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-s\bsi\biz\bze\be (\b(u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt)\b)
d233b485
CR
3271 Set the maximum number of history entries saved in the history
3272 list. If set to zero, any existing history entries are deleted
ac50fbac 3273 and no new entries are saved. If set to a value less than zero,
d233b485
CR
3274 the number of history entries is not limited. By default, the
3275 number of history entries is set to the value of the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE
3276 shell variable. If an attempt is made to set _\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by_\b-_\bs_\bi_\bz_\be to a
a0c0a00f
CR
3277 non-numeric value, the maximum number of history entries will be
3278 set to 500.
17345e5a 3279 h\bho\bor\bri\biz\bzo\bon\bnt\bta\bal\bl-\b-s\bsc\bcr\bro\bol\bll\bl-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
d233b485 3280 When set to O\bOn\bn, makes readline use a single line for display,
17345e5a 3281 scrolling the input horizontally on a single screen line when it
d233b485 3282 becomes longer than the screen width rather than wrapping to a
712f80b0
CR
3283 new line. This setting is automatically enabled for terminals
3284 of height 1.
17345e5a 3285 i\bin\bnp\bpu\but\bt-\b-m\bme\bet\bta\ba (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3286 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will enable eight-bit input (that is, it
3287 will not strip the eighth bit from the characters it reads), re-
3288 gardless of what the terminal claims it can support. The name
3289 m\bme\bet\bta\ba-\b-f\bfl\bla\bag\bg is a synonym for this variable. The default is _\bO_\bf_\bf,
3290 but readline will set it to _\bO_\bn if the locale contains eight-bit
a0c0a00f 3291 characters.
17345e5a 3292 i\bis\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-t\bte\ber\brm\bmi\bin\bna\bat\bto\bor\brs\bs (\b(`\b``\b`C\bC-\b-[\b[C\bC-\b-J\bJ'\b''\b')\b)
712f80b0
CR
3293 The string of characters that should terminate an incremental
3294 search without subsequently executing the character as a com-
3295 mand. If this variable has not been given a value, the charac-
17345e5a
JA
3296 ters _\bE_\bS_\bC and _\bC_\b-_\bJ will terminate an incremental search.
3297 k\bke\bey\bym\bma\bap\bp (\b(e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3298 Set the current readline keymap. The set of valid keymap names
3299 is _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bs_\bt_\ba_\bn_\bd_\ba_\br_\bd_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bm_\be_\bt_\ba_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bc_\bt_\bl_\bx_\b, _\bv_\bi_\b, _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\b-
3300 _\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd, and _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bi_\bn_\bs_\be_\br_\bt. _\bv_\bi is equivalent to _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd; _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs is
3301 equivalent to _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bs_\bt_\ba_\bn_\bd_\ba_\br_\bd. The default value is _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs; the
17345e5a 3302 value of e\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be also affects the default keymap.
ac50fbac 3303 k\bke\bey\bys\bse\beq\bq-\b-t\bti\bim\bme\beo\bou\but\bt (\b(5\b50\b00\b0)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3304 Specifies the duration _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be will wait for a character when
3305 reading an ambiguous key sequence (one that can form a complete
ac50fbac 3306 key sequence using the input read so far, or can take additional
712f80b0
CR
3307 input to complete a longer key sequence). If no input is re-
3308 ceived within the timeout, _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be will use the shorter but
3309 complete key sequence. The value is specified in milliseconds,
3310 so a value of 1000 means that _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be will wait one second for
3311 additional input. If this variable is set to a value less than
3312 or equal to zero, or to a non-numeric value, _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be will wait
3313 until another key is pressed to decide which key sequence to
ac50fbac 3314 complete.
17345e5a
JA
3315 m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-d\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bri\bie\bes\bs (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
3316 If set to O\bOn\bn, completed directory names have a slash appended.
3317 m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-m\bmo\bod\bdi\bif\bfi\bie\bed\bd-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\bes\bs (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3318 If set to O\bOn\bn, history lines that have been modified are dis-
17345e5a
JA
3319 played with a preceding asterisk (*\b*).
3320 m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-s\bsy\bym\bml\bli\bin\bnk\bke\bed\bd-\b-d\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bri\bie\bes\bs (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
3321 If set to O\bOn\bn, completed names which are symbolic links to direc-
712f80b0
CR
3322 tories have a slash appended (subject to the value of m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-d\bdi\bi-\b-
3323 r\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bri\bie\bes\bs).
17345e5a 3324 m\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh-\b-h\bhi\bid\bdd\bde\ben\bn-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\bes\bs (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3325 This variable, when set to O\bOn\bn, causes readline to match files
3326 whose names begin with a `.' (hidden files) when performing
3327 filename completion. If set to O\bOf\bff\bf, the leading `.' must be
495aee44
CR
3328 supplied by the user in the filename to be completed.
3329 m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-d\bdi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by-\b-p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3330 If set to O\bOn\bn, menu completion displays the common prefix of the
495aee44
CR
3331 list of possible completions (which may be empty) before cycling
3332 through the list.
17345e5a 3333 o\bou\but\btp\bpu\but\bt-\b-m\bme\bet\bta\ba (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3334 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will display characters with the eighth
17345e5a 3335 bit set directly rather than as a meta-prefixed escape sequence.
a0c0a00f
CR
3336 The default is _\bO_\bf_\bf, but readline will set it to _\bO_\bn if the locale
3337 contains eight-bit characters.
17345e5a 3338 p\bpa\bag\bge\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(O\bOn\bn)\b)
712f80b0 3339 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline uses an internal _\bm_\bo_\br_\be-like pager to dis-
17345e5a
JA
3340 play a screenful of possible completions at a time.
3341 p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\bt-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs-\b-h\bho\bor\bri\biz\bzo\bon\bnt\bta\bal\bll\bly\by (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3342 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will display completions with matches
3343 sorted horizontally in alphabetical order, rather than down the
17345e5a
JA
3344 screen.
3345 r\bre\bev\bve\ber\brt\bt-\b-a\bal\bll\bl-\b-a\bat\bt-\b-n\bne\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3346 If set to O\bOn\bn, readline will undo all changes to history lines
17345e5a 3347 before returning when a\bac\bcc\bce\bep\bpt\bt-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be is executed. By default, his-
712f80b0 3348 tory lines may be modified and retain individual undo lists
17345e5a
JA
3349 across calls to r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be.
3350 s\bsh\bho\bow\bw-\b-a\bal\bll\bl-\b-i\bif\bf-\b-a\bam\bmb\bbi\big\bgu\buo\bou\bus\bs (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3351 This alters the default behavior of the completion functions.
495aee44 3352 If set to O\bOn\bn, words which have more than one possible completion
712f80b0 3353 cause the matches to be listed immediately instead of ringing
17345e5a
JA
3354 the bell.
3355 s\bsh\bho\bow\bw-\b-a\bal\bll\bl-\b-i\bif\bf-\b-u\bun\bnm\bmo\bod\bdi\bif\bfi\bie\bed\bd (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0 3356 This alters the default behavior of the completion functions in
495aee44 3357 a fashion similar to s\bsh\bho\bow\bw-\b-a\bal\bll\bl-\b-i\bif\bf-\b-a\bam\bmb\bbi\big\bgu\buo\bou\bus\bs. If set to O\bOn\bn, words
712f80b0
CR
3358 which have more than one possible completion without any possi-
3359 ble partial completion (the possible completions don't share a
3360 common prefix) cause the matches to be listed immediately in-
3361 stead of ringing the bell.
ac50fbac 3362 s\bsh\bho\bow\bw-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be-\b-i\bin\bn-\b-p\bpr\bro\bom\bmp\bpt\bt (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3363 If set to O\bOn\bn, add a string to the beginning of the prompt indi-
3364 cating the editing mode: emacs, vi command, or vi insertion.
d233b485 3365 The mode strings are user-settable (e.g., _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bd_\be_\b-_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg).
0001803f 3366 s\bsk\bki\bip\bp-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\bed\bd-\b-t\bte\bex\bxt\bt (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3367 If set to O\bOn\bn, this alters the default completion behavior when
3368 inserting a single match into the line. It's only active when
3369 performing completion in the middle of a word. If enabled,
3370 readline does not insert characters from the completion that
3371 match characters after point in the word being completed, so
0001803f 3372 portions of the word following the cursor are not duplicated.
a0c0a00f 3373 v\bvi\bi-\b-c\bcm\bmd\bd-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be-\b-s\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg (\b((\b(c\bcm\bmd\bd)\b))\b)
712f80b0 3374 If the _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bw_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bd_\be_\b-_\bi_\bn_\b-_\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt variable is enabled, this string is
d233b485 3375 displayed immediately before the last line of the primary prompt
712f80b0 3376 when vi editing mode is active and in command mode. The value
d233b485 3377 is expanded like a key binding, so the standard set of meta- and
712f80b0
CR
3378 control prefixes and backslash escape sequences is available.
3379 Use the \1 and \2 escapes to begin and end sequences of non-
3380 printing characters, which can be used to embed a terminal con-
d233b485 3381 trol sequence into the mode string.
a0c0a00f 3382 v\bvi\bi-\b-i\bin\bns\bs-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be-\b-s\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg (\b((\b(i\bin\bns\bs)\b))\b)
712f80b0 3383 If the _\bs_\bh_\bo_\bw_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bd_\be_\b-_\bi_\bn_\b-_\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt variable is enabled, this string is
d233b485
CR
3384 displayed immediately before the last line of the primary prompt
3385 when vi editing mode is active and in insertion mode. The value
3386 is expanded like a key binding, so the standard set of meta- and
712f80b0
CR
3387 control prefixes and backslash escape sequences is available.
3388 Use the \1 and \2 escapes to begin and end sequences of non-
3389 printing characters, which can be used to embed a terminal con-
d233b485 3390 trol sequence into the mode string.
17345e5a 3391 v\bvi\bis\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-s\bst\bta\bat\bts\bs (\b(O\bOf\bff\bf)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3392 If set to O\bOn\bn, a character denoting a file's type as reported by
3393 _\bs_\bt_\ba_\bt(2) is appended to the filename when listing possible com-
17345e5a
JA
3394 pletions.
3395
3396 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be C\bCo\bon\bnd\bdi\bit\bti\bio\bon\bna\bal\bl C\bCo\bon\bns\bst\btr\bru\buc\bct\bts\bs
712f80b0
CR
3397 Readline implements a facility similar in spirit to the conditional
3398 compilation features of the C preprocessor which allows key bindings
3399 and variable settings to be performed as the result of tests. There
17345e5a
JA
3400 are four parser directives used.
3401
712f80b0
CR
3402 $\b$i\bif\bf The $\b$i\bif\bf construct allows bindings to be made based on the edit-
3403 ing mode, the terminal being used, or the application using
d233b485 3404 readline. The text of the test, after any comparison operator,
712f80b0 3405 extends to the end of the line; unless otherwise noted, no
d233b485
CR
3406 characters are required to isolate it.
3407
712f80b0
CR
3408 m\bmo\bod\bde\be The m\bmo\bod\bde\be=\b= form of the $\b$i\bif\bf directive is used to test
3409 whether readline is in emacs or vi mode. This may be
3410 used in conjunction with the s\bse\bet\bt k\bke\bey\bym\bma\bap\bp command, for in-
3411 stance, to set bindings in the _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bs_\bt_\ba_\bn_\bd_\ba_\br_\bd and
3412 _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bc_\bt_\bl_\bx keymaps only if readline is starting out in
17345e5a
JA
3413 emacs mode.
3414
712f80b0 3415 t\bte\ber\brm\bm The t\bte\ber\brm\bm=\b= form may be used to include terminal-specific
17345e5a
JA
3416 key bindings, perhaps to bind the key sequences output by
3417 the terminal's function keys. The word on the right side
a0c0a00f 3418 of the =\b= is tested against both the full name of the ter-
712f80b0
CR
3419 minal and the portion of the terminal name before the
3420 first -\b-. This allows _\bs_\bu_\bn to match both _\bs_\bu_\bn and _\bs_\bu_\bn_\b-_\bc_\bm_\bd,
17345e5a
JA
3421 for instance.
3422
d233b485 3423 v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn
712f80b0
CR
3424 The v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn test may be used to perform comparisons
3425 against specific readline versions. The v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn expands
3426 to the current readline version. The set of comparison
3427 operators includes =\b=, (and =\b==\b=), !\b!=\b=, <\b<=\b=, >\b>=\b=, <\b<, and >\b>.
3428 The version number supplied on the right side of the op-
3429 erator consists of a major version number, an optional
d233b485 3430 decimal point, and an optional minor version (e.g., 7\b7.\b.1\b1).
712f80b0 3431 If the minor version is omitted, it is assumed to be 0\b0.
d233b485
CR
3432 The operator may be separated from the string v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn and
3433 from the version number argument by whitespace.
3434
17345e5a
JA
3435 a\bap\bpp\bpl\bli\bic\bca\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn
3436 The a\bap\bpp\bpl\bli\bic\bca\bat\bti\bio\bon\bn construct is used to include application-
712f80b0
CR
3437 specific settings. Each program using the readline li-
3438 brary sets the _\ba_\bp_\bp_\bl_\bi_\bc_\ba_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, and an initialization
17345e5a 3439 file can test for a particular value. This could be used
712f80b0
CR
3440 to bind key sequences to functions useful for a specific
3441 program. For instance, the following command adds a key
3442 sequence that quotes the current or previous word in
495aee44 3443 b\bba\bas\bsh\bh:
17345e5a
JA
3444
3445 $\b$i\bif\bf Bash
3446 # Quote the current or previous word
3447 "\C-xq": "\eb\"\ef\""
3448 $\b$e\ben\bnd\bdi\bif\bf
3449
d233b485
CR
3450 _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be
3451 The _\bv_\ba_\br_\bi_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be construct provides simple equality tests for
712f80b0
CR
3452 readline variables and values. The permitted comparison
3453 operators are _\b=, _\b=_\b=, and _\b!_\b=. The variable name must be
d233b485 3454 separated from the comparison operator by whitespace; the
712f80b0
CR
3455 operator may be separated from the value on the right
3456 hand side by whitespace. Both string and boolean vari-
3457 ables may be tested. Boolean variables must be tested
d233b485
CR
3458 against the values _\bo_\bn and _\bo_\bf_\bf.
3459
17345e5a
JA
3460 $\b$e\ben\bnd\bdi\bif\bf This command, as seen in the previous example, terminates an $\b$i\bif\bf
3461 command.
3462
3463 $\b$e\bel\bls\bse\be Commands in this branch of the $\b$i\bif\bf directive are executed if the
3464 test fails.
3465
3466 $\b$i\bin\bnc\bcl\blu\bud\bde\be
712f80b0
CR
3467 This directive takes a single filename as an argument and reads
3468 commands and bindings from that file. For example, the follow-
17345e5a
JA
3469 ing directive would read _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc:
3470
3471 $\b$i\bin\bnc\bcl\blu\bud\bde\be _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc
3472
3473 S\bSe\bea\bar\brc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg
712f80b0 3474 Readline provides commands for searching through the command history
17345e5a
JA
3475 (see H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY below) for lines containing a specified string. There are
3476 two search modes: _\bi_\bn_\bc_\br_\be_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\ba_\bl and _\bn_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bi_\bn_\bc_\br_\be_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\ba_\bl.
3477
712f80b0
CR
3478 Incremental searches begin before the user has finished typing the
3479 search string. As each character of the search string is typed, read-
17345e5a 3480 line displays the next entry from the history matching the string typed
712f80b0
CR
3481 so far. An incremental search requires only as many characters as
3482 needed to find the desired history entry. The characters present in
3483 the value of the i\bis\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-t\bte\ber\brm\bmi\bin\bna\bat\bto\bor\brs\bs variable are used to terminate an
17345e5a 3484 incremental search. If that variable has not been assigned a value the
712f80b0
CR
3485 Escape and Control-J characters will terminate an incremental search.
3486 Control-G will abort an incremental search and restore the original
3487 line. When the search is terminated, the history entry containing the
17345e5a
JA
3488 search string becomes the current line.
3489
712f80b0
CR
3490 To find other matching entries in the history list, type Control-S or
3491 Control-R as appropriate. This will search backward or forward in the
3492 history for the next entry matching the search string typed so far.
3493 Any other key sequence bound to a readline command will terminate the
3494 search and execute that command. For instance, a _\bn_\be_\bw_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be will termi-
17345e5a
JA
3495 nate the search and accept the line, thereby executing the command from
3496 the history list.
3497
3498 Readline remembers the last incremental search string. If two Control-
712f80b0 3499 Rs are typed without any intervening characters defining a new search
17345e5a
JA
3500 string, any remembered search string is used.
3501
712f80b0
CR
3502 Non-incremental searches read the entire search string before starting
3503 to search for matching history lines. The search string may be typed
17345e5a
JA
3504 by the user or be part of the contents of the current line.
3505
3506 R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd N\bNa\bam\bme\bes\bs
712f80b0 3507 The following is a list of the names of the commands and the default
17345e5a
JA
3508 key sequences to which they are bound. Command names without an accom-
3509 panying key sequence are unbound by default. In the following descrip-
712f80b0
CR
3510 tions, _\bp_\bo_\bi_\bn_\bt refers to the current cursor position, and _\bm_\ba_\br_\bk refers to
3511 a cursor position saved by the s\bse\bet\bt-\b-m\bma\bar\brk\bk command. The text between the
17345e5a
JA
3512 point and mark is referred to as the _\br_\be_\bg_\bi_\bo_\bn.
3513
3514 C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs f\bfo\bor\br M\bMo\bov\bvi\bin\bng\bg
3515 b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bnn\bni\bin\bng\bg-\b-o\bof\bf-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(C\bC-\b-a\ba)\b)
3516 Move to the start of the current line.
3517 e\ben\bnd\bd-\b-o\bof\bf-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(C\bC-\b-e\be)\b)
3518 Move to the end of the line.
3519 f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br (\b(C\bC-\b-f\bf)\b)
3520 Move forward a character.
3521 b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br (\b(C\bC-\b-b\bb)\b)
3522 Move back a character.
3523 f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-f\bf)\b)
3524 Move forward to the end of the next word. Words are composed of
3525 alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
3526 b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-b\bb)\b)
712f80b0 3527 Move back to the start of the current or previous word. Words
17345e5a
JA
3528 are composed of alphanumeric characters (letters and digits).
3529 s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0 3530 Move forward to the end of the next word. Words are delimited
17345e5a
JA
3531 by non-quoted shell metacharacters.
3532 s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0 3533 Move back to the start of the current or previous word. Words
17345e5a 3534 are delimited by non-quoted shell metacharacters.
d233b485 3535 p\bpr\bre\bev\bvi\bio\bou\bus\bs-\b-s\bsc\bcr\bre\bee\ben\bn-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
712f80b0
CR
3536 Attempt to move point to the same physical screen column on the
3537 previous physical screen line. This will not have the desired
3538 effect if the current Readline line does not take up more than
3539 one physical line or if point is not greater than the length of
d233b485
CR
3540 the prompt plus the screen width.
3541 n\bne\bex\bxt\bt-\b-s\bsc\bcr\bre\bee\ben\bn-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
712f80b0 3542 Attempt to move point to the same physical screen column on the
d233b485 3543 next physical screen line. This will not have the desired effect
712f80b0
CR
3544 if the current Readline line does not take up more than one
3545 physical line or if the length of the current Readline line is
d233b485 3546 not greater than the length of the prompt plus the screen width.
712f80b0
CR
3547 c\bcl\ble\bea\bar\br-\b-d\bdi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by (\b(M\bM-\b-C\bC-\b-l\bl)\b)
3548 Clear the screen and, if possible, the terminal's scrollback
3549 buffer, then redraw the current line, leaving the current line
3550 at the top of the screen.
17345e5a 3551 c\bcl\ble\bea\bar\br-\b-s\bsc\bcr\bre\bee\ben\bn (\b(C\bC-\b-l\bl)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3552 Clear the screen, then redraw the current line, leaving the cur-
3553 rent line at the top of the screen. With an argument, refresh
3554 the current line without clearing the screen.
17345e5a
JA
3555 r\bre\bed\bdr\bra\baw\bw-\b-c\bcu\bur\brr\bre\ben\bnt\bt-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
3556 Refresh the current line.
3557
3558 C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs f\bfo\bor\br M\bMa\ban\bni\bip\bpu\bul\bla\bat\bti\bin\bng\bg t\bth\bhe\be H\bHi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by
3559 a\bac\bcc\bce\bep\bpt\bt-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(N\bNe\bew\bwl\bli\bin\bne\be,\b, R\bRe\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn)\b)
3560 Accept the line regardless of where the cursor is. If this line
712f80b0
CR
3561 is non-empty, add it to the history list according to the state
3562 of the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL variable. If the line is a modified history
17345e5a
JA
3563 line, then restore the history line to its original state.
3564 p\bpr\bre\bev\bvi\bio\bou\bus\bs-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(C\bC-\b-p\bp)\b)
3565 Fetch the previous command from the history list, moving back in
3566 the list.
3567 n\bne\bex\bxt\bt-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(C\bC-\b-n\bn)\b)
712f80b0 3568 Fetch the next command from the history list, moving forward in
17345e5a
JA
3569 the list.
3570 b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bnn\bni\bin\bng\bg-\b-o\bof\bf-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(M\bM-\b-<\b<)\b)
3571 Move to the first line in the history.
3572 e\ben\bnd\bd-\b-o\bof\bf-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(M\bM-\b->\b>)\b)
712f80b0 3573 Move to the end of the input history, i.e., the line currently
17345e5a
JA
3574 being entered.
3575 r\bre\bev\bve\ber\brs\bse\be-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(C\bC-\b-r\br)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3576 Search backward starting at the current line and moving `up'
3577 through the history as necessary. This is an incremental
17345e5a
JA
3578 search.
3579 f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(C\bC-\b-s\bs)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3580 Search forward starting at the current line and moving `down'
3581 through the history as necessary. This is an incremental
17345e5a
JA
3582 search.
3583 n\bno\bon\bn-\b-i\bin\bnc\bcr\bre\bem\bme\ben\bnt\bta\bal\bl-\b-r\bre\bev\bve\ber\brs\bse\be-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(M\bM-\b-p\bp)\b)
3584 Search backward through the history starting at the current line
712f80b0 3585 using a non-incremental search for a string supplied by the
17345e5a
JA
3586 user.
3587 n\bno\bon\bn-\b-i\bin\bnc\bcr\bre\bem\bme\ben\bnt\bta\bal\bl-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(M\bM-\b-n\bn)\b)
712f80b0 3588 Search forward through the history using a non-incremental
17345e5a
JA
3589 search for a string supplied by the user.
3590 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd
712f80b0
CR
3591 Search forward through the history for the string of characters
3592 between the start of the current line and the point. This is a
17345e5a
JA
3593 non-incremental search.
3594 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd
3595 Search backward through the history for the string of characters
712f80b0 3596 between the start of the current line and the point. This is a
17345e5a 3597 non-incremental search.
d233b485
CR
3598 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-s\bsu\bub\bbs\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd
3599 Search backward through the history for the string of characters
712f80b0
CR
3600 between the start of the current line and the current cursor po-
3601 sition (the _\bp_\bo_\bi_\bn_\bt). The search string may match anywhere in a
d233b485
CR
3602 history line. This is a non-incremental search.
3603 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-s\bsu\bub\bbs\bst\btr\bri\bin\bng\bg-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd
712f80b0 3604 Search forward through the history for the string of characters
d233b485 3605 between the start of the current line and the point. The search
712f80b0
CR
3606 string may match anywhere in a history line. This is a non-in-
3607 cremental search.
17345e5a 3608 y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-n\bnt\bth\bh-\b-a\bar\brg\bg (\b(M\bM-\b-C\bC-\b-y\by)\b)
712f80b0 3609 Insert the first argument to the previous command (usually the
17345e5a 3610 second word on the previous line) at point. With an argument _\bn,
712f80b0
CR
3611 insert the _\bnth word from the previous command (the words in the
3612 previous command begin with word 0). A negative argument in-
3613 serts the _\bnth word from the end of the previous command. Once
3614 the argument _\bn is computed, the argument is extracted as if the
17345e5a
JA
3615 "!_\bn" history expansion had been specified.
3616 y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-a\bar\brg\bg (\b(M\bM-\b-.\b.,\b, M\bM-\b-_\b_)\b)
712f80b0 3617 Insert the last argument to the previous command (the last word
495aee44 3618 of the previous history entry). With a numeric argument, behave
712f80b0
CR
3619 exactly like y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-n\bnt\bth\bh-\b-a\bar\brg\bg. Successive calls to y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-a\bar\brg\bg
3620 move back through the history list, inserting the last word (or
3621 the word specified by the argument to the first call) of each
495aee44 3622 line in turn. Any numeric argument supplied to these successive
712f80b0
CR
3623 calls determines the direction to move through the history. A
3624 negative argument switches the direction through the history
495aee44 3625 (back or forward). The history expansion facilities are used to
ac50fbac
CR
3626 extract the last word, as if the "!$" history expansion had been
3627 specified.
17345e5a
JA
3628 s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(M\bM-\b-C\bC-\b-e\be)\b)
3629 Expand the line as the shell does. This performs alias and his-
3630 tory expansion as well as all of the shell word expansions. See
a0c0a00f 3631 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below for a description of history expansion.
17345e5a 3632 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(M\bM-\b-^\b^)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3633 Perform history expansion on the current line. See H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bX-\b-
3634 P\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below for a description of history expansion.
17345e5a 3635 m\bma\bag\bgi\bic\bc-\b-s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be
712f80b0 3636 Perform history expansion on the current line and insert a
17345e5a
JA
3637 space. See H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN below for a description of history
3638 expansion.
3639 a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
712f80b0 3640 Perform alias expansion on the current line. See A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS above
17345e5a
JA
3641 for a description of alias expansion.
3642 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by-\b-a\ban\bnd\bd-\b-a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
3643 Perform history and alias expansion on the current line.
3644 i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt (\b(M\bM-\b-.\b.,\b, M\bM-\b-_\b_)\b)
3645 A synonym for y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-a\bar\brg\bg.
3646 o\bop\bpe\ber\bra\bat\bte\be-\b-a\ban\bnd\bd-\b-g\bge\bet\bt-\b-n\bne\bex\bxt\bt (\b(C\bC-\b-o\bo)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3647 Accept the current line for execution and fetch the next line
3648 relative to the current line from the history for editing. A
3649 numeric argument, if supplied, specifies the history entry to
d233b485
CR
3650 use instead of the current line.
3651 e\bed\bdi\bit\bt-\b-a\ban\bnd\bd-\b-e\bex\bxe\bec\bcu\but\bte\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx C\bC-\b-e\be)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3652 Invoke an editor on the current command line, and execute the
3653 result as shell commands. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh attempts to invoke $\b$V\bVI\bIS\bSU\bUA\bAL\bL, $\b$E\bED\bD-\b-
3654 I\bIT\bTO\bOR\bR, and _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs as the editor, in that order.
17345e5a
JA
3655
3656 C\bCo\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bds\bs f\bfo\bor\br C\bCh\bha\ban\bng\bgi\bin\bng\bg T\bTe\bex\bxt\bt
ac50fbac 3657 _\be_\bn_\bd_\b-_\bo_\bf_\b-_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be (\b(u\bus\bsu\bua\bal\bll\bly\by C\bC-\b-d\bd)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3658 The character indicating end-of-file as set, for example, by
3659 ``stty''. If this character is read when there are no charac-
3660 ters on the line, and point is at the beginning of the line,
ac50fbac 3661 Readline interprets it as the end of input and returns E\bEO\bOF\bF.
17345e5a 3662 d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br (\b(C\bC-\b-d\bd)\b)
ac50fbac
CR
3663 Delete the character at point. If this function is bound to the
3664 same character as the tty E\bEO\bOF\bF character, as C\bC-\b-d\bd commonly is, see
3665 above for the effects.
17345e5a 3666 b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br (\b(R\bRu\bub\bbo\bou\but\bt)\b)
712f80b0 3667 Delete the character behind the cursor. When given a numeric
17345e5a
JA
3668 argument, save the deleted text on the kill ring.
3669 f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br
712f80b0 3670 Delete the character under the cursor, unless the cursor is at
17345e5a
JA
3671 the end of the line, in which case the character behind the cur-
3672 sor is deleted.
3673 q\bqu\buo\bot\bte\bed\bd-\b-i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt (\b(C\bC-\b-q\bq,\b, C\bC-\b-v\bv)\b)
712f80b0 3674 Add the next character typed to the line verbatim. This is how
17345e5a
JA
3675 to insert characters like C\bC-\b-q\bq, for example.
3676 t\bta\bab\bb-\b-i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt (\b(C\bC-\b-v\bv T\bTA\bAB\bB)\b)
3677 Insert a tab character.
3678 s\bse\bel\blf\bf-\b-i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt (\b(a\ba,\b, b\bb,\b, A\bA,\b, 1\b1,\b, !\b!,\b, .\b..\b..\b.)\b)
3679 Insert the character typed.
3680 t\btr\bra\ban\bns\bsp\bpo\bos\bse\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\brs\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-t\bt)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3681 Drag the character before point forward over the character at
3682 point, moving point forward as well. If point is at the end of
3683 the line, then this transposes the two characters before point.
17345e5a
JA
3684 Negative arguments have no effect.
3685 t\btr\bra\ban\bns\bsp\bpo\bos\bse\be-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bds\bs (\b(M\bM-\b-t\bt)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3686 Drag the word before point past the word after point, moving
3687 point over that word as well. If point is at the end of the
17345e5a
JA
3688 line, this transposes the last two words on the line.
3689 u\bup\bpc\bca\bas\bse\be-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-u\bu)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3690 Uppercase the current (or following) word. With a negative ar-
3691 gument, uppercase the previous word, but do not move point.
17345e5a 3692 d\bdo\bow\bwn\bnc\bca\bas\bse\be-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-l\bl)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3693 Lowercase the current (or following) word. With a negative ar-
3694 gument, lowercase the previous word, but do not move point.
17345e5a 3695 c\bca\bap\bpi\bit\bta\bal\bli\biz\bze\be-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-c\bc)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3696 Capitalize the current (or following) word. With a negative ar-
3697 gument, capitalize the previous word, but do not move point.
17345e5a 3698 o\bov\bve\ber\brw\bwr\bri\bit\bte\be-\b-m\bmo\bod\bde\be
712f80b0 3699 Toggle overwrite mode. With an explicit positive numeric argu-
17345e5a
JA
3700 ment, switches to overwrite mode. With an explicit non-positive
3701 numeric argument, switches to insert mode. This command affects
712f80b0 3702 only e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs mode; v\bvi\bi mode does overwrite differently. Each call
17345e5a 3703 to _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be_\b(_\b) starts in insert mode. In overwrite mode, charac-
712f80b0
CR
3704 ters bound to s\bse\bel\blf\bf-\b-i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt replace the text at point rather than
3705 pushing the text to the right. Characters bound to b\bba\bac\bck\bk-\b-
3706 w\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br replace the character before point with a
17345e5a
JA
3707 space. By default, this command is unbound.
3708
3709 K\bKi\bil\bll\bli\bin\bng\bg a\ban\bnd\bd Y\bYa\ban\bnk\bki\bin\bng\bg
3710 k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(C\bC-\b-k\bk)\b)
3711 Kill the text from point to the end of the line.
3712 b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx R\bRu\bub\bbo\bou\but\bt)\b)
3713 Kill backward to the beginning of the line.
3714 u\bun\bni\bix\bx-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be-\b-d\bdi\bis\bsc\bca\bar\brd\bd (\b(C\bC-\b-u\bu)\b)
712f80b0 3715 Kill backward from point to the beginning of the line. The
17345e5a
JA
3716 killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
3717 k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwh\bho\bol\ble\be-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be
712f80b0 3718 Kill all characters on the current line, no matter where point
17345e5a
JA
3719 is.
3720 k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-d\bd)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3721 Kill from point to the end of the current word, or if between
3722 words, to the end of the next word. Word boundaries are the
17345e5a
JA
3723 same as those used by f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
3724 b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-R\bRu\bub\bbo\bou\but\bt)\b)
712f80b0 3725 Kill the word behind point. Word boundaries are the same as
17345e5a 3726 those used by b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
a0c0a00f 3727 s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0
CR
3728 Kill from point to the end of the current word, or if between
3729 words, to the end of the next word. Word boundaries are the
17345e5a 3730 same as those used by s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
a0c0a00f 3731 s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0 3732 Kill the word behind point. Word boundaries are the same as
17345e5a
JA
3733 those used by s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
3734 u\bun\bni\bix\bx-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd-\b-r\bru\bub\bbo\bou\but\bt (\b(C\bC-\b-w\bw)\b)
712f80b0 3735 Kill the word behind point, using white space as a word bound-
17345e5a
JA
3736 ary. The killed text is saved on the kill-ring.
3737 u\bun\bni\bix\bx-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\ben\bna\bam\bme\be-\b-r\bru\bub\bbo\bou\but\bt
712f80b0
CR
3738 Kill the word behind point, using white space and the slash
3739 character as the word boundaries. The killed text is saved on
17345e5a
JA
3740 the kill-ring.
3741 d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-h\bho\bor\bri\biz\bzo\bon\bnt\bta\bal\bl-\b-s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be (\b(M\bM-\b-\\b\)\b)
3742 Delete all spaces and tabs around point.
3743 k\bki\bil\bll\bl-\b-r\bre\beg\bgi\bio\bon\bn
3744 Kill the text in the current region.
3745 c\bco\bop\bpy\by-\b-r\bre\beg\bgi\bio\bon\bn-\b-a\bas\bs-\b-k\bki\bil\bll\bl
3746 Copy the text in the region to the kill buffer.
3747 c\bco\bop\bpy\by-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0 3748 Copy the word before point to the kill buffer. The word bound-
17345e5a
JA
3749 aries are the same as b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
3750 c\bco\bop\bpy\by-\b-f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd
712f80b0 3751 Copy the word following point to the kill buffer. The word
17345e5a
JA
3752 boundaries are the same as f\bfo\bor\brw\bwa\bar\brd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd.
3753 y\bya\ban\bnk\bk (\b(C\bC-\b-y\by)\b)
3754 Yank the top of the kill ring into the buffer at point.
3755 y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-p\bpo\bop\bp (\b(M\bM-\b-y\by)\b)
712f80b0 3756 Rotate the kill ring, and yank the new top. Only works follow-
17345e5a
JA
3757 ing y\bya\ban\bnk\bk or y\bya\ban\bnk\bk-\b-p\bpo\bop\bp.
3758
3759 N\bNu\bum\bme\ber\bri\bic\bc A\bAr\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs
3760 d\bdi\big\bgi\bit\bt-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt (\b(M\bM-\b-0\b0,\b, M\bM-\b-1\b1,\b, .\b..\b..\b.,\b, M\bM-\b--\b-)\b)
712f80b0 3761 Add this digit to the argument already accumulating, or start a
17345e5a
JA
3762 new argument. M-- starts a negative argument.
3763 u\bun\bni\biv\bve\ber\brs\bsa\bal\bl-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt
712f80b0
CR
3764 This is another way to specify an argument. If this command is
3765 followed by one or more digits, optionally with a leading minus
3766 sign, those digits define the argument. If the command is fol-
3767 lowed by digits, executing u\bun\bni\biv\bve\ber\brs\bsa\bal\bl-\b-a\bar\brg\bgu\bum\bme\ben\bnt\bt again ends the nu-
3768 meric argument, but is otherwise ignored. As a special case, if
3769 this command is immediately followed by a character that is nei-
3770 ther a digit nor minus sign, the argument count for the next
3771 command is multiplied by four. The argument count is initially
3772 one, so executing this function the first time makes the argu-
17345e5a
JA
3773 ment count four, a second time makes the argument count sixteen,
3774 and so on.
3775
3776 C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bin\bng\bg
3777 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be (\b(T\bTA\bAB\bB)\b)
712f80b0 3778 Attempt to perform completion on the text before point. B\bBa\bas\bsh\bh
17345e5a 3779 attempts completion treating the text as a variable (if the text
712f80b0
CR
3780 begins with $\b$), username (if the text begins with ~\b~), hostname
3781 (if the text begins with @\b@), or command (including aliases and
17345e5a
JA
3782 functions) in turn. If none of these produces a match, filename
3783 completion is attempted.
3784 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(M\bM-\b-?\b?)\b)
3785 List the possible completions of the text before point.
3786 i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(M\bM-\b-*\b*)\b)
712f80b0 3787 Insert all completions of the text before point that would have
17345e5a
JA
3788 been generated by p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs.
3789 m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be
712f80b0
CR
3790 Similar to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be, but replaces the word to be completed with
3791 a single match from the list of possible completions. Repeated
3792 execution of m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be steps through the list of possible
3793 completions, inserting each match in turn. At the end of the
17345e5a
JA
3794 list of completions, the bell is rung (subject to the setting of
3795 b\bbe\bel\bll\bl-\b-s\bst\bty\byl\ble\be) and the original text is restored. An argument of _\bn
712f80b0
CR
3796 moves _\bn positions forward in the list of matches; a negative ar-
3797 gument may be used to move backward through the list. This com-
3798 mand is intended to be bound to T\bTA\bAB\bB, but is unbound by default.
495aee44
CR
3799 m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd
3800 Identical to m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be, but moves backward through the list
0001803f
CR
3801 of possible completions, as if m\bme\ben\bnu\bu-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be had been given a
3802 negative argument. This command is unbound by default.
17345e5a
JA
3803 d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br-\b-o\bor\br-\b-l\bli\bis\bst\bt
3804 Deletes the character under the cursor if not at the beginning
3805 or end of the line (like d\bde\bel\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bch\bha\bar\br). If at the end of the
3806 line, behaves identically to p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs. This command
3807 is unbound by default.
3808 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\ben\bna\bam\bme\be (\b(M\bM-\b-/\b/)\b)
3809 Attempt filename completion on the text before point.
3810 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\ben\bna\bam\bme\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx /\b/)\b)
3811 List the possible completions of the text before point, treating
3812 it as a filename.
3813 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-u\bus\bse\ber\brn\bna\bam\bme\be (\b(M\bM-\b-~\b~)\b)
3814 Attempt completion on the text before point, treating it as a
3815 username.
3816 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-u\bus\bse\ber\brn\bna\bam\bme\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx ~\b~)\b)
3817 List the possible completions of the text before point, treating
3818 it as a username.
3819 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-v\bva\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\be (\b(M\bM-\b-$\b$)\b)
3820 Attempt completion on the text before point, treating it as a
3821 shell variable.
3822 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-v\bva\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx $\b$)\b)
3823 List the possible completions of the text before point, treating
3824 it as a shell variable.
3825 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-h\bho\bos\bst\btn\bna\bam\bme\be (\b(M\bM-\b-@\b@)\b)
3826 Attempt completion on the text before point, treating it as a
3827 hostname.
3828 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-h\bho\bos\bst\btn\bna\bam\bme\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx @\b@)\b)
3829 List the possible completions of the text before point, treating
3830 it as a hostname.
3831 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-!\b!)\b)
3832 Attempt completion on the text before point, treating it as a
3833 command name. Command completion attempts to match the text
3834 against aliases, reserved words, shell functions, shell
3835 builtins, and finally executable filenames, in that order.
3836 p\bpo\bos\bss\bsi\bib\bbl\ble\be-\b-c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx !\b!)\b)
3837 List the possible completions of the text before point, treating
3838 it as a command name.
3839 d\bdy\byn\bna\bam\bmi\bic\bc-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by (\b(M\bM-\b-T\bTA\bAB\bB)\b)
3840 Attempt completion on the text before point, comparing the text
3841 against lines from the history list for possible completion
3842 matches.
3843 d\bda\bab\bbb\bbr\bre\bev\bv-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd
3844 Attempt menu completion on the text before point, comparing the
3845 text against lines from the history list for possible completion
3846 matches.
3847 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-i\bin\bnt\bto\bo-\b-b\bbr\bra\bac\bce\bes\bs (\b(M\bM-\b-{\b{)\b)
3848 Perform filename completion and insert the list of possible com-
3849 pletions enclosed within braces so the list is available to the
3850 shell (see B\bBr\bra\bac\bce\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn above).
3851
3852 K\bKe\bey\byb\bbo\boa\bar\brd\bd M\bMa\bac\bcr\bro\bos\bs
3853 s\bst\bta\bar\brt\bt-\b-k\bkb\bbd\bd-\b-m\bma\bac\bcr\bro\bo (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx (\b()\b)
3854 Begin saving the characters typed into the current keyboard
3855 macro.
3856 e\ben\bnd\bd-\b-k\bkb\bbd\bd-\b-m\bma\bac\bcr\bro\bo (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx )\b))\b)
3857 Stop saving the characters typed into the current keyboard macro
3858 and store the definition.
3859 c\bca\bal\bll\bl-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-k\bkb\bbd\bd-\b-m\bma\bac\bcr\bro\bo (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx e\be)\b)
3860 Re-execute the last keyboard macro defined, by making the char-
3861 acters in the macro appear as if typed at the keyboard.
ac50fbac
CR
3862 p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\bt-\b-l\bla\bas\bst\bt-\b-k\bkb\bbd\bd-\b-m\bma\bac\bcr\bro\bo (\b()\b)
3863 Print the last keyboard macro defined in a format suitable for
3864 the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file.
17345e5a
JA
3865
3866 M\bMi\bis\bsc\bce\bel\bll\bla\ban\bne\beo\bou\bus\bs
3867 r\bre\be-\b-r\bre\bea\bad\bd-\b-i\bin\bni\bit\bt-\b-f\bfi\bil\ble\be (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx C\bC-\b-r\br)\b)
ac50fbac 3868 Read in the contents of the _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file, and incorporate any
17345e5a
JA
3869 bindings or variable assignments found there.
3870 a\bab\bbo\bor\brt\bt (\b(C\bC-\b-g\bg)\b)
ac50fbac 3871 Abort the current editing command and ring the terminal's bell
17345e5a 3872 (subject to the setting of b\bbe\bel\bll\bl-\b-s\bst\bty\byl\ble\be).
d233b485
CR
3873 d\bdo\bo-\b-l\blo\bow\bwe\ber\brc\bca\bas\bse\be-\b-v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn (\b(M\bM-\b-A\bA,\b, M\bM-\b-B\bB,\b, M\bM-\b-_\bx,\b, .\b..\b..\b.)\b)
3874 If the metafied character _\bx is uppercase, run the command that
3875 is bound to the corresponding metafied lowercase character. The
3876 behavior is undefined if _\bx is already lowercase.
17345e5a
JA
3877 p\bpr\bre\bef\bfi\bix\bx-\b-m\bme\bet\bta\ba (\b(E\bES\bSC\bC)\b)
3878 Metafy the next character typed. E\bES\bSC\bC f\bf is equivalent to M\bMe\bet\bta\ba-\b-f\bf.
3879 u\bun\bnd\bdo\bo (\b(C\bC-\b-_\b_,\b, C\bC-\b-x\bx C\bC-\b-u\bu)\b)
3880 Incremental undo, separately remembered for each line.
3881 r\bre\bev\bve\ber\brt\bt-\b-l\bli\bin\bne\be (\b(M\bM-\b-r\br)\b)
d233b485
CR
3882 Undo all changes made to this line. This is like executing the
3883 u\bun\bnd\bdo\bo command enough times to return the line to its initial
17345e5a
JA
3884 state.
3885 t\bti\bil\bld\bde\be-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-&\b&)\b)
3886 Perform tilde expansion on the current word.
3887 s\bse\bet\bt-\b-m\bma\bar\brk\bk (\b(C\bC-\b-@\b@,\b, M\bM-\b-<\b<s\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be>\b>)\b)
d233b485 3888 Set the mark to the point. If a numeric argument is supplied,
17345e5a
JA
3889 the mark is set to that position.
3890 e\bex\bxc\bch\bha\ban\bng\bge\be-\b-p\bpo\boi\bin\bnt\bt-\b-a\ban\bnd\bd-\b-m\bma\bar\brk\bk (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx C\bC-\b-x\bx)\b)
d233b485
CR
3891 Swap the point with the mark. The current cursor position is
3892 set to the saved position, and the old cursor position is saved
17345e5a
JA
3893 as the mark.
3894 c\bch\bha\bar\bra\bac\bct\bte\ber\br-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh (\b(C\bC-\b-]\b])\b)
3895 A character is read and point is moved to the next occurrence of
d233b485 3896 that character. A negative count searches for previous occur-
17345e5a
JA
3897 rences.
3898 c\bch\bha\bar\bra\bac\bct\bte\ber\br-\b-s\bse\bea\bar\brc\bch\bh-\b-b\bba\bac\bck\bkw\bwa\bar\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-C\bC-\b-]\b])\b)
d233b485
CR
3899 A character is read and point is moved to the previous occur-
3900 rence of that character. A negative count searches for subse-
17345e5a 3901 quent occurrences.
495aee44 3902 s\bsk\bki\bip\bp-\b-c\bcs\bsi\bi-\b-s\bse\beq\bqu\bue\ben\bnc\bce\be
d233b485
CR
3903 Read enough characters to consume a multi-key sequence such as
3904 those defined for keys like Home and End. Such sequences begin
0001803f 3905 with a Control Sequence Indicator (CSI), usually ESC-[. If this
d233b485
CR
3906 sequence is bound to "\[", keys producing such sequences will
3907 have no effect unless explicitly bound to a readline command,
3908 instead of inserting stray characters into the editing buffer.
0001803f 3909 This is unbound by default, but usually bound to ESC-[.
17345e5a 3910 i\bin\bns\bse\ber\brt\bt-\b-c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt (\b(M\bM-\b-#\b#)\b)
d233b485
CR
3911 Without a numeric argument, the value of the readline c\bco\bom\bm-\b-
3912 m\bme\ben\bnt\bt-\b-b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bn variable is inserted at the beginning of the current
17345e5a 3913 line. If a numeric argument is supplied, this command acts as a
d233b485
CR
3914 toggle: if the characters at the beginning of the line do not
3915 match the value of c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt-\b-b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bn, the value is inserted, other-
17345e5a 3916 wise the characters in c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt-\b-b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bn are deleted from the begin-
d233b485
CR
3917 ning of the line. In either case, the line is accepted as if a
3918 newline had been typed. The default value of c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bt-\b-b\bbe\beg\bgi\bin\bn
3919 causes this command to make the current line a shell comment.
712f80b0
CR
3920 If a numeric argument causes the comment character to be re-
3921 moved, the line will be executed by the shell.
17345e5a 3922 g\bgl\blo\bob\bb-\b-c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(M\bM-\b-g\bg)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3923 The word before point is treated as a pattern for pathname ex-
3924 pansion, with an asterisk implicitly appended. This pattern is
3925 used to generate a list of matching filenames for possible com-
3926 pletions.
17345e5a 3927 g\bgl\blo\bob\bb-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx *\b*)\b)
712f80b0
CR
3928 The word before point is treated as a pattern for pathname ex-
3929 pansion, and the list of matching filenames is inserted, replac-
3930 ing the word. If a numeric argument is supplied, an asterisk is
3931 appended before pathname expansion.
17345e5a 3932 g\bgl\blo\bob\bb-\b-l\bli\bis\bst\bt-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bns\bs (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx g\bg)\b)
d233b485
CR
3933 The list of expansions that would have been generated by
3934 g\bgl\blo\bob\bb-\b-e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd-\b-w\bwo\bor\brd\bd is displayed, and the line is redrawn. If a
3935 numeric argument is supplied, an asterisk is appended before
17345e5a
JA
3936 pathname expansion.
3937 d\bdu\bum\bmp\bp-\b-f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bns\bs
d233b485 3938 Print all of the functions and their key bindings to the read-
17345e5a 3939 line output stream. If a numeric argument is supplied, the out-
d233b485 3940 put is formatted in such a way that it can be made part of an
17345e5a
JA
3941 _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file.
3942 d\bdu\bum\bmp\bp-\b-v\bva\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs
3943 Print all of the settable readline variables and their values to
d233b485
CR
3944 the readline output stream. If a numeric argument is supplied,
3945 the output is formatted in such a way that it can be made part
17345e5a
JA
3946 of an _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file.
3947 d\bdu\bum\bmp\bp-\b-m\bma\bac\bcr\bro\bos\bs
d233b485
CR
3948 Print all of the readline key sequences bound to macros and the
3949 strings they output. If a numeric argument is supplied, the
17345e5a
JA
3950 output is formatted in such a way that it can be made part of an
3951 _\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc file.
3952 d\bdi\bis\bsp\bpl\bla\bay\by-\b-s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl-\b-v\bve\ber\brs\bsi\bio\bon\bn (\b(C\bC-\b-x\bx C\bC-\b-v\bv)\b)
a0c0a00f 3953 Display version information about the current instance of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh.
17345e5a
JA
3954
3955 P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn
d233b485
CR
3956 When word completion is attempted for an argument to a command for
3957 which a completion specification (a _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc) has been defined using
3958 the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be builtin (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below), the program-
a0c0a00f 3959 mable completion facilities are invoked.
17345e5a 3960
d233b485
CR
3961 First, the command name is identified. If the command word is the
3962 empty string (completion attempted at the beginning of an empty line),
3963 any compspec defined with the -\b-E\bE option to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be is used. If a
3964 compspec has been defined for that command, the compspec is used to
0001803f 3965 generate the list of possible completions for the word. If the command
d233b485
CR
3966 word is a full pathname, a compspec for the full pathname is searched
3967 for first. If no compspec is found for the full pathname, an attempt
3968 is made to find a compspec for the portion following the final slash.
3969 If those searches do not result in a compspec, any compspec defined
3970 with the -\b-D\bD option to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be is used as the default. If there is no
3971 default compspec, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts alias expansion on the command word as
3972 a final resort, and attempts to find a compspec for the command word
3973 from any successful expansion.
17345e5a 3974
ac50fbac
CR
3975 Once a compspec has been found, it is used to generate the list of
3976 matching words. If a compspec is not found, the default b\bba\bas\bsh\bh comple-
17345e5a
JA
3977 tion as described above under C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bin\bng\bg is performed.
3978
ac50fbac
CR
3979 First, the actions specified by the compspec are used. Only matches
3980 which are prefixed by the word being completed are returned. When the
3981 -\b-f\bf or -\b-d\bd option is used for filename or directory name completion, the
17345e5a
JA
3982 shell variable F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE is used to filter the matches.
3983
712f80b0
CR
3984 Any completions specified by a pathname expansion pattern to the -\b-G\bG op-
3985 tion are generated next. The words generated by the pattern need not
ac50fbac 3986 match the word being completed. The G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE shell variable is not
17345e5a
JA
3987 used to filter the matches, but the F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE variable is used.
3988
ac50fbac
CR
3989 Next, the string specified as the argument to the -\b-W\bW option is consid-
3990 ered. The string is first split using the characters in the I\bIF\bFS\bS spe-
3991 cial variable as delimiters. Shell quoting is honored. Each word is
3992 then expanded using brace expansion, tilde expansion, parameter and
3993 variable expansion, command substitution, and arithmetic expansion, as
17345e5a
JA
3994 described above under E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN. The results are split using the rules
3995 described above under W\bWo\bor\brd\bd S\bSp\bpl\bli\bit\btt\bti\bin\bng\bg. The results of the expansion are
3996 prefix-matched against the word being completed, and the matching words
3997 become the possible completions.
3998
ac50fbac
CR
3999 After these matches have been generated, any shell function or command
4000 specified with the -\b-F\bF and -\b-C\bC options is invoked. When the command or
17345e5a
JA
4001 function is invoked, the C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE, C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_P\bPO\bOI\bIN\bNT\bT, C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_K\bKE\bEY\bY, and C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_T\bTY\bYP\bPE\bE
4002 variables are assigned values as described above under S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl V\bVa\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs.
ac50fbac
CR
4003 If a shell function is being invoked, the C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDS\bS and C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_C\bCW\bWO\bOR\bRD\bD
4004 variables are also set. When the function or command is invoked, the
712f80b0
CR
4005 first argument ($\b$1\b1) is the name of the command whose arguments are be-
4006 ing completed, the second argument ($\b$2\b2) is the word being completed,
ac50fbac
CR
4007 and the third argument ($\b$3\b3) is the word preceding the word being com-
4008 pleted on the current command line. No filtering of the generated com-
4009 pletions against the word being completed is performed; the function or
4010 command has complete freedom in generating the matches.
4011
4012 Any function specified with -\b-F\bF is invoked first. The function may use
4013 any of the shell facilities, including the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpg\bge\ben\bn builtin described
4014 below, to generate the matches. It must put the possible completions
4015 in the C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPR\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY array variable, one per array element.
4016
4017 Next, any command specified with the -\b-C\bC option is invoked in an envi-
4018 ronment equivalent to command substitution. It should print a list of
4019 completions, one per line, to the standard output. Backslash may be
17345e5a
JA
4020 used to escape a newline, if necessary.
4021
ac50fbac
CR
4022 After all of the possible completions are generated, any filter speci-
4023 fied with the -\b-X\bX option is applied to the list. The filter is a pat-
4024 tern as used for pathname expansion; a &\b& in the pattern is replaced
4025 with the text of the word being completed. A literal &\b& may be escaped
4026 with a backslash; the backslash is removed before attempting a match.
4027 Any completion that matches the pattern will be removed from the list.
17345e5a 4028 A leading !\b! negates the pattern; in this case any completion not match-
a0c0a00f
CR
4029 ing the pattern will be removed. If the n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh shell option is
4030 enabled, the match is performed without regard to the case of alpha-
4031 betic characters.
17345e5a
JA
4032
4033 Finally, any prefix and suffix specified with the -\b-P\bP and -\b-S\bS options are
4034 added to each member of the completion list, and the result is returned
4035 to the readline completion code as the list of possible completions.
4036
ac50fbac 4037 If the previously-applied actions do not generate any matches, and the
712f80b0
CR
4038 -\b-o\bo d\bdi\bir\brn\bna\bam\bme\bes\bs option was supplied to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be when the compspec was de-
4039 fined, directory name completion is attempted.
17345e5a 4040
ac50fbac 4041 If the -\b-o\bo p\bpl\blu\bus\bsd\bdi\bir\brs\bs option was supplied to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be when the compspec
17345e5a
JA
4042 was defined, directory name completion is attempted and any matches are
4043 added to the results of the other actions.
4044
ac50fbac
CR
4045 By default, if a compspec is found, whatever it generates is returned
4046 to the completion code as the full set of possible completions. The
17345e5a
JA
4047 default b\bba\bas\bsh\bh completions are not attempted, and the readline default of
4048 filename completion is disabled. If the -\b-o\bo b\bba\bas\bsh\bhd\bde\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt option was sup-
ac50fbac 4049 plied to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be when the compspec was defined, the b\bba\bas\bsh\bh default com-
17345e5a 4050 pletions are attempted if the compspec generates no matches. If the -\b-o\bo
ac50fbac
CR
4051 d\bde\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt option was supplied to c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be when the compspec was defined,
4052 readline's default completion will be performed if the compspec (and,
17345e5a
JA
4053 if attempted, the default b\bba\bas\bsh\bh completions) generate no matches.
4054
ac50fbac
CR
4055 When a compspec indicates that directory name completion is desired,
4056 the programmable completion functions force readline to append a slash
4057 to completed names which are symbolic links to directories, subject to
4058 the value of the m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-d\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bri\bie\bes\bs readline variable, regardless of the
17345e5a
JA
4059 setting of the m\bma\bar\brk\bk-\b-s\bsy\bym\bml\bli\bin\bnk\bke\bed\bd-\b-d\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bri\bie\bes\bs readline variable.
4060
ac50fbac
CR
4061 There is some support for dynamically modifying completions. This is
4062 most useful when used in combination with a default completion speci-
4063 fied with c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be -\b-D\bD. It's possible for shell functions executed as
4064 completion handlers to indicate that completion should be retried by
4065 returning an exit status of 124. If a shell function returns 124, and
0001803f 4066 changes the compspec associated with the command on which completion is
ac50fbac 4067 being attempted (supplied as the first argument when the function is
0001803f 4068 executed), programmable completion restarts from the beginning, with an
ac50fbac
CR
4069 attempt to find a new compspec for that command. This allows a set of
4070 completions to be built dynamically as completion is attempted, rather
0001803f
CR
4071 than being loaded all at once.
4072
ac50fbac 4073 For instance, assuming that there is a library of compspecs, each kept
712f80b0
CR
4074 in a file corresponding to the name of the command, the following de-
4075 fault completion function would load completions dynamically:
0001803f
CR
4076
4077 _completion_loader()
4078 {
4079 . "/etc/bash_completion.d/$1.sh" >/dev/null 2>&1 && return 124
4080 }
ac50fbac 4081 complete -D -F _completion_loader -o bashdefault -o default
0001803f
CR
4082
4083
17345e5a 4084H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY
ac50fbac 4085 When the -\b-o\bo h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin is enabled, the shell
17345e5a 4086 provides access to the _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd _\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by, the list of commands previously
ac50fbac 4087 typed. The value of the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE variable is used as the number of
17345e5a 4088 commands to save in a history list. The text of the last H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE com-
ac50fbac
CR
4089 mands (default 500) is saved. The shell stores each command in the
4090 history list prior to parameter and variable expansion (see E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN
4091 above) but after history expansion is performed, subject to the values
17345e5a
JA
4092 of the shell variables H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE and H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL.
4093
4094 On startup, the history is initialized from the file named by the vari-
ac50fbac
CR
4095 able H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE (default _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bh_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by). The file named by the value
4096 of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is truncated, if necessary, to contain no more than the
4097 number of lines specified by the value of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bES\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE. If H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE-\b-
4098 S\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE is unset, or set to null, a non-numeric value, or a numeric value
4099 less than zero, the history file is not truncated. When the history
4100 file is read, lines beginning with the history comment character fol-
d233b485
CR
4101 lowed immediately by a digit are interpreted as timestamps for the fol-
4102 lowing history line. These timestamps are optionally displayed depend-
ac50fbac
CR
4103 ing on the value of the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTT\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT variable. When a shell with
4104 history enabled exits, the last $\b$H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTS\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE lines are copied from the
4105 history list to $\b$H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE. If the h\bhi\bis\bst\bta\bap\bpp\bpe\ben\bnd\bd shell option is enabled
4106 (see the description of s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below), the
4107 lines are appended to the history file, otherwise the history file is
712f80b0
CR
4108 overwritten. If H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is unset, or if the history file is un-
4109 writable, the history is not saved. If the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTT\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT variable is
4110 set, time stamps are written to the history file, marked with the his-
4111 tory comment character, so they may be preserved across shell sessions.
4112 This uses the history comment character to distinguish timestamps from
4113 other history lines. After saving the history, the history file is
4114 truncated to contain no more than H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bES\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE lines. If H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bES\bSI\bIZ\bZE\bE
4115 is unset, or set to null, a non-numeric value, or a numeric value less
4116 than zero, the history file is not truncated.
17345e5a
JA
4117
4118 The builtin command f\bfc\bc (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below) may be used
4119 to list or edit and re-execute a portion of the history list. The h\bhi\bis\bs-\b-
712f80b0
CR
4120 t\bto\bor\bry\by builtin may be used to display or modify the history list and ma-
4121 nipulate the history file. When using command-line editing, search
17345e5a
JA
4122 commands are available in each editing mode that provide access to the
4123 history list.
4124
4125 The shell allows control over which commands are saved on the history
4126 list. The H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL and H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE variables may be set to cause the
4127 shell to save only a subset of the commands entered. The c\bcm\bmd\bdh\bhi\bis\bst\bt shell
4128 option, if enabled, causes the shell to attempt to save each line of a
4129 multi-line command in the same history entry, adding semicolons where
4130 necessary to preserve syntactic correctness. The l\bli\bit\bth\bhi\bis\bst\bt shell option
4131 causes the shell to save the command with embedded newlines instead of
4132 semicolons. See the description of the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin below under S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
712f80b0
CR
4133 B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS for information on setting and unsetting shell op-
4134 tions.
17345e5a
JA
4135
4136H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY E\bEX\bXP\bPA\bAN\bNS\bSI\bIO\bON\bN
4137 The shell supports a history expansion feature that is similar to the
d233b485 4138 history expansion in c\bcs\bsh\bh. This section describes what syntax features
17345e5a
JA
4139 are available. This feature is enabled by default for interactive
4140 shells, and can be disabled using the +\b+H\bH option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin com-
4141 mand (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS below). Non-interactive shells do not
4142 perform history expansion by default.
4143
4144 History expansions introduce words from the history list into the input
4145 stream, making it easy to repeat commands, insert the arguments to a
4146 previous command into the current input line, or fix errors in previous
4147 commands quickly.
4148
4149 History expansion is performed immediately after a complete line is
d233b485 4150 read, before the shell breaks it into words, and is performed on each
712f80b0
CR
4151 line individually without taking quoting on previous lines into ac-
4152 count. It takes place in two parts. The first is to determine which
d233b485
CR
4153 line from the history list to use during substitution. The second is
4154 to select portions of that line for inclusion into the current one.
4155 The line selected from the history is the _\be_\bv_\be_\bn_\bt, and the portions of
4156 that line that are acted upon are _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bs. Various _\bm_\bo_\bd_\bi_\bf_\bi_\be_\br_\bs are avail-
4157 able to manipulate the selected words. The line is broken into words
4158 in the same fashion as when reading input, so that several _\bm_\be_\bt_\ba_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\ba_\bc_\b-
4159 _\bt_\be_\br-separated words surrounded by quotes are considered one word. His-
4160 tory expansions are introduced by the appearance of the history expan-
4161 sion character, which is !\b! by default. Only backslash (\\b\) and single
712f80b0
CR
4162 quotes can quote the history expansion character, but the history ex-
4163 pansion character is also treated as quoted if it immediately precedes
4164 the closing double quote in a double-quoted string.
d233b485
CR
4165
4166 Several characters inhibit history expansion if found immediately fol-
4167 lowing the history expansion character, even if it is unquoted: space,
4168 tab, newline, carriage return, and =\b=. If the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option is
17345e5a
JA
4169 enabled, (\b( will also inhibit expansion.
4170
d233b485 4171 Several shell options settable with the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin may be used to
712f80b0
CR
4172 tailor the behavior of history expansion. If the h\bhi\bis\bst\btv\bve\ber\bri\bif\bfy\by shell op-
4173 tion is enabled (see the description of the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin below), and
d233b485
CR
4174 r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used, history substitutions are not immediately
4175 passed to the shell parser. Instead, the expanded line is reloaded
0001803f 4176 into the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be editing buffer for further modification. If r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be
d233b485
CR
4177 is being used, and the h\bhi\bis\bst\btr\bre\bee\bed\bdi\bit\bt shell option is enabled, a failed
4178 history substitution will be reloaded into the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be editing buffer
4179 for correction. The -\b-p\bp option to the h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by builtin command may be
4180 used to see what a history expansion will do before using it. The -\b-s\bs
0001803f 4181 option to the h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by builtin may be used to add commands to the end of
d233b485 4182 the history list without actually executing them, so that they are
0001803f 4183 available for subsequent recall.
17345e5a 4184
d233b485 4185 The shell allows control of the various characters used by the history
17345e5a 4186 expansion mechanism (see the description of h\bhi\bis\bst\btc\bch\bha\bar\brs\bs above under S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl
d233b485 4187 V\bVa\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs). The shell uses the history comment character to mark his-
17345e5a
JA
4188 tory timestamps when writing the history file.
4189
4190 E\bEv\bve\ben\bnt\bt D\bDe\bes\bsi\big\bgn\bna\bat\bto\bor\brs\bs
d233b485
CR
4191 An event designator is a reference to a command line entry in the his-
4192 tory list. Unless the reference is absolute, events are relative to
495aee44 4193 the current position in the history list.
17345e5a 4194
d233b485
CR
4195 !\b! Start a history substitution, except when followed by a b\bbl\bla\ban\bnk\bk,
4196 newline, carriage return, = or ( (when the e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb shell option
17345e5a
JA
4197 is enabled using the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin).
4198 !\b!_\bn Refer to command line _\bn.
495aee44 4199 !\b!-\b-_\bn Refer to the current command minus _\bn.
17345e5a
JA
4200 !\b!!\b! Refer to the previous command. This is a synonym for `!-1'.
4201 !\b!_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg
d233b485 4202 Refer to the most recent command preceding the current position
495aee44 4203 in the history list starting with _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg.
17345e5a 4204 !\b!?\b?_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg[\b[?\b?]\b]
d233b485
CR
4205 Refer to the most recent command preceding the current position
4206 in the history list containing _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg. The trailing ?\b? may be
712f80b0
CR
4207 omitted if _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is followed immediately by a newline. If
4208 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is missing, the string from the most recent search is
4209 used; it is an error if there is no previous search string.
17345e5a 4210 ^\b^_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1^\b^_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2^\b^
d233b485 4211 Quick substitution. Repeat the previous command, replacing
712f80b0 4212 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1 with _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2. Equivalent to ``!!:s^_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b1^_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg_\b2^''
495aee44 4213 (see M\bMo\bod\bdi\bif\bfi\bie\ber\brs\bs below).
17345e5a
JA
4214 !\b!#\b# The entire command line typed so far.
4215
4216 W\bWo\bor\brd\bd D\bDe\bes\bsi\big\bgn\bna\bat\bto\bor\brs\bs
d233b485
CR
4217 Word designators are used to select desired words from the event. A :\b:
4218 separates the event specification from the word designator. It may be
4219 omitted if the word designator begins with a ^\b^, $\b$, *\b*, -\b-, or %\b%. Words
4220 are numbered from the beginning of the line, with the first word being
4221 denoted by 0 (zero). Words are inserted into the current line sepa-
17345e5a
JA
4222 rated by single spaces.
4223
4224 0\b0 (\b(z\bze\ber\bro\bo)\b)
4225 The zeroth word. For the shell, this is the command word.
4226 _\bn The _\bnth word.
4227 ^\b^ The first argument. That is, word 1.
712f80b0
CR
4228 $\b$ The last word. This is usually the last argument, but will ex-
4229 pand to the zeroth word if there is only one word in the line.
4230 %\b% The first word matched by the most recent `?_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg?' search, if
4231 the search string begins with a character that is part of a
4232 word.
17345e5a 4233 _\bx-\b-_\by A range of words; `-_\by' abbreviates `0-_\by'.
d233b485
CR
4234 *\b* All of the words but the zeroth. This is a synonym for `_\b1_\b-_\b$'.
4235 It is not an error to use *\b* if there is just one word in the
17345e5a
JA
4236 event; the empty string is returned in that case.
4237 x\bx*\b* Abbreviates _\bx_\b-_\b$.
712f80b0
CR
4238 x\bx-\b- Abbreviates _\bx_\b-_\b$ like x\bx*\b*, but omits the last word. If x\bx is miss-
4239 ing, it defaults to 0.
17345e5a 4240
712f80b0 4241 If a word designator is supplied without an event specification, the
17345e5a
JA
4242 previous command is used as the event.
4243
4244 M\bMo\bod\bdi\bif\bfi\bie\ber\brs\bs
712f80b0
CR
4245 After the optional word designator, there may appear a sequence of one
4246 or more of the following modifiers, each preceded by a `:'. These mod-
4247 ify, or edit, the word or words selected from the history event.
17345e5a 4248
ac50fbac
CR
4249 h\bh Remove a trailing filename component, leaving only the head.
4250 t\bt Remove all leading filename components, leaving the tail.
17345e5a
JA
4251 r\br Remove a trailing suffix of the form _\b._\bx_\bx_\bx, leaving the basename.
4252 e\be Remove all but the trailing suffix.
4253 p\bp Print the new command but do not execute it.
4254 q\bq Quote the substituted words, escaping further substitutions.
d233b485 4255 x\bx Quote the substituted words as with q\bq, but break into words at
712f80b0
CR
4256 b\bbl\bla\ban\bnk\bks\bs and newlines. The q\bq and x\bx modifiers are mutually exclu-
4257 sive; the last one supplied is used.
17345e5a 4258 s\bs/\b/_\bo_\bl_\bd/\b/_\bn_\be_\bw/\b/
712f80b0
CR
4259 Substitute _\bn_\be_\bw for the first occurrence of _\bo_\bl_\bd in the event
4260 line. Any character may be used as the delimiter in place of /.
4261 The final delimiter is optional if it is the last character of
4262 the event line. The delimiter may be quoted in _\bo_\bl_\bd and _\bn_\be_\bw with
4263 a single backslash. If & appears in _\bn_\be_\bw, it is replaced by _\bo_\bl_\bd.
4264 A single backslash will quote the &. If _\bo_\bl_\bd is null, it is set
4265 to the last _\bo_\bl_\bd substituted, or, if no previous history substi-
4266 tutions took place, the last _\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg in a !\b!?\b?_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg[\b[?\b?]\b] search.
4267 If _\bn_\be_\bw is null, each matching _\bo_\bl_\bd is deleted.
17345e5a
JA
4268 &\b& Repeat the previous substitution.
4269 g\bg Cause changes to be applied over the entire event line. This is
d233b485
CR
4270 used in conjunction with `:\b:s\bs' (e.g., `:\b:g\bgs\bs/\b/_\bo_\bl_\bd/\b/_\bn_\be_\bw/\b/') or `:\b:&\b&'.
4271 If used with `:\b:s\bs', any delimiter can be used in place of /, and
4272 the final delimiter is optional if it is the last character of
17345e5a 4273 the event line. An a\ba may be used as a synonym for g\bg.
712f80b0
CR
4274 G\bG Apply the following `s\bs' or `&\b&' modifier once to each word in the
4275 event line.
17345e5a
JA
4276
4277S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL B\bBU\bUI\bIL\bLT\bTI\bIN\bN C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bDS\bS
4278 Unless otherwise noted, each builtin command documented in this section
4279 as accepting options preceded by -\b- accepts -\b--\b- to signify the end of the
d233b485
CR
4280 options. The :\b:, t\btr\bru\bue\be, f\bfa\bal\bls\bse\be, and t\bte\bes\bst\bt/[\b[ builtins do not accept options
4281 and do not treat -\b--\b- specially. The e\bex\bxi\bit\bt, l\blo\bog\bgo\bou\but\bt, r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn, b\bbr\bre\bea\bak\bk, c\bco\bon\bn-\b-
4282 t\bti\bin\bnu\bue\be, l\ble\bet\bt, and s\bsh\bhi\bif\bft\bt builtins accept and process arguments beginning
4283 with -\b- without requiring -\b--\b-. Other builtins that accept arguments but
4284 are not specified as accepting options interpret arguments beginning
4285 with -\b- as invalid options and require -\b--\b- to prevent this interpreta-
a0c0a00f 4286 tion.
17345e5a 4287 :\b: [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]
d233b485 4288 No effect; the command does nothing beyond expanding _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs
a0c0a00f
CR
4289 and performing any specified redirections. The return status is
4290 zero.
17345e5a
JA
4291
4292 .\b. _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]
4293 s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]
712f80b0
CR
4294 Read and execute commands from _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be in the current shell en-
4295 vironment and return the exit status of the last command exe-
d233b485
CR
4296 cuted from _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be does not contain a slash,
4297 filenames in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH are used to find the directory containing
ac50fbac 4298 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. The file searched for in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH need not be executable.
d233b485
CR
4299 When b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is not in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, the current directory is
4300 searched if no file is found in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH. If the s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\bep\bpa\bat\bth\bh option
4301 to the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin command is turned off, the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is not
4302 searched. If any _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs are supplied, they become the posi-
712f80b0
CR
4303 tional parameters when _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is executed. Otherwise the po-
4304 sitional parameters are unchanged. If the -\b-T\bT option is enabled,
4305 s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be inherits any trap on D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG; if it is not, any D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap
4306 string is saved and restored around the call to s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be, and
4307 s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be unsets the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap while it executes. If -\b-T\bT is not
4308 set, and the sourced file changes the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap, the new value
4309 is retained when s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be completes. The return status is the
4310 status of the last command exited within the script (0 if no
4311 commands are executed), and false if _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not found or
17345e5a
JA
4312 cannot be read.
4313
4314 a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs [-\b-p\bp] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be] ...]
4315 A\bAl\bli\bia\bas\bs with no arguments or with the -\b-p\bp option prints the list of
d233b485
CR
4316 aliases in the form a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be on standard output. When
4317 arguments are supplied, an alias is defined for each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be whose
4318 _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be is given. A trailing space in _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be causes the next word
17345e5a 4319 to be checked for alias substitution when the alias is expanded.
d233b485 4320 For each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be in the argument list for which no _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be is sup-
712f80b0
CR
4321 plied, the name and value of the alias is printed. A\bAl\bli\bia\bas\bs re-
4322 turns true unless a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is given for which no alias has been
17345e5a
JA
4323 defined.
4324
4325 b\bbg\bg [_\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc ...]
d233b485 4326 Resume each suspended job _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc in the background, as if it
17345e5a 4327 had been started with &\b&. If _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is not present, the shell's
d233b485
CR
4328 notion of the _\bc_\bu_\br_\br_\be_\bn_\bt _\bj_\bo_\bb is used. b\bbg\bg _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc returns 0 unless
4329 run when job control is disabled or, when run with job control
4330 enabled, any specified _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc was not found or was started
17345e5a
JA
4331 without job control.
4332
ac50fbac 4333 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] [-\b-l\blp\bps\bsv\bvP\bPS\bSV\bVX\bX]
17345e5a
JA
4334 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] [-\b-q\bq _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-u\bu _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-r\br _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq]
4335 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] -\b-f\bf _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
4336 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] -\b-x\bx _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq:_\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd
4337 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq:_\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
a0c0a00f 4338 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bd [-\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp] _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq:_\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd
d233b485
CR
4339 Display current r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be key and function bindings, bind a key
4340 sequence to a r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be function or macro, or set a r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be
712f80b0
CR
4341 variable. Each non-option argument is a command as it would ap-
4342 pear in _\b._\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc, but each binding or command must be passed as
4343 a separate argument; e.g., '"\C-x\C-r": re-read-init-file'. Op-
4344 tions, if supplied, have the following meanings:
17345e5a
JA
4345 -\b-m\bm _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp
4346 Use _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp as the keymap to be affected by the subsequent
4347 bindings. Acceptable _\bk_\be_\by_\bm_\ba_\bp names are _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bs_\bt_\ba_\bn_\b-
d233b485
CR
4348 _\bd_\ba_\br_\bd_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bm_\be_\bt_\ba_\b, _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bc_\bt_\bl_\bx_\b, _\bv_\bi_\b, _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bv_\be_\b, _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd,
4349 and _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bi_\bn_\bs_\be_\br_\bt. _\bv_\bi is equivalent to _\bv_\bi_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd (_\bv_\bi_\b-_\bm_\bo_\bv_\be
4350 is also a synonym); _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs is equivalent to _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs_\b-_\bs_\bt_\ba_\bn_\b-
a0c0a00f 4351 _\bd_\ba_\br_\bd.
17345e5a 4352 -\b-l\bl List the names of all r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be functions.
d233b485 4353 -\b-p\bp Display r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be function names and bindings in such a
17345e5a
JA
4354 way that they can be re-read.
4355 -\b-P\bP List current r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be function names and bindings.
d233b485
CR
4356 -\b-s\bs Display r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be key sequences bound to macros and the
4357 strings they output in such a way that they can be re-
17345e5a 4358 read.
d233b485 4359 -\b-S\bS Display r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be key sequences bound to macros and the
17345e5a 4360 strings they output.
d233b485 4361 -\b-v\bv Display r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be variable names and values in such a way
17345e5a
JA
4362 that they can be re-read.
4363 -\b-V\bV List current r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be variable names and values.
4364 -\b-f\bf _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
4365 Read key bindings from _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
4366 -\b-q\bq _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn
4367 Query about which keys invoke the named _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn.
4368 -\b-u\bu _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn
4369 Unbind all keys bound to the named _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn.
4370 -\b-r\br _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq
4371 Remove any current binding for _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq.
4372 -\b-x\bx _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq:\b:_\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd
712f80b0
CR
4373 Cause _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd to be executed whenever _\bk_\be_\by_\bs_\be_\bq is en-
4374 tered. When _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is executed, the shell sets
d233b485 4375 the R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE variable to the contents of the r\bre\bea\bad\bd-\b-
712f80b0
CR
4376 l\bli\bin\bne\be line buffer and the R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_P\bPO\bOI\bIN\bNT\bT and R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_M\bMA\bAR\bRK\bK
4377 variables to the current location of the insertion point
4378 and the saved insertion point (the mark), respectively.
4379 If the executed command changes the value of any of R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bD-\b-
4380 L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE, R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_P\bPO\bOI\bIN\bNT\bT, or R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE_\b_M\bMA\bAR\bRK\bK, those new
4381 values will be reflected in the editing state.
4382 -\b-X\bX List all key sequences bound to shell commands and the
4383 associated commands in a format that can be reused as in-
4384 put.
4385
4386 The return value is 0 unless an unrecognized option is given or
17345e5a
JA
4387 an error occurred.
4388
4389 b\bbr\bre\bea\bak\bk [_\bn]
712f80b0
CR
4390 Exit from within a f\bfo\bor\br, w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be, u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl, or s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt loop. If _\bn is
4391 specified, break _\bn levels. _\bn must be >= 1. If _\bn is greater
4392 than the number of enclosing loops, all enclosing loops are ex-
4393 ited. The return value is 0 unless _\bn is not greater than or
17345e5a
JA
4394 equal to 1.
4395
4396 b\bbu\bui\bil\blt\bti\bin\bn _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bb_\bu_\bi_\bl_\bt_\bi_\bn [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]
712f80b0 4397 Execute the specified shell builtin, passing it _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs, and
17345e5a 4398 return its exit status. This is useful when defining a function
712f80b0 4399 whose name is the same as a shell builtin, retaining the func-
17345e5a 4400 tionality of the builtin within the function. The c\bcd\bd builtin is
712f80b0 4401 commonly redefined this way. The return status is false if
17345e5a
JA
4402 _\bs_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl_\b-_\bb_\bu_\bi_\bl_\bt_\bi_\bn is not a shell builtin command.
4403
4404 c\bca\bal\bll\ble\ber\br [_\be_\bx_\bp_\br]
4405 Returns the context of any active subroutine call (a shell func-
495aee44 4406 tion or a script executed with the .\b. or s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be builtins). With-
17345e5a 4407 out _\be_\bx_\bp_\br, c\bca\bal\bll\ble\ber\br displays the line number and source filename of
712f80b0 4408 the current subroutine call. If a non-negative integer is sup-
17345e5a 4409 plied as _\be_\bx_\bp_\br, c\bca\bal\bll\ble\ber\br displays the line number, subroutine name,
712f80b0
CR
4410 and source file corresponding to that position in the current
4411 execution call stack. This extra information may be used, for
4412 example, to print a stack trace. The current frame is frame 0.
4413 The return value is 0 unless the shell is not executing a sub-
4414 routine call or _\be_\bx_\bp_\br does not correspond to a valid position in
17345e5a
JA
4415 the call stack.
4416
ac50fbac 4417 c\bcd\bd [-\b-L\bL|[-\b-P\bP [-\b-e\be]] [-@]] [_\bd_\bi_\br]
712f80b0
CR
4418 Change the current directory to _\bd_\bi_\br. if _\bd_\bi_\br is not supplied,
4419 the value of the H\bHO\bOM\bME\bE shell variable is the default. Any addi-
ac50fbac 4420 tional arguments following _\bd_\bi_\br are ignored. The variable C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH
712f80b0
CR
4421 defines the search path for the directory containing _\bd_\bi_\br: each
4422 directory name in C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is searched for _\bd_\bi_\br. Alternative di-
4423 rectory names in C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH are separated by a colon (:). A null
4424 directory name in C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is the same as the current directory,
ac50fbac 4425 i.e., ``.\b.''. If _\bd_\bi_\br begins with a slash (/), then C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is not
712f80b0
CR
4426 used. The -\b-P\bP option causes c\bcd\bd to use the physical directory
4427 structure by resolving symbolic links while traversing _\bd_\bi_\br and
ac50fbac
CR
4428 before processing instances of _\b._\b. in _\bd_\bi_\br (see also the -\b-P\bP option
4429 to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command); the -\b-L\bL option forces symbolic links
712f80b0 4430 to be followed by resolving the link after processing instances
ac50fbac 4431 of _\b._\b. in _\bd_\bi_\br. If _\b._\b. appears in _\bd_\bi_\br, it is processed by removing
712f80b0
CR
4432 the immediately previous pathname component from _\bd_\bi_\br, back to a
4433 slash or the beginning of _\bd_\bi_\br. If the -\b-e\be option is supplied
4434 with -\b-P\bP, and the current working directory cannot be success-
4435 fully determined after a successful directory change, c\bcd\bd will
4436 return an unsuccessful status. On systems that support it, the
4437 -\b-@\b@ option presents the extended attributes associated with a
4438 file as a directory. An argument of -\b- is converted to $\b$O\bOL\bLD\bDP\bPW\bWD\bD
ac50fbac 4439 before the directory change is attempted. If a non-empty direc-
712f80b0 4440 tory name from C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH is used, or if -\b- is the first argument,
ac50fbac 4441 and the directory change is successful, the absolute pathname of
712f80b0
CR
4442 the new working directory is written to the standard output.
4443 The return value is true if the directory was successfully
ac50fbac 4444 changed; false otherwise.
17345e5a
JA
4445
4446 c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd [-\b-p\bpV\bVv\bv] _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
712f80b0 4447 Run _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd with _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs suppressing the normal shell function
a0c0a00f 4448 lookup. Only builtin commands or commands found in the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH are
712f80b0
CR
4449 executed. If the -\b-p\bp option is given, the search for _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is
4450 performed using a default value for P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH that is guaranteed to
4451 find all of the standard utilities. If either the -\b-V\bV or -\b-v\bv op-
4452 tion is supplied, a description of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is printed. The -\b-v\bv
4453 option causes a single word indicating the command or filename
17345e5a 4454 used to invoke _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd to be displayed; the -\b-V\bV option produces a
712f80b0
CR
4455 more verbose description. If the -\b-V\bV or -\b-v\bv option is supplied,
4456 the exit status is 0 if _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd was found, and 1 if not. If
17345e5a 4457 neither option is supplied and an error occurred or _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd can-
712f80b0 4458 not be found, the exit status is 127. Otherwise, the exit sta-
17345e5a
JA
4459 tus of the c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd builtin is the exit status of _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd.
4460
4461 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpg\bge\ben\bn [_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd]
712f80b0
CR
4462 Generate possible completion matches for _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd according to the
4463 _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bns, which may be any option accepted by the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be
4464 builtin with the exception of -\b-p\bp and -\b-r\br, and write the matches
4465 to the standard output. When using the -\b-F\bF or -\b-C\bC options, the
4466 various shell variables set by the programmable completion fa-
4467 cilities, while available, will not have useful values.
17345e5a 4468
a0c0a00f
CR
4469 The matches will be generated in the same way as if the program-
4470 mable completion code had generated them directly from a comple-
712f80b0 4471 tion specification with the same flags. If _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd is specified,
a0c0a00f 4472 only those completions matching _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd will be displayed.
17345e5a 4473
712f80b0 4474 The return value is true unless an invalid option is supplied,
17345e5a
JA
4475 or no matches were generated.
4476
712f80b0
CR
4477 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be [-\b-a\bab\bbc\bcd\bde\bef\bfg\bgj\bjk\bks\bsu\buv\bv] [-\b-o\bo _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\b-_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-D\bDE\bEI\bI] [-\b-A\bA _\ba_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-G\bG _\bg_\bl_\bo_\bb_\b-
4478 _\bp_\ba_\bt] [-\b-W\bW _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt]
4479 [-\b-F\bF _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-C\bC _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd] [-\b-X\bX _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt] [-\b-P\bP _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx] [-\b-S\bS _\bs_\bu_\bf_\b-
4480 _\bf_\bi_\bx] _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be _\b._\b._\b.]
d233b485
CR
4481 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be -\b-p\bpr\br [-\b-D\bDE\bEI\bI] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
4482 Specify how arguments to each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be should be completed. If the
4483 -\b-p\bp option is supplied, or if no options are supplied, existing
4484 completion specifications are printed in a way that allows them
17345e5a 4485 to be reused as input. The -\b-r\br option removes a completion spec-
d233b485
CR
4486 ification for each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, or, if no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\bes are supplied, all com-
4487 pletion specifications. The -\b-D\bD option indicates that other sup-
4488 plied options and actions should apply to the ``default'' com-
4489 mand completion; that is, completion attempted on a command for
4490 which no completion has previously been defined. The -\b-E\bE option
4491 indicates that other supplied options and actions should apply
4492 to ``empty'' command completion; that is, completion attempted
4493 on a blank line. The -\b-I\bI option indicates that other supplied
712f80b0 4494 options and actions should apply to completion on the initial
d233b485
CR
4495 non-assignment word on the line, or after a command delimiter
4496 such as ;\b; or |\b|, which is usually command name completion. If
4497 multiple options are supplied, the -\b-D\bD option takes precedence
4498 over -\b-E\bE, and both take precedence over -\b-I\bI. If any of -\b-D\bD, -\b-E\bE, or
4499 -\b-I\bI are supplied, any other _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments are ignored; these
4500 completions only apply to the case specified by the option.
17345e5a 4501
ac50fbac 4502 The process of applying these completion specifications when
a0c0a00f
CR
4503 word completion is attempted is described above under P\bPr\bro\bog\bgr\bra\bam\bm-\b-
4504 m\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn.
17345e5a 4505
ac50fbac
CR
4506 Other options, if specified, have the following meanings. The
4507 arguments to the -\b-G\bG, -\b-W\bW, and -\b-X\bX options (and, if necessary, the
4508 -\b-P\bP and -\b-S\bS options) should be quoted to protect them from expan-
17345e5a
JA
4509 sion before the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be builtin is invoked.
4510 -\b-o\bo _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\b-_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn
ac50fbac
CR
4511 The _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\b-_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn controls several aspects of the comp-
4512 spec's behavior beyond the simple generation of comple-
17345e5a
JA
4513 tions. _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\b-_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn may be one of:
4514 b\bba\bas\bsh\bhd\bde\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt
4515 Perform the rest of the default b\bba\bas\bsh\bh completions
4516 if the compspec generates no matches.
ac50fbac 4517 d\bde\bef\bfa\bau\bul\blt\bt Use readline's default filename completion if
17345e5a
JA
4518 the compspec generates no matches.
4519 d\bdi\bir\brn\bna\bam\bme\bes\bs
ac50fbac 4520 Perform directory name completion if the comp-
17345e5a
JA
4521 spec generates no matches.
4522 f\bfi\bil\ble\ben\bna\bam\bme\bes\bs
ac50fbac
CR
4523 Tell readline that the compspec generates file-
4524 names, so it can perform any filename-specific
4525 processing (like adding a slash to directory
4526 names, quoting special characters, or suppress-
4527 ing trailing spaces). Intended to be used with
17345e5a 4528 shell functions.
ac50fbac
CR
4529 n\bno\boq\bqu\buo\bot\bte\be Tell readline not to quote the completed words
4530 if they are filenames (quoting filenames is the
4531 default).
a0c0a00f
CR
4532 n\bno\bos\bso\bor\brt\bt Tell readline not to sort the list of possible
4533 completions alphabetically.
712f80b0
CR
4534 n\bno\bos\bsp\bpa\bac\bce\be Tell readline not to append a space (the de-
4535 fault) to words completed at the end of the
17345e5a
JA
4536 line.
4537 p\bpl\blu\bus\bsd\bdi\bir\brs\bs
a0c0a00f 4538 After any matches defined by the compspec are
712f80b0
CR
4539 generated, directory name completion is at-
4540 tempted and any matches are added to the results
4541 of the other actions.
17345e5a 4542 -\b-A\bA _\ba_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn
a0c0a00f 4543 The _\ba_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn may be one of the following to generate a
17345e5a
JA
4544 list of possible completions:
4545 a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs Alias names. May also be specified as -\b-a\ba.
4546 a\bar\brr\bra\bay\byv\bva\bar\br
4547 Array variable names.
4548 b\bbi\bin\bnd\bdi\bin\bng\bg R\bRe\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be key binding names.
a0c0a00f 4549 b\bbu\bui\bil\blt\bti\bin\bn Names of shell builtin commands. May also be
17345e5a
JA
4550 specified as -\b-b\bb.
4551 c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd Command names. May also be specified as -\b-c\bc.
4552 d\bdi\bir\bre\bec\bct\bto\bor\bry\by
4553 Directory names. May also be specified as -\b-d\bd.
4554 d\bdi\bis\bsa\bab\bbl\ble\bed\bd
4555 Names of disabled shell builtins.
4556 e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\bed\bd Names of enabled shell builtins.
a0c0a00f 4557 e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt Names of exported shell variables. May also be
17345e5a
JA
4558 specified as -\b-e\be.
4559 f\bfi\bil\ble\be File names. May also be specified as -\b-f\bf.
4560 f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\bti\bio\bon\bn
4561 Names of shell functions.
4562 g\bgr\bro\bou\bup\bp Group names. May also be specified as -\b-g\bg.
4563 h\bhe\bel\blp\bpt\bto\bop\bpi\bic\bc
4564 Help topics as accepted by the h\bhe\bel\blp\bp builtin.
4565 h\bho\bos\bst\btn\bna\bam\bme\be
a0c0a00f 4566 Hostnames, as taken from the file specified by
17345e5a 4567 the H\bHO\bOS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE shell variable.
a0c0a00f 4568 j\bjo\bob\bb Job names, if job control is active. May also
17345e5a 4569 be specified as -\b-j\bj.
a0c0a00f 4570 k\bke\bey\byw\bwo\bor\brd\bd Shell reserved words. May also be specified as
17345e5a
JA
4571 -\b-k\bk.
4572 r\bru\bun\bnn\bni\bin\bng\bg Names of running jobs, if job control is active.
4573 s\bse\ber\brv\bvi\bic\bce\be Service names. May also be specified as -\b-s\bs.
ac50fbac 4574 s\bse\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bt Valid arguments for the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt
17345e5a 4575 builtin.
ac50fbac 4576 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt Shell option names as accepted by the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt
17345e5a
JA
4577 builtin.
4578 s\bsi\big\bgn\bna\bal\bl Signal names.
4579 s\bst\bto\bop\bpp\bpe\bed\bd Names of stopped jobs, if job control is active.
4580 u\bus\bse\ber\br User names. May also be specified as -\b-u\bu.
4581 v\bva\bar\bri\bia\bab\bbl\ble\be
4582 Names of all shell variables. May also be spec-
4583 ified as -\b-v\bv.
17345e5a 4584 -\b-C\bC _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd
a0c0a00f 4585 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is executed in a subshell environment, and its
17345e5a
JA
4586 output is used as the possible completions.
4587 -\b-F\bF _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn
a0c0a00f
CR
4588 The shell function _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn is executed in the current
4589 shell environment. When the function is executed, the
712f80b0
CR
4590 first argument ($\b$1\b1) is the name of the command whose ar-
4591 guments are being completed, the second argument ($\b$2\b2) is
4592 the word being completed, and the third argument ($\b$3\b3) is
4593 the word preceding the word being completed on the cur-
4594 rent command line. When it finishes, the possible com-
4595 pletions are retrieved from the value of the C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPR\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY
4596 array variable.
495aee44 4597 -\b-G\bG _\bg_\bl_\bo_\bb_\bp_\ba_\bt
a0c0a00f 4598 The pathname expansion pattern _\bg_\bl_\bo_\bb_\bp_\ba_\bt is expanded to
495aee44 4599 generate the possible completions.
17345e5a 4600 -\b-P\bP _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx
a0c0a00f 4601 _\bp_\br_\be_\bf_\bi_\bx is added at the beginning of each possible com-
17345e5a
JA
4602 pletion after all other options have been applied.
4603 -\b-S\bS _\bs_\bu_\bf_\bf_\bi_\bx
4604 _\bs_\bu_\bf_\bf_\bi_\bx is appended to each possible completion after all
4605 other options have been applied.
495aee44 4606 -\b-W\bW _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt
a0c0a00f
CR
4607 The _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt is split using the characters in the I\bIF\bFS\bS
4608 special variable as delimiters, and each resultant word
d233b485
CR
4609 is expanded. Shell quoting is honored within _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt,
4610 in order to provide a mechanism for the words to contain
4611 shell metacharacters or characters in the value of I\bIF\bFS\bS.
4612 The possible completions are the members of the resul-
4613 tant list which match the word being completed.
495aee44 4614 -\b-X\bX _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt
a0c0a00f 4615 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt is a pattern as used for pathname expansion.
495aee44 4616 It is applied to the list of possible completions gener-
a0c0a00f
CR
4617 ated by the preceding options and arguments, and each
4618 completion matching _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt is removed from the list.
4619 A leading !\b! in _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt negates the pattern; in this
4620 case, any completion not matching _\bf_\bi_\bl_\bt_\be_\br_\bp_\ba_\bt is removed.
495aee44
CR
4621
4622 The return value is true unless an invalid option is supplied,
4623 an option other than -\b-p\bp or -\b-r\br is supplied without a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be argu-
4624 ment, an attempt is made to remove a completion specification
17345e5a
JA
4625 for a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be for which no specification exists, or an error occurs
4626 adding a completion specification.
4627
d233b485 4628 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpo\bop\bpt\bt [-\b-o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [-\b-D\bDE\bEI\bI] [+\b+o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be]
712f80b0
CR
4629 Modify completion options for each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be according to the _\bo_\bp_\b-
4630 _\bt_\bi_\bo_\bns, or for the currently-executing completion if no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\bes are
4631 supplied. If no _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bns are given, display the completion op-
4632 tions for each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be or the current completion. The possible
4633 values of _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn are those valid for the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be builtin de-
4634 scribed above. The -\b-D\bD option indicates that other supplied op-
4635 tions should apply to the ``default'' command completion; that
495aee44 4636 is, completion attempted on a command for which no completion
d233b485
CR
4637 has previously been defined. The -\b-E\bE option indicates that other
4638 supplied options should apply to ``empty'' command completion;
4639 that is, completion attempted on a blank line. The -\b-I\bI option
4640 indicates that other supplied options should apply to completion
712f80b0 4641 on the initial non-assignment word on the line, or after a com-
d233b485
CR
4642 mand delimiter such as ;\b; or |\b|, which is usually command name
4643 completion.
0001803f 4644
495aee44
CR
4645 The return value is true unless an invalid option is supplied,
4646 an attempt is made to modify the options for a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be for which no
4647 completion specification exists, or an output error occurs.
17345e5a
JA
4648
4649 c\bco\bon\bnt\bti\bin\bnu\bue\be [_\bn]
4650 Resume the next iteration of the enclosing f\bfo\bor\br, w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be, u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl, or
495aee44 4651 s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt loop. If _\bn is specified, resume at the _\bnth enclosing
712f80b0
CR
4652 loop. _\bn must be >= 1. If _\bn is greater than the number of en-
4653 closing loops, the last enclosing loop (the ``top-level'' loop)
4654 is resumed. The return value is 0 unless _\bn is not greater than
4655 or equal to 1.
17345e5a 4656
712f80b0
CR
4657 d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be [-\b-a\baA\bAf\bfF\bFg\bgi\biI\bIl\bln\bnr\brt\btu\bux\bx] [-\b-p\bp] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be] ...]
4658 t\bty\byp\bpe\bes\bse\bet\bt [-\b-a\baA\bAf\bfF\bFg\bgi\biI\bIl\bln\bnr\brt\btu\bux\bx] [-\b-p\bp] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be] ...]
495aee44
CR
4659 Declare variables and/or give them attributes. If no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\bes are
4660 given then display the values of variables. The -\b-p\bp option will
17345e5a 4661 display the attributes and values of each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. When -\b-p\bp is used
ac50fbac
CR
4662 with _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments, additional options, other than -\b-f\bf and -\b-F\bF,
4663 are ignored. When -\b-p\bp is supplied without _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments, it
4664 will display the attributes and values of all variables having
4665 the attributes specified by the additional options. If no other
712f80b0
CR
4666 options are supplied with -\b-p\bp, d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be will display the at-
4667 tributes and values of all shell variables. The -\b-f\bf option will
4668 restrict the display to shell functions. The -\b-F\bF option inhibits
4669 the display of function definitions; only the function name and
4670 attributes are printed. If the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg shell option is enabled
4671 using s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt, the source file name and line number where each
4672 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is defined are displayed as well. The -\b-F\bF option implies
4673 -\b-f\bf. The -\b-g\bg option forces variables to be created or modified at
4674 the global scope, even when d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be is executed in a shell func-
4675 tion. It is ignored in all other cases. The -\b-I\bI option causes
4676 local variables to inherit the attributes (except the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf
4677 attribute) and value of any existing variable with the same _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
4678 at a surrounding scope. If there is no existing variable, the
4679 local variable is initially unset. The following options can be
4680 used to restrict output to variables with the specified attri-
4681 bute or to give variables attributes:
0001803f 4682 -\b-a\ba Each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is an indexed array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs
17345e5a 4683 above).
0001803f 4684 -\b-A\bA Each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is an associative array variable (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs
17345e5a
JA
4685 above).
4686 -\b-f\bf Use function names only.
4687 -\b-i\bi The variable is treated as an integer; arithmetic evalua-
0001803f
CR
4688 tion (see A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bHM\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN above) is performed when
4689 the variable is assigned a value.
4690 -\b-l\bl When the variable is assigned a value, all upper-case
4691 characters are converted to lower-case. The upper-case
17345e5a 4692 attribute is disabled.
ac50fbac
CR
4693 -\b-n\bn Give each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf attribute, making it a name
4694 reference to another variable. That other variable is
a0c0a00f
CR
4695 defined by the value of _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. All references, assign-
4696 ments, and attribute modifications to _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, except those
4697 using or changing the -\b-n\bn attribute itself, are performed
4698 on the variable referenced by _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be's value. The nameref
4699 attribute cannot be applied to array variables.
17345e5a
JA
4700 -\b-r\br Make _\bn_\ba_\bm_\bes readonly. These names cannot then be assigned
4701 values by subsequent assignment statements or unset.
712f80b0
CR
4702 -\b-t\bt Give each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be the _\bt_\br_\ba_\bc_\be attribute. Traced functions in-
4703 herit the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN traps from the calling shell.
4704 The trace attribute has no special meaning for variables.
4705 -\b-u\bu When the variable is assigned a value, all lower-case
4706 characters are converted to upper-case. The lower-case
17345e5a 4707 attribute is disabled.
712f80b0
CR
4708 -\b-x\bx Mark _\bn_\ba_\bm_\bes for export to subsequent commands via the en-
4709 vironment.
17345e5a 4710
712f80b0
CR
4711 Using `+' instead of `-' turns off the attribute instead, with
4712 the exceptions that +\b+a\ba and +\b+A\bA may not be used to destroy array
4713 variables and +\b+r\br will not remove the readonly attribute. When
d233b485 4714 used in a function, d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be and t\bty\byp\bpe\bes\bse\bet\bt make each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be local, as
712f80b0
CR
4715 with the l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl command, unless the -\b-g\bg option is supplied. If a
4716 variable name is followed by =_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be, the value of the variable
4717 is set to _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be. When using -\b-a\ba or -\b-A\bA and the compound assign-
4718 ment syntax to create array variables, additional attributes do
4719 not take effect until subsequent assignments. The return value
d233b485
CR
4720 is 0 unless an invalid option is encountered, an attempt is made
4721 to define a function using ``-f foo=bar'', an attempt is made to
712f80b0
CR
4722 assign a value to a readonly variable, an attempt is made to as-
4723 sign a value to an array variable without using the compound as-
4724 signment syntax (see A\bAr\brr\bra\bay\bys\bs above), one of the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs is not a
4725 valid shell variable name, an attempt is made to turn off read-
4726 only status for a readonly variable, an attempt is made to turn
ac50fbac
CR
4727 off array status for an array variable, or an attempt is made to
4728 display a non-existent function with -\b-f\bf.
4729
4730 d\bdi\bir\brs\bs [\b[-\b-c\bcl\blp\bpv\bv]\b] [\b[+\b+_\bn]\b] [\b[-\b-_\bn]\b]
712f80b0
CR
4731 Without options, displays the list of currently remembered di-
4732 rectories. The default display is on a single line with direc-
4733 tory names separated by spaces. Directories are added to the
4734 list with the p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd command; the p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd command removes entries
4735 from the list. The current directory is always the first direc-
4736 tory in the stack.
4737 -\b-c\bc Clears the directory stack by deleting all of the en-
4738 tries.
4739 -\b-l\bl Produces a listing using full pathnames; the default
ac50fbac 4740 listing format uses a tilde to denote the home directory.
17345e5a 4741 -\b-p\bp Print the directory stack with one entry per line.
712f80b0 4742 -\b-v\bv Print the directory stack with one entry per line, pre-
17345e5a 4743 fixing each entry with its index in the stack.
ac50fbac
CR
4744 +\b+_\bn Displays the _\bnth entry counting from the left of the list
4745 shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs when invoked without options, starting with
4746 zero.
712f80b0 4747 -\b-_\bn Displays the _\bnth entry counting from the right of the
ac50fbac
CR
4748 list shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs when invoked without options, starting
4749 with zero.
17345e5a 4750
712f80b0 4751 The return value is 0 unless an invalid option is supplied or _\bn
17345e5a
JA
4752 indexes beyond the end of the directory stack.
4753
a0c0a00f 4754 d\bdi\bis\bso\bow\bwn\bn [-\b-a\bar\br] [-\b-h\bh] [_\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc ... | _\bp_\bi_\bd ... ]
712f80b0
CR
4755 Without options, remove each _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc from the table of active
4756 jobs. If _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is not present, and neither the -\b-a\ba nor the -\b-r\br
4757 option is supplied, the _\bc_\bu_\br_\br_\be_\bn_\bt _\bj_\bo_\bb is used. If the -\b-h\bh option
4758 is given, each _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is not removed from the table, but is
4759 marked so that S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP is not sent to the job if the shell re-
4760 ceives a S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP. If no _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is supplied, the -\b-a\ba option means
4761 to remove or mark all jobs; the -\b-r\br option without a _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc ar-
4762 gument restricts operation to running jobs. The return value is
4763 0 unless a _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc does not specify a valid job.
17345e5a
JA
4764
4765 e\bec\bch\bho\bo [-\b-n\bne\beE\bE] [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
712f80b0
CR
4766 Output the _\ba_\br_\bgs, separated by spaces, followed by a newline.
4767 The return status is 0 unless a write error occurs. If -\b-n\bn is
ac50fbac 4768 specified, the trailing newline is suppressed. If the -\b-e\be option
712f80b0
CR
4769 is given, interpretation of the following backslash-escaped
4770 characters is enabled. The -\b-E\bE option disables the interpreta-
4771 tion of these escape characters, even on systems where they are
4772 interpreted by default. The x\bxp\bpg\bg_\b_e\bec\bch\bho\bo shell option may be used
4773 to dynamically determine whether or not e\bec\bch\bho\bo expands these es-
4774 cape characters by default. e\bec\bch\bho\bo does not interpret -\b--\b- to mean
4775 the end of options. e\bec\bch\bho\bo interprets the following escape se-
4776 quences:
17345e5a
JA
4777 \\b\a\ba alert (bell)
4778 \\b\b\bb backspace
4779 \\b\c\bc suppress further output
495aee44
CR
4780 \\b\e\be
4781 \\b\E\bE an escape character
17345e5a
JA
4782 \\b\f\bf form feed
4783 \\b\n\bn new line
4784 \\b\r\br carriage return
4785 \\b\t\bt horizontal tab
4786 \\b\v\bv vertical tab
4787 \\b\\\b\ backslash
712f80b0 4788 \\b\0\b0_\bn_\bn_\bn the eight-bit character whose value is the octal value
17345e5a 4789 _\bn_\bn_\bn (zero to three octal digits)
712f80b0 4790 \\b\x\bx_\bH_\bH the eight-bit character whose value is the hexadecimal
17345e5a 4791 value _\bH_\bH (one or two hex digits)
712f80b0 4792 \\b\u\bu_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH the Unicode (ISO/IEC 10646) character whose value is the
495aee44
CR
4793 hexadecimal value _\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH (one to four hex digits)
4794 \\b\U\bU_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH
712f80b0 4795 the Unicode (ISO/IEC 10646) character whose value is the
495aee44 4796 hexadecimal value _\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH_\bH (one to eight hex digits)
17345e5a
JA
4797
4798 e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be [-\b-a\ba] [-\b-d\bdn\bnp\bps\bs] [-\b-f\bf _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
712f80b0 4799 Enable and disable builtin shell commands. Disabling a builtin
17345e5a 4800 allows a disk command which has the same name as a shell builtin
712f80b0
CR
4801 to be executed without specifying a full pathname, even though
4802 the shell normally searches for builtins before disk commands.
4803 If -\b-n\bn is used, each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is disabled; otherwise, _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are en-
4804 abled. For example, to use the t\bte\bes\bst\bt binary found via the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH
4805 instead of the shell builtin version, run ``enable -n test''.
4806 The -\b-f\bf option means to load the new builtin command _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be from
17345e5a 4807 shared object _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, on systems that support dynamic loading.
712f80b0 4808 The -\b-d\bd option will delete a builtin previously loaded with -\b-f\bf.
17345e5a
JA
4809 If no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments are given, or if the -\b-p\bp option is supplied,
4810 a list of shell builtins is printed. With no other option argu-
712f80b0
CR
4811 ments, the list consists of all enabled shell builtins. If -\b-n\bn
4812 is supplied, only disabled builtins are printed. If -\b-a\ba is sup-
4813 plied, the list printed includes all builtins, with an indica-
4814 tion of whether or not each is enabled. If -\b-s\bs is supplied, the
4815 output is restricted to the POSIX _\bs_\bp_\be_\bc_\bi_\ba_\bl builtins. The return
4816 value is 0 unless a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not a shell builtin or there is an
17345e5a
JA
4817 error loading a new builtin from a shared object.
4818
4819 e\bev\bva\bal\bl [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
712f80b0
CR
4820 The _\ba_\br_\bgs are read and concatenated together into a single com-
4821 mand. This command is then read and executed by the shell, and
4822 its exit status is returned as the value of e\bev\bva\bal\bl. If there are
17345e5a
JA
4823 no _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs, or only null arguments, e\bev\bva\bal\bl returns 0.
4824
4825 e\bex\bxe\bec\bc [-\b-c\bcl\bl] [-\b-a\ba _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [_\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]]
712f80b0
CR
4826 If _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is specified, it replaces the shell. No new process
4827 is created. The _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs become the arguments to _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd. If
17345e5a 4828 the -\b-l\bl option is supplied, the shell places a dash at the begin-
712f80b0
CR
4829 ning of the zeroth argument passed to _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd. This is what _\bl_\bo_\b-
4830 _\bg_\bi_\bn(1) does. The -\b-c\bc option causes _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd to be executed with
4831 an empty environment. If -\b-a\ba is supplied, the shell passes _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
17345e5a 4832 as the zeroth argument to the executed command. If _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd can-
712f80b0
CR
4833 not be executed for some reason, a non-interactive shell exits,
4834 unless the e\bex\bxe\bec\bcf\bfa\bai\bil\bl shell option is enabled. In that case, it
4835 returns failure. An interactive shell returns failure if the
4836 file cannot be executed. A subshell exits unconditionally if
4837 e\bex\bxe\bec\bc fails. If _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is not specified, any redirections take
4838 effect in the current shell, and the return status is 0. If
d233b485 4839 there is a redirection error, the return status is 1.
17345e5a
JA
4840
4841 e\bex\bxi\bit\bt [_\bn]
712f80b0 4842 Cause the shell to exit with a status of _\bn. If _\bn is omitted,
17345e5a
JA
4843 the exit status is that of the last command executed. A trap on
4844 E\bEX\bXI\bIT\bT is executed before the shell terminates.
4845
4846 e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt [-\b-f\bfn\bn] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd]] ...
4847 e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt -\b-p\bp
712f80b0
CR
4848 The supplied _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are marked for automatic export to the envi-
4849 ronment of subsequently executed commands. If the -\b-f\bf option is
4850 given, the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs refer to functions. If no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are given, or
4851 if the -\b-p\bp option is supplied, a list of names of all exported
4852 variables is printed. The -\b-n\bn option causes the export property
ac50fbac
CR
4853 to be removed from each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If a variable name is followed by
4854 =_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd, the value of the variable is set to _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd. e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt returns
4855 an exit status of 0 unless an invalid option is encountered, one
712f80b0 4856 of the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs is not a valid shell variable name, or -\b-f\bf is sup-
ac50fbac 4857 plied with a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be that is not a function.
17345e5a
JA
4858
4859 f\bfc\bc [-\b-e\be _\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [-\b-l\bln\bnr\br] [_\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt] [_\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt]
4860 f\bfc\bc -\b-s\bs [_\bp_\ba_\bt=_\br_\be_\bp] [_\bc_\bm_\bd]
712f80b0
CR
4861 The first form selects a range of commands from _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt to _\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt
4862 from the history list and displays or edits and re-executes
4863 them. _\bF_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt and _\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt may be specified as a string (to locate
4864 the last command beginning with that string) or as a number (an
4865 index into the history list, where a negative number is used as
4866 an offset from the current command number). When listing, a
4867 _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt or _\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt of 0 is equivalent to -1 and -0 is equivalent to
4868 the current command (usually the f\bfc\bc command); otherwise 0 is
4869 equivalent to -1 and -0 is invalid. If _\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt is not specified,
4870 it is set to the current command for listing (so that ``fc -l
4871 -10'' prints the last 10 commands) and to _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt otherwise. If
4872 _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt is not specified, it is set to the previous command for
4873 editing and -16 for listing.
17345e5a 4874
d233b485
CR
4875 The -\b-n\bn option suppresses the command numbers when listing. The
4876 -\b-r\br option reverses the order of the commands. If the -\b-l\bl option
4877 is given, the commands are listed on standard output. Other-
4878 wise, the editor given by _\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is invoked on a file containing
4879 those commands. If _\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not given, the value of the F\bFC\bCE\bED\bDI\bIT\bT
4880 variable is used, and the value of E\bED\bDI\bIT\bTO\bOR\bR if F\bFC\bCE\bED\bDI\bIT\bT is not set.
4881 If neither variable is set, _\bv_\bi is used. When editing is com-
17345e5a
JA
4882 plete, the edited commands are echoed and executed.
4883
d233b485
CR
4884 In the second form, _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is re-executed after each instance
4885 of _\bp_\ba_\bt is replaced by _\br_\be_\bp. _\bC_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd is interpreted the same as
4886 _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt above. A useful alias to use with this is ``r="fc -s"'',
4887 so that typing ``r cc'' runs the last command beginning with
ac50fbac 4888 ``cc'' and typing ``r'' re-executes the last command.
17345e5a 4889
712f80b0
CR
4890 If the first form is used, the return value is 0 unless an in-
4891 valid option is encountered or _\bf_\bi_\br_\bs_\bt or _\bl_\ba_\bs_\bt specify history
d233b485 4892 lines out of range. If the -\b-e\be option is supplied, the return
17345e5a
JA
4893 value is the value of the last command executed or failure if an
4894 error occurs with the temporary file of commands. If the second
d233b485
CR
4895 form is used, the return status is that of the command re-exe-
4896 cuted, unless _\bc_\bm_\bd does not specify a valid history line, in
17345e5a
JA
4897 which case f\bfc\bc returns failure.
4898
4899 f\bfg\bg [_\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc]
d233b485 4900 Resume _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc in the foreground, and make it the current job.
17345e5a 4901 If _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is not present, the shell's notion of the _\bc_\bu_\br_\br_\be_\bn_\bt _\bj_\bo_\bb
d233b485
CR
4902 is used. The return value is that of the command placed into
4903 the foreground, or failure if run when job control is disabled
17345e5a 4904 or, when run with job control enabled, if _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc does not spec-
d233b485 4905 ify a valid job or _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc specifies a job that was started
17345e5a
JA
4906 without job control.
4907
712f80b0 4908 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [_\ba_\br_\bg _\b._\b._\b.]
d233b485
CR
4909 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs is used by shell procedures to parse positional parame-
4910 ters. _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg contains the option characters to be recog-
712f80b0
CR
4911 nized; if a character is followed by a colon, the option is ex-
4912 pected to have an argument, which should be separated from it by
4913 white space. The colon and question mark characters may not be
4914 used as option characters. Each time it is invoked, g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs
d233b485 4915 places the next option in the shell variable _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, initializing
17345e5a
JA
4916 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be if it does not exist, and the index of the next argument to
4917 be processed into the variable O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bND\bD. O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bND\bD is initialized to
712f80b0
CR
4918 1 each time the shell or a shell script is invoked. When an op-
4919 tion requires an argument, g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs places that argument into the
4920 variable O\bOP\bPT\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG. The shell does not reset O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bND\bD automatically;
4921 it must be manually reset between multiple calls to g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs
4922 within the same shell invocation if a new set of parameters is
4923 to be used.
17345e5a 4924
712f80b0
CR
4925 When the end of options is encountered, g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs exits with a re-
4926 turn value greater than zero. O\bOP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bND\bD is set to the index of the
4927 first non-option argument, and _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set to ?.
17345e5a 4928
d233b485 4929 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs normally parses the positional parameters, but if more
712f80b0
CR
4930 arguments are supplied as _\ba_\br_\bg values, g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs parses those in-
4931 stead.
4932
4933 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs can report errors in two ways. If the first character
4934 of _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is a colon, _\bs_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\bt error reporting is used. In
4935 normal operation, diagnostic messages are printed when invalid
4936 options or missing option arguments are encountered. If the
4937 variable O\bOP\bPT\bTE\bER\bRR\bR is set to 0, no error messages will be dis-
17345e5a
JA
4938 played, even if the first character of _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg is not a colon.
4939
4940 If an invalid option is seen, g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs places ? into _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be and, if
712f80b0
CR
4941 not silent, prints an error message and unsets O\bOP\bPT\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG. If
4942 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs is silent, the option character found is placed in O\bOP\bP-\b-
4943 T\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG and no diagnostic message is printed.
4944
4945 If a required argument is not found, and g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs is not silent,
4946 a question mark (?\b?) is placed in _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, O\bOP\bPT\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG is unset, and a
4947 diagnostic message is printed. If g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs is silent, then a
4948 colon (:\b:) is placed in _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be and O\bOP\bPT\bTA\bAR\bRG\bG is set to the option
17345e5a
JA
4949 character found.
4950
712f80b0 4951 g\bge\bet\bto\bop\bpt\bts\bs returns true if an option, specified or unspecified, is
17345e5a
JA
4952 found. It returns false if the end of options is encountered or
4953 an error occurs.
4954
4955 h\bha\bas\bsh\bh [-\b-l\blr\br] [-\b-p\bp _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [-\b-d\bdt\bt] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be]
495aee44 4956 Each time h\bha\bas\bsh\bh is invoked, the full pathname of the command _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
712f80b0 4957 is determined by searching the directories in $\b$P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH and remem-
495aee44
CR
4958 bered. Any previously-remembered pathname is discarded. If the
4959 -\b-p\bp option is supplied, no path search is performed, and _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
712f80b0
CR
4960 is used as the full filename of the command. The -\b-r\br option
4961 causes the shell to forget all remembered locations. The -\b-d\bd op-
4962 tion causes the shell to forget the remembered location of each
4963 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If the -\b-t\bt option is supplied, the full pathname to which
4964 each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be corresponds is printed. If multiple _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments
4965 are supplied with -\b-t\bt, the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is printed before the hashed full
4966 pathname. The -\b-l\bl option causes output to be displayed in a for-
4967 mat that may be reused as input. If no arguments are given, or
4968 if only -\b-l\bl is supplied, information about remembered commands is
4969 printed. The return status is true unless a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not found
4970 or an invalid option is supplied.
17345e5a
JA
4971
4972 h\bhe\bel\blp\bp [-\b-d\bdm\bms\bs] [_\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn]
712f80b0
CR
4973 Display helpful information about builtin commands. If _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn
4974 is specified, h\bhe\bel\blp\bp gives detailed help on all commands matching
4975 _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn; otherwise help for all the builtins and shell control
17345e5a
JA
4976 structures is printed.
4977 -\b-d\bd Display a short description of each _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn
0001803f 4978 -\b-m\bm Display the description of each _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn in a manpage-like
17345e5a
JA
4979 format
4980 -\b-s\bs Display only a short usage synopsis for each _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn
ac50fbac
CR
4981
4982 The return status is 0 unless no command matches _\bp_\ba_\bt_\bt_\be_\br_\bn.
17345e5a
JA
4983
4984 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by [\b[_\bn]\b]
4985 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-c\bc
4986 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-d\bd _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt
d233b485 4987 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-d\bd _\bs_\bt_\ba_\br_\bt-_\be_\bn_\bd
17345e5a
JA
4988 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-a\ban\bnr\brw\bw [_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be]
4989 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-p\bp _\ba_\br_\bg [_\ba_\br_\bg _\b._\b._\b.]
4990 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-s\bs _\ba_\br_\bg [_\ba_\br_\bg _\b._\b._\b.]
4991 With no options, display the command history list with line num-
4992 bers. Lines listed with a *\b* have been modified. An argument of
712f80b0
CR
4993 _\bn lists only the last _\bn lines. If the shell variable H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTT\bTI\bIM\bME\bE-\b-
4994 F\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT is set and not null, it is used as a format string for
4995 _\bs_\bt_\br_\bf_\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3) to display the time stamp associated with each dis-
4996 played history entry. No intervening blank is printed between
4997 the formatted time stamp and the history line. If _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is
4998 supplied, it is used as the name of the history file; if not,
4999 the value of H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is used. Options, if supplied, have the
17345e5a
JA
5000 following meanings:
5001 -\b-c\bc Clear the history list by deleting all the entries.
5002 -\b-d\bd _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt
712f80b0 5003 Delete the history entry at position _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt. If _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt
d233b485
CR
5004 is negative, it is interpreted as relative to one greater
5005 than the last history position, so negative indices count
712f80b0 5006 back from the end of the history, and an index of -1
d233b485
CR
5007 refers to the current h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by -\b-d\bd command.
5008 -\b-d\bd _\bs_\bt_\ba_\br_\bt-_\be_\bn_\bd
712f80b0
CR
5009 Delete the history entries between positions _\bs_\bt_\ba_\br_\bt and
5010 _\be_\bn_\bd, inclusive. Positive and negative values for _\bs_\bt_\ba_\br_\bt
d233b485 5011 and _\be_\bn_\bd are interpreted as described above.
712f80b0
CR
5012 -\b-a\ba Append the ``new'' history lines to the history file.
5013 These are history lines entered since the beginning of
a0c0a00f 5014 the current b\bba\bas\bsh\bh session, but not already appended to the
17345e5a 5015 history file.
712f80b0
CR
5016 -\b-n\bn Read the history lines not already read from the history
5017 file into the current history list. These are lines ap-
5018 pended to the history file since the beginning of the
17345e5a 5019 current b\bba\bas\bsh\bh session.
712f80b0 5020 -\b-r\br Read the contents of the history file and append them to
ac50fbac
CR
5021 the current history list.
5022 -\b-w\bw Write the current history list to the history file, over-
5023 writing the history file's contents.
712f80b0
CR
5024 -\b-p\bp Perform history substitution on the following _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs and
5025 display the result on the standard output. Does not
5026 store the results in the history list. Each _\ba_\br_\bg must be
17345e5a 5027 quoted to disable normal history expansion.
712f80b0
CR
5028 -\b-s\bs Store the _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs in the history list as a single entry.
5029 The last command in the history list is removed before
17345e5a
JA
5030 the _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs are added.
5031
712f80b0
CR
5032 If the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTT\bTI\bIM\bME\bEF\bFO\bOR\bRM\bMA\bAT\bT variable is set, the time stamp informa-
5033 tion associated with each history entry is written to the his-
5034 tory file, marked with the history comment character. When the
5035 history file is read, lines beginning with the history comment
5036 character followed immediately by a digit are interpreted as
a0c0a00f
CR
5037 timestamps for the following history entry. The return value is
5038 0 unless an invalid option is encountered, an error occurs while
712f80b0 5039 reading or writing the history file, an invalid _\bo_\bf_\bf_\bs_\be_\bt is sup-
0001803f
CR
5040 plied as an argument to -\b-d\bd, or the history expansion supplied as
5041 an argument to -\b-p\bp fails.
17345e5a
JA
5042
5043 j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs [-\b-l\bln\bnp\bpr\brs\bs] [ _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc ... ]
5044 j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs -\b-x\bx _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd [ _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs ... ]
5045 The first form lists the active jobs. The options have the fol-
5046 lowing meanings:
5047 -\b-l\bl List process IDs in addition to the normal information.
712f80b0 5048 -\b-n\bn Display information only about jobs that have changed
a0c0a00f 5049 status since the user was last notified of their status.
712f80b0 5050 -\b-p\bp List only the process ID of the job's process group
495aee44 5051 leader.
ac50fbac
CR
5052 -\b-r\br Display only running jobs.
5053 -\b-s\bs Display only stopped jobs.
17345e5a 5054
712f80b0
CR
5055 If _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is given, output is restricted to information about
5056 that job. The return status is 0 unless an invalid option is
17345e5a
JA
5057 encountered or an invalid _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is supplied.
5058
5059 If the -\b-x\bx option is supplied, j\bjo\bob\bbs\bs replaces any _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc found in
712f80b0
CR
5060 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd or _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs with the corresponding process group ID, and ex-
5061 ecutes _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd passing it _\ba_\br_\bg_\bs, returning its exit status.
17345e5a
JA
5062
5063 k\bki\bil\bll\bl [-\b-s\bs _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc | -\b-n\bn _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bn_\bu_\bm | -\b-_\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc] [_\bp_\bi_\bd | _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc] ...
a0c0a00f 5064 k\bki\bil\bll\bl -\b-l\bl|-\b-L\bL [_\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc | _\be_\bx_\bi_\bt_\b__\bs_\bt_\ba_\bt_\bu_\bs]
712f80b0
CR
5065 Send the signal named by _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc or _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bn_\bu_\bm to the processes
5066 named by _\bp_\bi_\bd or _\bj_\bo_\bb_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc. _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is either a case-insensitive
5067 signal name such as S\bSI\bIG\bGK\bKI\bIL\bLL\bL (with or without the S\bSI\bIG\bG prefix) or
5068 a signal number; _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bn_\bu_\bm is a signal number. If _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is not
5069 present, then S\bSI\bIG\bGT\bTE\bER\bRM\bM is assumed. An argument of -\b-l\bl lists the
5070 signal names. If any arguments are supplied when -\b-l\bl is given,
5071 the names of the signals corresponding to the arguments are
17345e5a 5072 listed, and the return status is 0. The _\be_\bx_\bi_\bt_\b__\bs_\bt_\ba_\bt_\bu_\bs argument to
712f80b0
CR
5073 -\b-l\bl is a number specifying either a signal number or the exit
5074 status of a process terminated by a signal. The -\b-L\bL option is
5075 equivalent to -\b-l\bl. k\bki\bil\bll\bl returns true if at least one signal was
5076 successfully sent, or false if an error occurs or an invalid op-
5077 tion is encountered.
17345e5a
JA
5078
5079 l\ble\bet\bt _\ba_\br_\bg [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
5080 Each _\ba_\br_\bg is an arithmetic expression to be evaluated (see A\bAR\bRI\bIT\bTH\bH-\b-
712f80b0 5081 M\bME\bET\bTI\bIC\bC E\bEV\bVA\bAL\bLU\bUA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN above). If the last _\ba_\br_\bg evaluates to 0, l\ble\bet\bt
0001803f 5082 returns 1; 0 is returned otherwise.
17345e5a 5083
a0c0a00f 5084 l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl [_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be] ... | - ]
712f80b0
CR
5085 For each argument, a local variable named _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is created, and
5086 assigned _\bv_\ba_\bl_\bu_\be. The _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn can be any of the options accepted
17345e5a 5087 by d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be. When l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl is used within a function, it causes the
712f80b0
CR
5088 variable _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be to have a visible scope restricted to that func-
5089 tion and its children. If _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is -, the set of shell options
5090 is made local to the function in which l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl is invoked: shell
5091 options changed using the s\bse\bet\bt builtin inside the function are
5092 restored to their original values when the function returns.
3eb0018e
CR
5093 The restore is effected as if a series of s\bse\bet\bt commands were exe-
5094 cuted to restore the values that were in place before the func-
5095 tion. With no operands, l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl writes a list of local variables
5096 to the standard output. It is an error to use l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl when not
5097 within a function. The return status is 0 unless l\blo\boc\bca\bal\bl is used
5098 outside a function, an invalid _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is supplied, or _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is a
5099 readonly variable.
17345e5a
JA
5100
5101 l\blo\bog\bgo\bou\but\bt Exit a login shell.
5102
712f80b0 5103 m\bma\bap\bpf\bfi\bil\ble\be [-\b-d\bd _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm] [-\b-n\bn _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt] [-\b-O\bO _\bo_\br_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bn] [-\b-s\bs _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt] [-\b-t\bt] [-\b-u\bu _\bf_\bd] [-\b-C\bC
a0c0a00f
CR
5104 _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk] [-\b-c\bc _\bq_\bu_\ba_\bn_\bt_\bu_\bm] [_\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by]
5105 r\bre\bea\bad\bda\bar\brr\bra\bay\by [-\b-d\bd _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm] [-\b-n\bn _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt] [-\b-O\bO _\bo_\br_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bn] [-\b-s\bs _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt] [-\b-t\bt] [-\b-u\bu _\bf_\bd] [-\b-C\bC
5106 _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk] [-\b-c\bc _\bq_\bu_\ba_\bn_\bt_\bu_\bm] [_\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by]
712f80b0
CR
5107 Read lines from the standard input into the indexed array vari-
5108 able _\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by, or from file descriptor _\bf_\bd if the -\b-u\bu option is sup-
5109 plied. The variable M\bMA\bAP\bPF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE is the default _\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by. Options, if
0001803f 5110 supplied, have the following meanings:
712f80b0
CR
5111 -\b-d\bd The first character of _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm is used to terminate each
5112 input line, rather than newline. If _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm is the empty
d233b485
CR
5113 string, m\bma\bap\bpf\bfi\bil\ble\be will terminate a line when it reads a NUL
5114 character.
712f80b0 5115 -\b-n\bn Copy at most _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt lines. If _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt is 0, all lines are
17345e5a 5116 copied.
712f80b0 5117 -\b-O\bO Begin assigning to _\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by at index _\bo_\br_\bi_\bg_\bi_\bn. The default
17345e5a
JA
5118 index is 0.
5119 -\b-s\bs Discard the first _\bc_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bt lines read.
712f80b0 5120 -\b-t\bt Remove a trailing _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm (default newline) from each line
a0c0a00f 5121 read.
712f80b0 5122 -\b-u\bu Read lines from file descriptor _\bf_\bd instead of the stan-
17345e5a 5123 dard input.
712f80b0 5124 -\b-C\bC Evaluate _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk each time _\bq_\bu_\ba_\bn_\bt_\bu_\bm lines are read. The
17345e5a 5125 -\b-c\bc option specifies _\bq_\bu_\ba_\bn_\bt_\bu_\bm.
712f80b0 5126 -\b-c\bc Specify the number of lines read between each call to
17345e5a
JA
5127 _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk.
5128
712f80b0 5129 If -\b-C\bC is specified without -\b-c\bc, the default quantum is 5000.
17345e5a 5130 When _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk is evaluated, it is supplied the index of the next
495aee44 5131 array element to be assigned and the line to be assigned to that
712f80b0 5132 element as additional arguments. _\bc_\ba_\bl_\bl_\bb_\ba_\bc_\bk is evaluated after
495aee44 5133 the line is read but before the array element is assigned.
17345e5a 5134
712f80b0
CR
5135 If not supplied with an explicit origin, m\bma\bap\bpf\bfi\bil\ble\be will clear _\ba_\br_\b-
5136 _\br_\ba_\by before assigning to it.
17345e5a 5137
712f80b0
CR
5138 m\bma\bap\bpf\bfi\bil\ble\be returns successfully unless an invalid option or option
5139 argument is supplied, _\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by is invalid or unassignable, or if
0001803f 5140 _\ba_\br_\br_\ba_\by is not an indexed array.
17345e5a
JA
5141
5142 p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd [-n\bn] [+_\bn] [-_\bn]
712f80b0
CR
5143 Removes entries from the directory stack. With no arguments,
5144 removes the top directory from the stack, and performs a c\bcd\bd to
17345e5a
JA
5145 the new top directory. Arguments, if supplied, have the follow-
5146 ing meanings:
712f80b0
CR
5147 -\b-n\bn Suppresses the normal change of directory when removing
5148 directories from the stack, so that only the stack is ma-
5149 nipulated.
5150 +\b+_\bn Removes the _\bnth entry counting from the left of the list
5151 shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs, starting with zero. For example: ``popd
17345e5a
JA
5152 +0'' removes the first directory, ``popd +1'' the second.
5153 -\b-_\bn Removes the _\bnth entry counting from the right of the list
712f80b0
CR
5154 shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs, starting with zero. For example: ``popd
5155 -0'' removes the last directory, ``popd -1'' the next to
17345e5a
JA
5156 last.
5157
712f80b0
CR
5158 If the p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd command is successful, a d\bdi\bir\brs\bs is performed as well,
5159 and the return status is 0. p\bpo\bop\bpd\bd returns false if an invalid
17345e5a
JA
5160 option is encountered, the directory stack is empty, a non-exis-
5161 tent directory stack entry is specified, or the directory change
5162 fails.
5163
5164 p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf [-\b-v\bv _\bv_\ba_\br] _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt [_\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs]
712f80b0
CR
5165 Write the formatted _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs to the standard output under the
5166 control of the _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt. The -\b-v\bv option causes the output to be
5167 assigned to the variable _\bv_\ba_\br rather than being printed to the
495aee44
CR
5168 standard output.
5169
712f80b0
CR
5170 The _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt is a character string which contains three types of
5171 objects: plain characters, which are simply copied to standard
5172 output, character escape sequences, which are converted and
5173 copied to the standard output, and format specifications, each
5174 of which causes printing of the next successive _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt. In
495aee44
CR
5175 addition to the standard _\bp_\br_\bi_\bn_\bt_\bf(1) format specifications, p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf
5176 interprets the following extensions:
5177 %\b%b\bb causes p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf to expand backslash escape sequences in the
a0c0a00f 5178 corresponding _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt in the same way as e\bec\bch\bho\bo -\b-e\be.
712f80b0 5179 %\b%q\bq causes p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf to output the corresponding _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt in a
495aee44
CR
5180 format that can be reused as shell input.
5181 %\b%(\b(_\bd_\ba_\bt_\be_\bf_\bm_\bt)\b)T\bT
712f80b0
CR
5182 causes p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf to output the date-time string resulting
5183 from using _\bd_\ba_\bt_\be_\bf_\bm_\bt as a format string for _\bs_\bt_\br_\bf_\bt_\bi_\bm_\be(3).
495aee44 5184 The corresponding _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt is an integer representing the
712f80b0
CR
5185 number of seconds since the epoch. Two special argument
5186 values may be used: -1 represents the current time, and
5187 -2 represents the time the shell was invoked. If no ar-
5188 gument is specified, conversion behaves as if -1 had been
5189 given. This is an exception to the usual p\bpr\bri\bin\bnt\btf\bf behav-
5190 ior.
5191
5192 The %b, %q, and %T directives all use the field width and preci-
5193 sion arguments from the format specification and write that many
5194 bytes from (or use that wide a field for) the expanded argument,
5195 which usually contains more characters than the original.
495aee44 5196
d233b485 5197 Arguments to non-string format specifiers are treated as C con-
495aee44 5198 stants, except that a leading plus or minus sign is allowed, and
d233b485 5199 if the leading character is a single or double quote, the value
495aee44 5200 is the ASCII value of the following character.
17345e5a 5201
d233b485 5202 The _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt is reused as necessary to consume all of the _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\b-
17345e5a 5203 _\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs. If the _\bf_\bo_\br_\bm_\ba_\bt requires more _\ba_\br_\bg_\bu_\bm_\be_\bn_\bt_\bs than are supplied,
d233b485
CR
5204 the extra format specifications behave as if a zero value or
5205 null string, as appropriate, had been supplied. The return
17345e5a
JA
5206 value is zero on success, non-zero on failure.
5207
5208 p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd [-\b-n\bn] [+_\bn] [-_\bn]
5209 p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd [-\b-n\bn] [_\bd_\bi_\br]
d233b485
CR
5210 Adds a directory to the top of the directory stack, or rotates
5211 the stack, making the new top of the stack the current working
712f80b0
CR
5212 directory. With no arguments, p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd exchanges the top two di-
5213 rectories and returns 0, unless the directory stack is empty.
a0c0a00f 5214 Arguments, if supplied, have the following meanings:
d233b485
CR
5215 -\b-n\bn Suppresses the normal change of directory when rotating
5216 or adding directories to the stack, so that only the
a0c0a00f 5217 stack is manipulated.
d233b485
CR
5218 +\b+_\bn Rotates the stack so that the _\bnth directory (counting
5219 from the left of the list shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs, starting with
17345e5a 5220 zero) is at the top.
d233b485
CR
5221 -\b-_\bn Rotates the stack so that the _\bnth directory (counting
5222 from the right of the list shown by d\bdi\bir\brs\bs, starting with
17345e5a
JA
5223 zero) is at the top.
5224 _\bd_\bi_\br Adds _\bd_\bi_\br to the directory stack at the top, making it the
d233b485 5225 new current working directory as if it had been supplied
ac50fbac 5226 as the argument to the c\bcd\bd builtin.
17345e5a
JA
5227
5228 If the p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd command is successful, a d\bdi\bir\brs\bs is performed as well.
d233b485
CR
5229 If the first form is used, p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd returns 0 unless the cd to _\bd_\bi_\br
5230 fails. With the second form, p\bpu\bus\bsh\bhd\bd returns 0 unless the direc-
5231 tory stack is empty, a non-existent directory stack element is
5232 specified, or the directory change to the specified new current
17345e5a
JA
5233 directory fails.
5234
5235 p\bpw\bwd\bd [-\b-L\bLP\bP]
d233b485 5236 Print the absolute pathname of the current working directory.
17345e5a
JA
5237 The pathname printed contains no symbolic links if the -\b-P\bP option
5238 is supplied or the -\b-o\bo p\bph\bhy\bys\bsi\bic\bca\bal\bl option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin command
d233b485
CR
5239 is enabled. If the -\b-L\bL option is used, the pathname printed may
5240 contain symbolic links. The return status is 0 unless an error
712f80b0
CR
5241 occurs while reading the name of the current directory or an in-
5242 valid option is supplied.
17345e5a 5243
0001803f
CR
5244 r\bre\bea\bad\bd [-\b-e\ber\brs\bs] [-\b-a\ba _\ba_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [-\b-d\bd _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm] [-\b-i\bi _\bt_\be_\bx_\bt] [-\b-n\bn _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs] [-\b-N\bN _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs] [-\b-p\bp
5245 _\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt] [-\b-t\bt _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be_\bo_\bu_\bt] [-\b-u\bu _\bf_\bd] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
712f80b0
CR
5246 One line is read from the standard input, or from the file de-
5247 scriptor _\bf_\bd supplied as an argument to the -\b-u\bu option, split into
5248 words as described above under W\bWo\bor\brd\bd S\bSp\bpl\bli\bit\btt\bti\bin\bng\bg, and the first
5249 word is assigned to the first _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, the second word to the sec-
5250 ond _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, and so on. If there are more words than names, the
a0c0a00f 5251 remaining words and their intervening delimiters are assigned to
d233b485
CR
5252 the last _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If there are fewer words read from the input
5253 stream than names, the remaining names are assigned empty val-
5254 ues. The characters in I\bIF\bFS\bS are used to split the line into
712f80b0
CR
5255 words using the same rules the shell uses for expansion (de-
5256 scribed above under W\bWo\bor\brd\bd S\bSp\bpl\bli\bit\btt\bti\bin\bng\bg). The backslash character
a0c0a00f 5257 (\\b\) may be used to remove any special meaning for the next char-
d233b485 5258 acter read and for line continuation. Options, if supplied,
a0c0a00f 5259 have the following meanings:
17345e5a
JA
5260 -\b-a\ba _\ba_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
5261 The words are assigned to sequential indices of the array
5262 variable _\ba_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, starting at 0. _\ba_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is unset before any
712f80b0
CR
5263 new values are assigned. Other _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments are ig-
5264 nored.
17345e5a 5265 -\b-d\bd _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm
712f80b0
CR
5266 The first character of _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm is used to terminate the in-
5267 put line, rather than newline. If _\bd_\be_\bl_\bi_\bm is the empty
d233b485
CR
5268 string, r\bre\bea\bad\bd will terminate a line when it reads a NUL
5269 character.
17345e5a 5270 -\b-e\be If the standard input is coming from a terminal, r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be
d233b485
CR
5271 (see R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE above) is used to obtain the line. Read-
5272 line uses the current (or default, if line editing was
5273 not previously active) editing settings, but uses Read-
5274 line's default filename completion.
17345e5a 5275 -\b-i\bi _\bt_\be_\bx_\bt
ac50fbac 5276 If r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used to read the line, _\bt_\be_\bx_\bt is
17345e5a
JA
5277 placed into the editing buffer before editing begins.
5278 -\b-n\bn _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs
ac50fbac 5279 r\bre\bea\bad\bd returns after reading _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs characters rather than
a0c0a00f 5280 waiting for a complete line of input, but honors a delim-
ac50fbac 5281 iter if fewer than _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs characters are read before the
0001803f
CR
5282 delimiter.
5283 -\b-N\bN _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs
ac50fbac
CR
5284 r\bre\bea\bad\bd returns after reading exactly _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs characters
5285 rather than waiting for a complete line of input, unless
5286 EOF is encountered or r\bre\bea\bad\bd times out. Delimiter charac-
5287 ters encountered in the input are not treated specially
5288 and do not cause r\bre\bea\bad\bd to return until _\bn_\bc_\bh_\ba_\br_\bs characters
a0c0a00f
CR
5289 are read. The result is not split on the characters in
5290 I\bIF\bFS\bS; the intent is that the variable is assigned exactly
5291 the characters read (with the exception of backslash; see
5292 the -\b-r\br option below).
17345e5a
JA
5293 -\b-p\bp _\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt
5294 Display _\bp_\br_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bt on standard error, without a trailing new-
5295 line, before attempting to read any input. The prompt is
5296 displayed only if input is coming from a terminal.
5297 -\b-r\br Backslash does not act as an escape character. The back-
a0c0a00f 5298 slash is considered to be part of the line. In particu-
d233b485
CR
5299 lar, a backslash-newline pair may not then be used as a
5300 line continuation.
17345e5a
JA
5301 -\b-s\bs Silent mode. If input is coming from a terminal, charac-
5302 ters are not echoed.
5303 -\b-t\bt _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be_\bo_\bu_\bt
a0c0a00f
CR
5304 Cause r\bre\bea\bad\bd to time out and return failure if a complete
5305 line of input (or a specified number of characters) is
5306 not read within _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be_\bo_\bu_\bt seconds. _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be_\bo_\bu_\bt may be a deci-
5307 mal number with a fractional portion following the deci-
5308 mal point. This option is only effective if r\bre\bea\bad\bd is
5309 reading input from a terminal, pipe, or other special
5310 file; it has no effect when reading from regular files.
ac50fbac 5311 If r\bre\bea\bad\bd times out, r\bre\bea\bad\bd saves any partial input read into
712f80b0
CR
5312 the specified variable _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. If _\bt_\bi_\bm_\be_\bo_\bu_\bt is 0, r\bre\bea\bad\bd re-
5313 turns immediately, without trying to read any data. The
5314 exit status is 0 if input is available on the specified
5315 file descriptor, non-zero otherwise. The exit status is
5316 greater than 128 if the timeout is exceeded.
17345e5a
JA
5317 -\b-u\bu _\bf_\bd Read input from file descriptor _\bf_\bd.
5318
3eb0018e
CR
5319 If no _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are supplied, the line read, without the ending de-
5320 limiter but otherwise unmodified, is assigned to the variable
5321 R\bRE\bEP\bPL\bLY\bY. The exit status is zero, unless end-of-file is encoun-
5322 tered, r\bre\bea\bad\bd times out (in which case the status is greater than
5323 128), a variable assignment error (such as assigning to a read-
5324 only variable) occurs, or an invalid file descriptor is supplied
5325 as the argument to -\b-u\bu.
ac50fbac
CR
5326
5327 r\bre\bea\bad\bdo\bon\bnl\bly\by [-\b-a\baA\bAf\bf] [-\b-p\bp] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be[=_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd] ...]
3eb0018e
CR
5328 The given _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are marked readonly; the values of these _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs
5329 may not be changed by subsequent assignment. If the -\b-f\bf option
5330 is supplied, the functions corresponding to the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are so
5331 marked. The -\b-a\ba option restricts the variables to indexed ar-
5332 rays; the -\b-A\bA option restricts the variables to associative ar-
712f80b0 5333 rays. If both options are supplied, -\b-A\bA takes precedence. If no
3eb0018e 5334 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments are given, or if the -\b-p\bp option is supplied, a
ac50fbac 5335 list of all readonly names is printed. The other options may be
3eb0018e
CR
5336 used to restrict the output to a subset of the set of readonly
5337 names. The -\b-p\bp option causes output to be displayed in a format
5338 that may be reused as input. If a variable name is followed by
5339 =_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd, the value of the variable is set to _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd. The return
5340 status is 0 unless an invalid option is encountered, one of the
ac50fbac
CR
5341 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs is not a valid shell variable name, or -\b-f\bf is supplied with
5342 a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be that is not a function.
17345e5a
JA
5343
5344 r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn [_\bn]
3eb0018e
CR
5345 Causes a function to stop executing and return the value speci-
5346 fied by _\bn to its caller. If _\bn is omitted, the return status is
5347 that of the last command executed in the function body. If r\bre\be-\b-
712f80b0 5348 t\btu\bur\brn\bn is executed by a trap handler, the last command used to de-
3eb0018e
CR
5349 termine the status is the last command executed before the trap
5350 handler. If r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn is executed during a D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap, the last
5351 command used to determine the status is the last command exe-
5352 cuted by the trap handler before r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn was invoked. If r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn
5353 is used outside a function, but during execution of a script by
5354 the .\b. (s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be) command, it causes the shell to stop executing
5355 that script and return either _\bn or the exit status of the last
5356 command executed within the script as the exit status of the
712f80b0 5357 script. If _\bn is supplied, the return value is its least signif-
3eb0018e
CR
5358 icant 8 bits. The return status is non-zero if r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn is sup-
5359 plied a non-numeric argument, or is used outside a function and
5360 not during execution of a script by .\b. or s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be. Any command
712f80b0
CR
5361 associated with the R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN trap is executed before execution re-
5362 sumes after the function or script.
17345e5a 5363
495aee44
CR
5364 s\bse\bet\bt [-\b--\b-a\bab\bbe\bef\bfh\bhk\bkm\bmn\bnp\bpt\btu\buv\bvx\bxB\bBC\bCE\bEH\bHP\bPT\bT] [-\b-o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
5365 s\bse\bet\bt [+\b+a\bab\bbe\bef\bfh\bhk\bkm\bmn\bnp\bpt\btu\buv\bvx\bxB\bBC\bCE\bEH\bHP\bPT\bT] [+\b+o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [_\ba_\br_\bg ...]
3eb0018e 5366 Without options, the name and value of each shell variable are
17345e5a
JA
5367 displayed in a format that can be reused as input for setting or
5368 resetting the currently-set variables. Read-only variables can-
3eb0018e
CR
5369 not be reset. In _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be, only shell variables are listed.
5370 The output is sorted according to the current locale. When op-
5371 tions are specified, they set or unset shell attributes. Any
5372 arguments remaining after option processing are treated as val-
17345e5a 5373 ues for the positional parameters and are assigned, in order, to
3eb0018e 5374 $\b$1\b1, $\b$2\b2, .\b..\b..\b. $\b$_\bn. Options, if specified, have the following
17345e5a 5375 meanings:
a0c0a00f 5376 -\b-a\ba Each variable or function that is created or modified is
3eb0018e 5377 given the export attribute and marked for export to the
a0c0a00f 5378 environment of subsequent commands.
3eb0018e 5379 -\b-b\bb Report the status of terminated background jobs immedi-
17345e5a
JA
5380 ately, rather than before the next primary prompt. This
5381 is effective only when job control is enabled.
3eb0018e
CR
5382 -\b-e\be Exit immediately if a _\bp_\bi_\bp_\be_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be (which may consist of a
5383 single _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd), a _\bl_\bi_\bs_\bt, or a _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bp_\bo_\bu_\bn_\bd _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd
a0c0a00f 5384 (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR above), exits with a non-zero status.
3eb0018e
CR
5385 The shell does not exit if the command that fails is
5386 part of the command list immediately following a w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be
5387 or u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl keyword, part of the test following the i\bif\bf or
5388 e\bel\bli\bif\bf reserved words, part of any command executed in a
5389 &\b&&\b& or |\b||\b| list except the command following the final &\b&&\b&
a0c0a00f 5390 or |\b||\b|, any command in a pipeline but the last, or if the
3eb0018e
CR
5391 command's return value is being inverted with !\b!. If a
5392 compound command other than a subshell returns a non-
5393 zero status because a command failed while -\b-e\be was being
5394 ignored, the shell does not exit. A trap on E\bER\bRR\bR, if
5395 set, is executed before the shell exits. This option
0001803f 5396 applies to the shell environment and each subshell envi-
3eb0018e 5397 ronment separately (see C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN E\bEN\bNV\bVI\bIR\bRO\bON\bNM\bME\bEN\bNT\bT
0001803f
CR
5398 above), and may cause subshells to exit before executing
5399 all the commands in the subshell.
ac50fbac 5400
3eb0018e
CR
5401 If a compound command or shell function executes in a
5402 context where -\b-e\be is being ignored, none of the commands
5403 executed within the compound command or function body
5404 will be affected by the -\b-e\be setting, even if -\b-e\be is set
5405 and a command returns a failure status. If a compound
5406 command or shell function sets -\b-e\be while executing in a
5407 context where -\b-e\be is ignored, that setting will not have
5408 any effect until the compound command or the command
ac50fbac 5409 containing the function call completes.
17345e5a 5410 -\b-f\bf Disable pathname expansion.
3eb0018e 5411 -\b-h\bh Remember the location of commands as they are looked up
17345e5a 5412 for execution. This is enabled by default.
3eb0018e
CR
5413 -\b-k\bk All arguments in the form of assignment statements are
5414 placed in the environment for a command, not just those
17345e5a 5415 that precede the command name.
3eb0018e
CR
5416 -\b-m\bm Monitor mode. Job control is enabled. This option is
5417 on by default for interactive shells on systems that
5418 support it (see J\bJO\bOB\bB C\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL above). All processes run
ac50fbac
CR
5419 in a separate process group. When a background job com-
5420 pletes, the shell prints a line containing its exit sta-
5421 tus.
17345e5a 5422 -\b-n\bn Read commands but do not execute them. This may be used
3eb0018e 5423 to check a shell script for syntax errors. This is ig-
712f80b0 5424 nored by interactive shells.
17345e5a
JA
5425 -\b-o\bo _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be
5426 The _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be can be one of the following:
5427 a\bal\bll\ble\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt
5428 Same as -\b-a\ba.
5429 b\bbr\bra\bac\bce\bee\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd
5430 Same as -\b-B\bB.
3eb0018e 5431 e\bem\bma\bac\bcs\bs Use an emacs-style command line editing inter-
17345e5a
JA
5432 face. This is enabled by default when the shell
5433 is interactive, unless the shell is started with
3eb0018e 5434 the -\b--\b-n\bno\boe\bed\bdi\bit\bti\bin\bng\bg option. This also affects the
17345e5a 5435 editing interface used for r\bre\bea\bad\bd -\b-e\be.
0001803f 5436 e\ber\brr\bre\bex\bxi\bit\bt Same as -\b-e\be.
17345e5a
JA
5437 e\ber\brr\brt\btr\bra\bac\bce\be
5438 Same as -\b-E\bE.
5439 f\bfu\bun\bnc\bct\btr\bra\bac\bce\be
5440 Same as -\b-T\bT.
17345e5a
JA
5441 h\bha\bas\bsh\bha\bal\bll\bl Same as -\b-h\bh.
5442 h\bhi\bis\bst\bte\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd
5443 Same as -\b-H\bH.
5444 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by Enable command history, as described above under
5445 H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY. This option is on by default in inter-
5446 active shells.
5447 i\big\bgn\bno\bor\bre\bee\beo\bof\bf
3eb0018e
CR
5448 The effect is as if the shell command ``IG-
5449 NOREEOF=10'' had been executed (see S\bSh\bhe\bel\bll\bl V\bVa\bar\bri\bi-\b-
712f80b0 5450 a\bab\bbl\ble\bes\bs above).
17345e5a
JA
5451 k\bke\bey\byw\bwo\bor\brd\bd Same as -\b-k\bk.
5452 m\bmo\bon\bni\bit\bto\bor\br Same as -\b-m\bm.
5453 n\bno\boc\bcl\blo\bob\bbb\bbe\ber\br
5454 Same as -\b-C\bC.
5455 n\bno\boe\bex\bxe\bec\bc Same as -\b-n\bn.
5456 n\bno\bog\bgl\blo\bob\bb Same as -\b-f\bf.
5457 n\bno\bol\blo\bog\bg Currently ignored.
5458 n\bno\bot\bti\bif\bfy\by Same as -\b-b\bb.
5459 n\bno\bou\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt Same as -\b-u\bu.
5460 o\bon\bne\bec\bcm\bmd\bd Same as -\b-t\bt.
5461 p\bph\bhy\bys\bsi\bic\bca\bal\bl
5462 Same as -\b-P\bP.
5463 p\bpi\bip\bpe\bef\bfa\bai\bil\bl
3eb0018e
CR
5464 If set, the return value of a pipeline is the
5465 value of the last (rightmost) command to exit
5466 with a non-zero status, or zero if all commands
5467 in the pipeline exit successfully. This option
17345e5a 5468 is disabled by default.
3eb0018e
CR
5469 p\bpo\bos\bsi\bix\bx Change the behavior of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh where the default
5470 operation differs from the POSIX standard to
5471 match the standard (_\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be). See S\bSE\bEE\bE A\bAL\bLS\bSO\bO
ac50fbac
CR
5472 below for a reference to a document that details
5473 how posix mode affects bash's behavior.
17345e5a
JA
5474 p\bpr\bri\biv\bvi\bil\ble\beg\bge\bed\bd
5475 Same as -\b-p\bp.
5476 v\bve\ber\brb\bbo\bos\bse\be Same as -\b-v\bv.
3eb0018e 5477 v\bvi\bi Use a vi-style command line editing interface.
17345e5a
JA
5478 This also affects the editing interface used for
5479 r\bre\bea\bad\bd -\b-e\be.
5480 x\bxt\btr\bra\bac\bce\be Same as -\b-x\bx.
5481 If -\b-o\bo is supplied with no _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, the values of the
3eb0018e
CR
5482 current options are printed. If +\b+o\bo is supplied with no
5483 _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn_\b-_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, a series of s\bse\bet\bt commands to recreate the
5484 current option settings is displayed on the standard
17345e5a 5485 output.
3eb0018e
CR
5486 -\b-p\bp Turn on _\bp_\br_\bi_\bv_\bi_\bl_\be_\bg_\be_\bd mode. In this mode, the $\b$E\bEN\bNV\bV and
5487 $\b$B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV files are not processed, shell functions are
5488 not inherited from the environment, and the S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bLO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS,
5489 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS, C\bCD\bDP\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, and G\bGL\bLO\bOB\bBI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE variables, if they ap-
5490 pear in the environment, are ignored. If the shell is
5491 started with the effective user (group) id not equal to
5492 the real user (group) id, and the -\b-p\bp option is not sup-
0001803f 5493 plied, these actions are taken and the effective user id
3eb0018e
CR
5494 is set to the real user id. If the -\b-p\bp option is sup-
5495 plied at startup, the effective user id is not reset.
5496 Turning this option off causes the effective user and
0001803f 5497 group ids to be set to the real user and group ids.
17345e5a 5498 -\b-t\bt Exit after reading and executing one command.
0001803f 5499 -\b-u\bu Treat unset variables and parameters other than the spe-
3eb0018e
CR
5500 cial parameters "@" and "*" as an error when performing
5501 parameter expansion. If expansion is attempted on an
5502 unset variable or parameter, the shell prints an error
5503 message, and, if not interactive, exits with a non-zero
0001803f 5504 status.
17345e5a 5505 -\b-v\bv Print shell input lines as they are read.
3eb0018e 5506 -\b-x\bx After expanding each _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd, f\bfo\bor\br command, c\bca\bas\bse\be
17345e5a 5507 command, s\bse\bel\ble\bec\bct\bt command, or arithmetic f\bfo\bor\br command, dis-
3eb0018e 5508 play the expanded value of P\bPS\bS4\b4, followed by the command
17345e5a 5509 and its expanded arguments or associated word list.
3eb0018e 5510 -\b-B\bB The shell performs brace expansion (see B\bBr\bra\bac\bce\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn
17345e5a 5511 above). This is on by default.
3eb0018e
CR
5512 -\b-C\bC If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh does not overwrite an existing file with
5513 the >\b>, >\b>&\b&, and <\b<>\b> redirection operators. This may be
17345e5a
JA
5514 overridden when creating output files by using the redi-
5515 rection operator >\b>|\b| instead of >\b>.
5516 -\b-E\bE If set, any trap on E\bER\bRR\bR is inherited by shell functions,
3eb0018e
CR
5517 command substitutions, and commands executed in a sub-
5518 shell environment. The E\bER\bRR\bR trap is normally not inher-
17345e5a
JA
5519 ited in such cases.
5520 -\b-H\bH Enable !\b! style history substitution. This option is on
5521 by default when the shell is interactive.
3eb0018e
CR
5522 -\b-P\bP If set, the shell does not resolve symbolic links when
5523 executing commands such as c\bcd\bd that change the current
17345e5a
JA
5524 working directory. It uses the physical directory
5525 structure instead. By default, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh follows the logical
3eb0018e 5526 chain of directories when performing commands which
17345e5a 5527 change the current directory.
3eb0018e 5528 -\b-T\bT If set, any traps on D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN are inherited by
712f80b0 5529 shell functions, command substitutions, and commands ex-
3eb0018e 5530 ecuted in a subshell environment. The D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN
712f80b0 5531 traps are normally not inherited in such cases.
3eb0018e 5532 -\b--\b- If no arguments follow this option, then the positional
17345e5a 5533 parameters are unset. Otherwise, the positional parame-
3eb0018e 5534 ters are set to the _\ba_\br_\bgs, even if some of them begin
17345e5a 5535 with a -\b-.
3eb0018e 5536 -\b- Signal the end of options, cause all remaining _\ba_\br_\bgs to
17345e5a
JA
5537 be assigned to the positional parameters. The -\b-x\bx and -\b-v\bv
5538 options are turned off. If there are no _\ba_\br_\bgs, the posi-
5539 tional parameters remain unchanged.
5540
3eb0018e
CR
5541 The options are off by default unless otherwise noted. Using +
5542 rather than - causes these options to be turned off. The op-
712f80b0 5543 tions can also be specified as arguments to an invocation of the
3eb0018e
CR
5544 shell. The current set of options may be found in $\b$-\b-. The re-
5545 turn status is always true unless an invalid option is encoun-
17345e5a
JA
5546 tered.
5547
5548 s\bsh\bhi\bif\bft\bt [_\bn]
3eb0018e
CR
5549 The positional parameters from _\bn+1 ... are renamed to $\b$1\b1 .\b..\b..\b..\b.
5550 Parameters represented by the numbers $\b$#\b# down to $\b$#\b#-_\bn+1 are un-
5551 set. _\bn must be a non-negative number less than or equal to $\b$#\b#.
5552 If _\bn is 0, no parameters are changed. If _\bn is not given, it is
712f80b0 5553 assumed to be 1. If _\bn is greater than $\b$#\b#, the positional param-
3eb0018e 5554 eters are not changed. The return status is greater than zero
712f80b0 5555 if _\bn is greater than $\b$#\b# or less than zero; otherwise 0.
17345e5a
JA
5556
5557 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt [-\b-p\bpq\bqs\bsu\bu] [-\b-o\bo] [_\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
3eb0018e
CR
5558 Toggle the values of settings controlling optional shell behav-
5559 ior. The settings can be either those listed below, or, if the
ac50fbac
CR
5560 -\b-o\bo option is used, those available with the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt
5561 builtin command. With no options, or with the -\b-p\bp option, a list
3eb0018e 5562 of all settable options is displayed, with an indication of
d233b485 5563 whether or not each is set; if _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are supplied, the output
3eb0018e
CR
5564 is restricted to those options. The -\b-p\bp option causes output to
5565 be displayed in a form that may be reused as input. Other op-
712f80b0 5566 tions have the following meanings:
17345e5a
JA
5567 -\b-s\bs Enable (set) each _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
5568 -\b-u\bu Disable (unset) each _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be.
3eb0018e 5569 -\b-q\bq Suppresses normal output (quiet mode); the return status
17345e5a 5570 indicates whether the _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is set or unset. If multi-
3eb0018e
CR
5571 ple _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments are given with -\b-q\bq, the return sta-
5572 tus is zero if all _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs are enabled; non-zero other-
17345e5a 5573 wise.
3eb0018e 5574 -\b-o\bo Restricts the values of _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be to be those defined for
17345e5a
JA
5575 the -\b-o\bo option to the s\bse\bet\bt builtin.
5576
3eb0018e
CR
5577 If either -\b-s\bs or -\b-u\bu is used with no _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be arguments, s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt
5578 shows only those options which are set or unset, respectively.
5579 Unless otherwise noted, the s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt options are disabled (unset)
ac50fbac 5580 by default.
17345e5a 5581
3eb0018e
CR
5582 The return status when listing options is zero if all _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\bs
5583 are enabled, non-zero otherwise. When setting or unsetting op-
5584 tions, the return status is zero unless an _\bo_\bp_\bt_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not a
17345e5a
JA
5585 valid shell option.
5586
5587 The list of s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt options is:
5588
d233b485 5589 a\bas\bss\bso\boc\bc_\b_e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd_\b_o\bon\bnc\bce\be
3eb0018e
CR
5590 If set, the shell suppresses multiple evaluation of as-
5591 sociative array subscripts during arithmetic expression
5592 evaluation, while executing builtins that can perform
5593 variable assignments, and while executing builtins that
712f80b0 5594 perform array dereferencing.
3eb0018e
CR
5595 a\bau\but\bto\boc\bcd\bd If set, a command name that is the name of a directory
5596 is executed as if it were the argument to the c\bcd\bd com-
17345e5a
JA
5597 mand. This option is only used by interactive shells.
5598 c\bcd\bda\bab\bbl\ble\be_\b_v\bva\bar\brs\bs
3eb0018e
CR
5599 If set, an argument to the c\bcd\bd builtin command that is
5600 not a directory is assumed to be the name of a variable
17345e5a
JA
5601 whose value is the directory to change to.
5602 c\bcd\bds\bsp\bpe\bel\bll\bl If set, minor errors in the spelling of a directory com-
3eb0018e 5603 ponent in a c\bcd\bd command will be corrected. The errors
17345e5a 5604 checked for are transposed characters, a missing charac-
3eb0018e
CR
5605 ter, and one character too many. If a correction is
5606 found, the corrected filename is printed, and the com-
5607 mand proceeds. This option is only used by interactive
17345e5a
JA
5608 shells.
5609 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkh\bha\bas\bsh\bh
5610 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh checks that a command found in the hash ta-
3eb0018e
CR
5611 ble exists before trying to execute it. If a hashed
5612 command no longer exists, a normal path search is per-
17345e5a
JA
5613 formed.
5614 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkj\bjo\bob\bbs\bs
5615 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh lists the status of any stopped and running
3eb0018e 5616 jobs before exiting an interactive shell. If any jobs
17345e5a 5617 are running, this causes the exit to be deferred until a
3eb0018e 5618 second exit is attempted without an intervening command
712f80b0
CR
5619 (see J\bJO\bOB\bB C\bCO\bON\bNT\bTR\bRO\bOL\bL above). The shell always postpones ex-
5620 iting if any jobs are stopped.
17345e5a 5621 c\bch\bhe\bec\bck\bkw\bwi\bin\bns\bsi\biz\bze\be
3eb0018e
CR
5622 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh checks the window size after each external
5623 (non-builtin) command and, if necessary, updates the
5624 values of L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bES\bS and C\bCO\bOL\bLU\bUM\bMN\bNS\bS. This option is enabled by
d233b485 5625 default.
3eb0018e
CR
5626 c\bcm\bmd\bdh\bhi\bis\bst\bt If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts to save all lines of a multiple-
5627 line command in the same history entry. This allows
5628 easy re-editing of multi-line commands. This option is
5629 enabled by default, but only has an effect if command
d233b485 5630 history is enabled, as described above under H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTO\bOR\bRY\bY.
17345e5a 5631 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b31\b1
0001803f 5632 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2
0001803f 5633 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b40\b0
495aee44 5634 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b41\b1
ac50fbac 5635 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b42\b2
a0c0a00f 5636 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b43\b3
d233b485 5637 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b44\b4
3eb0018e 5638 These control aspects of the shell's compatibility mode
712f80b0
CR
5639 (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bTI\bIB\bBI\bIL\bLI\bIT\bTY\bY M\bMO\bOD\bDE\bE below).
5640
ac50fbac 5641 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be_\b_f\bfu\bul\bll\blq\bqu\buo\bot\bte\be
3eb0018e
CR
5642 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh quotes all shell metacharacters in file-
5643 names and directory names when performing completion.
ac50fbac 5644 If not set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh removes metacharacters such as the dol-
3eb0018e
CR
5645 lar sign from the set of characters that will be quoted
5646 in completed filenames when these metacharacters appear
5647 in shell variable references in words to be completed.
5648 This means that dollar signs in variable names that ex-
5649 pand to directories will not be quoted; however, any
5650 dollar signs appearing in filenames will not be quoted,
5651 either. This is active only when bash is using back-
5652 slashes to quote completed filenames. This variable is
5653 set by default, which is the default bash behavior in
ac50fbac 5654 versions through 4.2.
712f80b0 5655
ac50fbac 5656 d\bdi\bir\bre\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd
3eb0018e
CR
5657 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh replaces directory names with the results
5658 of word expansion when performing filename completion.
5659 This changes the contents of the readline editing buf-
5660 fer. If not set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts to preserve what the
ac50fbac 5661 user typed.
712f80b0 5662
17345e5a 5663 d\bdi\bir\brs\bsp\bpe\bel\bll\bl
3eb0018e
CR
5664 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts spelling correction on directory
5665 names during word completion if the directory name ini-
17345e5a 5666 tially supplied does not exist.
712f80b0 5667
3eb0018e
CR
5668 d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh includes filenames beginning with a `.' in
5669 the results of pathname expansion. The filenames `\b``\b`.\b.'\b''\b'
5670 and `\b``\b`.\b..\b.'\b''\b' must always be matched explicitly, even if
d233b485 5671 d\bdo\bot\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb is set.
712f80b0 5672
17345e5a
JA
5673 e\bex\bxe\bec\bcf\bfa\bai\bil\bl
5674 If set, a non-interactive shell will not exit if it can-
3eb0018e
CR
5675 not execute the file specified as an argument to the
5676 e\bex\bxe\bec\bc builtin command. An interactive shell does not
17345e5a 5677 exit if e\bex\bxe\bec\bc fails.
712f80b0 5678
17345e5a 5679 e\bex\bxp\bpa\ban\bnd\bd_\b_a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bse\bes\bs
3eb0018e 5680 If set, aliases are expanded as described above under
17345e5a
JA
5681 A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS. This option is enabled by default for interac-
5682 tive shells.
712f80b0 5683
17345e5a 5684 e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg
3eb0018e 5685 If set at shell invocation, or in a shell startup file,
712f80b0 5686 arrange to execute the debugger profile before the shell
3eb0018e
CR
5687 starts, identical to the -\b--\b-d\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bgg\bge\ber\br option. If set af-
5688 ter invocation, behavior intended for use by debuggers
712f80b0
CR
5689 is enabled:
5690
17345e5a
JA
5691 1\b1.\b. The -\b-F\bF option to the d\bde\bec\bcl\bla\bar\bre\be builtin displays the
5692 source file name and line number corresponding to
5693 each function name supplied as an argument.
712f80b0 5694
3eb0018e
CR
5695 2\b2.\b. If the command run by the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap returns a
5696 non-zero value, the next command is skipped and
17345e5a 5697 not executed.
712f80b0 5698
3eb0018e
CR
5699 3\b3.\b. If the command run by the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap returns a
5700 value of 2, and the shell is executing in a sub-
5701 routine (a shell function or a shell script exe-
5702 cuted by the .\b. or s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be builtins), the shell
a0c0a00f 5703 simulates a call to r\bre\bet\btu\bur\brn\bn.
712f80b0 5704
3eb0018e 5705 4\b4.\b. B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGC\bC and B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV are updated as described
17345e5a 5706 in their descriptions above.
712f80b0 5707
3eb0018e 5708 5\b5.\b. Function tracing is enabled: command substitu-
17345e5a
JA
5709 tion, shell functions, and subshells invoked with
5710 (\b( _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd )\b) inherit the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG and R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN traps.
712f80b0 5711
3eb0018e
CR
5712 6\b6.\b. Error tracing is enabled: command substitution,
5713 shell functions, and subshells invoked with (\b(
495aee44 5714 _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd )\b) inherit the E\bER\bRR\bR trap.
712f80b0 5715
17345e5a
JA
5716 e\bex\bxt\btg\bgl\blo\bob\bb If set, the extended pattern matching features described
5717 above under P\bPa\bat\bth\bhn\bna\bam\bme\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn are enabled.
712f80b0 5718
17345e5a 5719 e\bex\bxt\btq\bqu\buo\bot\bte\be
3eb0018e
CR
5720 If set, $\b$'_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg' and $\b$"_\bs_\bt_\br_\bi_\bn_\bg" quoting is performed
5721 within $\b${\b{_\bp_\ba_\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\bt_\be_\br}\b} expansions enclosed in double
17345e5a 5722 quotes. This option is enabled by default.
712f80b0 5723
17345e5a 5724 f\bfa\bai\bil\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb
3eb0018e 5725 If set, patterns which fail to match filenames during
17345e5a 5726 pathname expansion result in an expansion error.
712f80b0 5727
17345e5a 5728 f\bfo\bor\brc\bce\be_\b_f\bfi\big\bgn\bno\bor\bre\be
3eb0018e
CR
5729 If set, the suffixes specified by the F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE shell
5730 variable cause words to be ignored when performing word
17345e5a 5731 completion even if the ignored words are the only possi-
3eb0018e
CR
5732 ble completions. See S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL V\bVA\bAR\bRI\bIA\bAB\bBL\bLE\bES\bS above for a de-
5733 scription of F\bFI\bIG\bGN\bNO\bOR\bRE\bE. This option is enabled by de-
712f80b0
CR
5734 fault.
5735
ac50fbac 5736 g\bgl\blo\bob\bba\bas\bsc\bci\bii\bir\bra\ban\bng\bge\bes\bs
3eb0018e
CR
5737 If set, range expressions used in pattern matching
5738 bracket expressions (see P\bPa\bat\btt\bte\ber\brn\bn M\bMa\bat\btc\bch\bhi\bin\bng\bg above) behave
5739 as if in the traditional C locale when performing com-
5740 parisons. That is, the current locale's collating se-
5741 quence is not taken into account, so b\bb will not collate
5742 between A\bA and B\bB, and upper-case and lower-case ASCII
712f80b0
CR
5743 characters will collate together.
5744
17345e5a 5745 g\bgl\blo\bob\bbs\bst\bta\bar\br
0001803f 5746 If set, the pattern *\b**\b* used in a pathname expansion con-
3eb0018e
CR
5747 text will match all files and zero or more directories
5748 and subdirectories. If the pattern is followed by a /\b/,
ac50fbac 5749 only directories and subdirectories match.
712f80b0 5750
17345e5a
JA
5751 g\bgn\bnu\bu_\b_e\ber\brr\brf\bfm\bmt\bt
5752 If set, shell error messages are written in the standard
5753 GNU error message format.
712f80b0 5754
17345e5a 5755 h\bhi\bis\bst\bta\bap\bpp\bpe\ben\bnd\bd
3eb0018e 5756 If set, the history list is appended to the file named
712f80b0
CR
5757 by the value of the H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE variable when the shell ex-
5758 its, rather than overwriting the file.
5759
17345e5a 5760 h\bhi\bis\bst\btr\bre\bee\bed\bdi\bit\bt
3eb0018e 5761 If set, and r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used, a user is given the
17345e5a 5762 opportunity to re-edit a failed history substitution.
712f80b0 5763
17345e5a 5764 h\bhi\bis\bst\btv\bve\ber\bri\bif\bfy\by
3eb0018e
CR
5765 If set, and r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used, the results of his-
5766 tory substitution are not immediately passed to the
5767 shell parser. Instead, the resulting line is loaded
17345e5a
JA
5768 into the r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be editing buffer, allowing further modi-
5769 fication.
712f80b0 5770
17345e5a
JA
5771 h\bho\bos\bst\btc\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bte\be
5772 If set, and r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh will attempt to
3eb0018e
CR
5773 perform hostname completion when a word containing a @\b@
5774 is being completed (see C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bin\bng\bg under R\bRE\bEA\bAD\bDL\bLI\bIN\bNE\bE
17345e5a 5775 above). This is enabled by default.
712f80b0 5776
17345e5a
JA
5777 h\bhu\bup\bpo\bon\bne\bex\bxi\bit\bt
5778 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh will send S\bSI\bIG\bGH\bHU\bUP\bP to all jobs when an inter-
5779 active login shell exits.
712f80b0 5780
a0c0a00f 5781 i\bin\bnh\bhe\ber\bri\bit\bt_\b_e\ber\brr\bre\bex\bxi\bit\bt
3eb0018e
CR
5782 If set, command substitution inherits the value of the
5783 e\ber\brr\bre\bex\bxi\bit\bt option, instead of unsetting it in the subshell
5784 environment. This option is enabled when _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be is
a0c0a00f 5785 enabled.
712f80b0 5786
17345e5a
JA
5787 i\bin\bnt\bte\ber\bra\bac\bct\bti\biv\bve\be_\b_c\bco\bom\bmm\bme\ben\bnt\bts\bs
5788 If set, allow a word beginning with #\b# to cause that word
3eb0018e
CR
5789 and all remaining characters on that line to be ignored
5790 in an interactive shell (see C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bME\bEN\bNT\bTS\bS above). This op-
712f80b0
CR
5791 tion is enabled by default.
5792
495aee44 5793 l\bla\bas\bst\btp\bpi\bip\bpe\be
3eb0018e 5794 If set, and job control is not active, the shell runs
495aee44
CR
5795 the last command of a pipeline not executed in the back-
5796 ground in the current shell environment.
712f80b0 5797
3eb0018e 5798 l\bli\bit\bth\bhi\bis\bst\bt If set, and the c\bcm\bmd\bdh\bhi\bis\bst\bt option is enabled, multi-line
17345e5a
JA
5799 commands are saved to the history with embedded newlines
5800 rather than using semicolon separators where possible.
712f80b0 5801
d233b485
CR
5802 l\blo\boc\bca\bal\blv\bva\bar\br_\b_i\bin\bnh\bhe\ber\bri\bit\bt
5803 If set, local variables inherit the value and attributes
5804 of a variable of the same name that exists at a previous
712f80b0
CR
5805 scope before any new value is assigned. The nameref at-
5806 tribute is not inherited.
5807
d233b485 5808 l\blo\boc\bca\bal\blv\bva\bar\br_\b_u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt
3eb0018e
CR
5809 If set, calling u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt on local variables in previous
5810 function scopes marks them so subsequent lookups find
5811 them unset until that function returns. This is identi-
5812 cal to the behavior of unsetting local variables at the
d233b485 5813 current function scope.
712f80b0 5814
17345e5a 5815 l\blo\bog\bgi\bin\bn_\b_s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl
3eb0018e
CR
5816 The shell sets this option if it is started as a login
5817 shell (see I\bIN\bNV\bVO\bOC\bCA\bAT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN above). The value may not be
17345e5a 5818 changed.
712f80b0 5819
17345e5a 5820 m\bma\bai\bil\blw\bwa\bar\brn\bn
3eb0018e
CR
5821 If set, and a file that b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is checking for mail has
5822 been accessed since the last time it was checked, the
5823 message ``The mail in _\bm_\ba_\bi_\bl_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be has been read'' is dis-
17345e5a 5824 played.
712f80b0 5825
17345e5a 5826 n\bno\bo_\b_e\bem\bmp\bpt\bty\by_\b_c\bcm\bmd\bd_\b_c\bco\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn
3eb0018e
CR
5827 If set, and r\bre\bea\bad\bdl\bli\bin\bne\be is being used, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh will not at-
5828 tempt to search the P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH for possible completions when
17345e5a 5829 completion is attempted on an empty line.
712f80b0 5830
17345e5a 5831 n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\beg\bgl\blo\bob\bb
3eb0018e 5832 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh matches filenames in a case-insensitive
17345e5a
JA
5833 fashion when performing pathname expansion (see P\bPa\bat\bth\bhn\bna\bam\bme\be
5834 E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn above).
712f80b0 5835
17345e5a 5836 n\bno\boc\bca\bas\bse\bem\bma\bat\btc\bch\bh
3eb0018e 5837 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh matches patterns in a case-insensitive
17345e5a 5838 fashion when performing matching while executing c\bca\bas\bse\be or
a0c0a00f 5839 [\b[[\b[ conditional commands, when performing pattern substi-
3eb0018e 5840 tution word expansions, or when filtering possible com-
a0c0a00f 5841 pletions as part of programmable completion.
712f80b0 5842
17345e5a 5843 n\bnu\bul\bll\blg\bgl\blo\bob\bb
3eb0018e
CR
5844 If set, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh allows patterns which match no files (see
5845 P\bPa\bat\bth\bhn\bna\bam\bme\be E\bEx\bxp\bpa\ban\bns\bsi\bio\bon\bn above) to expand to a null string,
17345e5a 5846 rather than themselves.
712f80b0 5847
17345e5a
JA
5848 p\bpr\bro\bog\bgc\bco\bom\bmp\bp
5849 If set, the programmable completion facilities (see P\bPr\bro\bo-\b-
5850 g\bgr\bra\bam\bmm\bma\bab\bbl\ble\be C\bCo\bom\bmp\bpl\ble\bet\bti\bio\bon\bn above) are enabled. This option is
5851 enabled by default.
712f80b0 5852
d233b485 5853 p\bpr\bro\bog\bgc\bco\bom\bmp\bp_\b_a\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs
3eb0018e
CR
5854 If set, and programmable completion is enabled, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh
5855 treats a command name that doesn't have any completions
5856 as a possible alias and attempts alias expansion. If it
5857 has an alias, b\bba\bas\bsh\bh attempts programmable completion us-
712f80b0
CR
5858 ing the command word resulting from the expanded alias.
5859
17345e5a
JA
5860 p\bpr\bro\bom\bmp\bpt\btv\bva\bar\brs\bs
5861 If set, prompt strings undergo parameter expansion, com-
3eb0018e
CR
5862 mand substitution, arithmetic expansion, and quote re-
5863 moval after being expanded as described in P\bPR\bRO\bOM\bMP\bPT\bTI\bIN\bNG\bG
17345e5a 5864 above. This option is enabled by default.
712f80b0 5865
17345e5a 5866 r\bre\bes\bst\btr\bri\bic\bct\bte\bed\bd_\b_s\bsh\bhe\bel\bll\bl
3eb0018e
CR
5867 The shell sets this option if it is started in re-
5868 stricted mode (see R\bRE\bES\bST\bTR\bRI\bIC\bCT\bTE\bED\bD S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL below). The value
5869 may not be changed. This is not reset when the startup
5870 files are executed, allowing the startup files to dis-
17345e5a 5871 cover whether or not a shell is restricted.
712f80b0 5872
17345e5a 5873 s\bsh\bhi\bif\bft\bt_\b_v\bve\ber\brb\bbo\bos\bse\be
3eb0018e 5874 If set, the s\bsh\bhi\bif\bft\bt builtin prints an error message when
17345e5a
JA
5875 the shift count exceeds the number of positional parame-
5876 ters.
712f80b0 5877
17345e5a
JA
5878 s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\bep\bpa\bat\bth\bh
5879 If set, the s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be (.\b.) builtin uses the value of P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH to
3eb0018e 5880 find the directory containing the file supplied as an
17345e5a 5881 argument. This option is enabled by default.
712f80b0 5882
17345e5a 5883 x\bxp\bpg\bg_\b_e\bec\bch\bho\bo
3eb0018e 5884 If set, the e\bec\bch\bho\bo builtin expands backslash-escape se-
712f80b0 5885 quences by default.
ac50fbac 5886
17345e5a 5887 s\bsu\bus\bsp\bpe\ben\bnd\bd [-\b-f\bf]
3eb0018e 5888 Suspend the execution of this shell until it receives a S\bSI\bIG\bGC\bCO\bON\bNT\bT
17345e5a
JA
5889 signal. A login shell cannot be suspended; the -\b-f\bf option can be
5890 used to override this and force the suspension. The return sta-
3eb0018e 5891 tus is 0 unless the shell is a login shell and -\b-f\bf is not sup-
17345e5a 5892 plied, or if job control is not enabled.
ac50fbac 5893
17345e5a
JA
5894 t\bte\bes\bst\bt _\be_\bx_\bp_\br
5895 [\b[ _\be_\bx_\bp_\br ]\b]
ac50fbac
CR
5896 Return a status of 0 (true) or 1 (false) depending on the evalu-
5897 ation of the conditional expression _\be_\bx_\bp_\br. Each operator and op-
3eb0018e
CR
5898 erand must be a separate argument. Expressions are composed of
5899 the primaries described above under C\bCO\bON\bND\bDI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNA\bAL\bL E\bEX\bXP\bPR\bRE\bES\bSS\bSI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS.
5900 t\bte\bes\bst\bt does not accept any options, nor does it accept and ignore
ac50fbac
CR
5901 an argument of -\b--\b- as signifying the end of options.
5902
3eb0018e
CR
5903 Expressions may be combined using the following operators,
5904 listed in decreasing order of precedence. The evaluation de-
5905 pends on the number of arguments; see below. Operator prece-
495aee44 5906 dence is used when there are five or more arguments.
17345e5a
JA
5907 !\b! _\be_\bx_\bp_\br True if _\be_\bx_\bp_\br is false.
5908 (\b( _\be_\bx_\bp_\br )\b)
3eb0018e 5909 Returns the value of _\be_\bx_\bp_\br. This may be used to override
17345e5a
JA
5910 the normal precedence of operators.
5911 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 -a\ba _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2
5912 True if both _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 and _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2 are true.
5913 _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 -o\bo _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2
5914 True if either _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b1 or _\be_\bx_\bp_\br_\b2 is true.
5915
5916 t\bte\bes\bst\bt and [\b[ evaluate conditional expressions using a set of rules
5917 based on the number of arguments.
5918
5919 0 arguments
5920 The expression is false.
5921 1 argument
5922 The expression is true if and only if the argument is not
5923 null.
5924 2 arguments
5925 If the first argument is !\b!, the expression is true if and
3eb0018e
CR
5926 only if the second argument is null. If the first argu-
5927 ment is one of the unary conditional operators listed
5928 above under C\bCO\bON\bND\bDI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNA\bAL\bL E\bEX\bXP\bPR\bRE\bES\bSS\bSI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS, the expression is
17345e5a
JA
5929 true if the unary test is true. If the first argument is
5930 not a valid unary conditional operator, the expression is
5931 false.
5932 3 arguments
495aee44 5933 The following conditions are applied in the order listed.
3eb0018e 5934 If the second argument is one of the binary conditional
17345e5a
JA
5935 operators listed above under C\bCO\bON\bND\bDI\bIT\bTI\bIO\bON\bNA\bAL\bL E\bEX\bXP\bPR\bRE\bES\bSS\bSI\bIO\bON\bNS\bS, the
5936 result of the expression is the result of the binary test
3eb0018e
CR
5937 using the first and third arguments as operands. The -\b-a\ba
5938 and -\b-o\bo operators are considered binary operators when
5939 there are three arguments. If the first argument is !\b!,
5940 the value is the negation of the two-argument test using
17345e5a
JA
5941 the second and third arguments. If the first argument is
5942 exactly (\b( and the third argument is exactly )\b), the result
3eb0018e 5943 is the one-argument test of the second argument. Other-
17345e5a
JA
5944 wise, the expression is false.
5945 4 arguments
5946 If the first argument is !\b!, the result is the negation of
3eb0018e 5947 the three-argument expression composed of the remaining
17345e5a 5948 arguments. Otherwise, the expression is parsed and eval-
3eb0018e 5949 uated according to precedence using the rules listed
17345e5a
JA
5950 above.
5951 5 or more arguments
3eb0018e 5952 The expression is parsed and evaluated according to
17345e5a
JA
5953 precedence using the rules listed above.
5954
3eb0018e 5955 When used with t\bte\bes\bst\bt or [\b[, the <\b< and >\b> operators sort lexico-
495aee44
CR
5956 graphically using ASCII ordering.
5957
3eb0018e 5958 t\bti\bim\bme\bes\bs Print the accumulated user and system times for the shell and
17345e5a
JA
5959 for processes run from the shell. The return status is 0.
5960
5961 t\btr\bra\bap\bp [-\b-l\blp\bp] [[_\ba_\br_\bg] _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc ...]
3eb0018e 5962 The command _\ba_\br_\bg is to be read and executed when the shell re-
712f80b0 5963 ceives signal(s) _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc. If _\ba_\br_\bg is absent (and there is a sin-
3eb0018e
CR
5964 gle _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc) or -\b-, each specified signal is reset to its origi-
5965 nal disposition (the value it had upon entrance to the shell).
5966 If _\ba_\br_\bg is the null string the signal specified by each _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc
5967 is ignored by the shell and by the commands it invokes. If _\ba_\br_\bg
5968 is not present and -\b-p\bp has been supplied, then the trap commands
712f80b0 5969 associated with each _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc are displayed. If no arguments are
3eb0018e
CR
5970 supplied or if only -\b-p\bp is given, t\btr\bra\bap\bp prints the list of com-
5971 mands associated with each signal. The -\b-l\bl option causes the
5972 shell to print a list of signal names and their corresponding
5973 numbers. Each _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is either a signal name defined in <_\bs_\bi_\bg_\b-
5974 _\bn_\ba_\bl_\b._\bh>, or a signal number. Signal names are case insensitive
712f80b0 5975 and the S\bSI\bIG\bG prefix is optional.
495aee44 5976
3eb0018e
CR
5977 If a _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is E\bEX\bXI\bIT\bT (0) the command _\ba_\br_\bg is executed on exit
5978 from the shell. If a _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG, the command _\ba_\br_\bg is exe-
5979 cuted before every _\bs_\bi_\bm_\bp_\bl_\be _\bc_\bo_\bm_\bm_\ba_\bn_\bd, _\bf_\bo_\br command, _\bc_\ba_\bs_\be command,
5980 _\bs_\be_\bl_\be_\bc_\bt command, every arithmetic _\bf_\bo_\br command, and before the
5981 first command executes in a shell function (see S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL G\bGR\bRA\bAM\bMM\bMA\bAR\bR
5982 above). Refer to the description of the e\bex\bxt\btd\bde\beb\bbu\bug\bg option to the
0001803f
CR
5983 s\bsh\bho\bop\bpt\bt builtin for details of its effect on the D\bDE\bEB\bBU\bUG\bG trap. If a
5984 _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is R\bRE\bET\bTU\bUR\bRN\bN, the command _\ba_\br_\bg is executed each time a shell
5985 function or a script executed with the .\b. or s\bso\bou\bur\brc\bce\be builtins fin-
5986 ishes executing.
5987
3eb0018e 5988 If a _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is E\bER\bRR\bR, the command _\ba_\br_\bg is executed whenever a
ac50fbac
CR
5989 pipeline (which may consist of a single simple command), a list,
5990 or a compound command returns a non-zero exit status, subject to
3eb0018e 5991 the following conditions. The E\bER\bRR\bR trap is not executed if the
ac50fbac 5992 failed command is part of the command list immediately following
3eb0018e 5993 a w\bwh\bhi\bil\ble\be or u\bun\bnt\bti\bil\bl keyword, part of the test in an _\bi_\bf statement,
ac50fbac 5994 part of a command executed in a &\b&&\b& or |\b||\b| list except the command
3eb0018e
CR
5995 following the final &\b&&\b& or |\b||\b|, any command in a pipeline but the
5996 last, or if the command's return value is being inverted using
712f80b0
CR
5997 !\b!. These are the same conditions obeyed by the e\ber\brr\bre\bex\bxi\bit\bt (-\b-e\be) op-
5998 tion.
0001803f 5999
712f80b0 6000 Signals ignored upon entry to the shell cannot be trapped or re-
3eb0018e 6001 set. Trapped signals that are not being ignored are reset to
0001803f 6002 their original values in a subshell or subshell environment when
3eb0018e 6003 one is created. The return status is false if any _\bs_\bi_\bg_\bs_\bp_\be_\bc is
0001803f 6004 invalid; otherwise t\btr\bra\bap\bp returns true.
17345e5a
JA
6005
6006 t\bty\byp\bpe\be [-\b-a\baf\bft\btp\bpP\bP] _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
3eb0018e 6007 With no options, indicate how each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be would be interpreted if
17345e5a 6008 used as a command name. If the -\b-t\bt option is used, t\bty\byp\bpe\be prints a
3eb0018e
CR
6009 string which is one of _\ba_\bl_\bi_\ba_\bs, _\bk_\be_\by_\bw_\bo_\br_\bd, _\bf_\bu_\bn_\bc_\bt_\bi_\bo_\bn, _\bb_\bu_\bi_\bl_\bt_\bi_\bn, or
6010 _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be if _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is an alias, shell reserved word, function,
6011 builtin, or disk file, respectively. If the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not found,
6012 then nothing is printed, and an exit status of false is re-
6013 turned. If the -\b-p\bp option is used, t\bty\byp\bpe\be either returns the name
6014 of the disk file that would be executed if _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be were specified
6015 as a command name, or nothing if ``type -t name'' would not re-
6016 turn _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be. The -\b-P\bP option forces a P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH search for each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be,
17345e5a 6017 even if ``type -t name'' would not return _\bf_\bi_\bl_\be. If a command is
ac50fbac 6018 hashed, -\b-p\bp and -\b-P\bP print the hashed value, which is not necessar-
3eb0018e
CR
6019 ily the file that appears first in P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH. If the -\b-a\ba option is
6020 used, t\bty\byp\bpe\be prints all of the places that contain an executable
ac50fbac
CR
6021 named _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be. This includes aliases and functions, if and only if
6022 the -\b-p\bp option is not also used. The table of hashed commands is
3eb0018e 6023 not consulted when using -\b-a\ba. The -\b-f\bf option suppresses shell
ac50fbac
CR
6024 function lookup, as with the c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd builtin. t\bty\byp\bpe\be returns true
6025 if all of the arguments are found, false if any are not found.
17345e5a 6026
712f80b0 6027 u\bul\bli\bim\bmi\bit\bt [-\b-H\bHS\bSa\bab\bbc\bcd\bde\bef\bfi\bik\bkl\blm\bmn\bnp\bpq\bqr\brs\bst\btu\buv\bvx\bxP\bPR\bRT\bT [_\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt]]
3eb0018e
CR
6028 Provides control over the resources available to the shell and
6029 to processes started by it, on systems that allow such control.
17345e5a 6030 The -\b-H\bH and -\b-S\bS options specify that the hard or soft limit is set
3eb0018e
CR
6031 for the given resource. A hard limit cannot be increased by a
6032 non-root user once it is set; a soft limit may be increased up
6033 to the value of the hard limit. If neither -\b-H\bH nor -\b-S\bS is speci-
17345e5a
JA
6034 fied, both the soft and hard limits are set. The value of _\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt
6035 can be a number in the unit specified for the resource or one of
6036 the special values h\bha\bar\brd\bd, s\bso\bof\bft\bt, or u\bun\bnl\bli\bim\bmi\bit\bte\bed\bd, which stand for the
3eb0018e
CR
6037 current hard limit, the current soft limit, and no limit, re-
6038 spectively. If _\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt is omitted, the current value of the soft
712f80b0 6039 limit of the resource is printed, unless the -\b-H\bH option is given.
3eb0018e
CR
6040 When more than one resource is specified, the limit name and
6041 unit are printed before the value. Other options are inter-
17345e5a
JA
6042 preted as follows:
6043 -\b-a\ba All current limits are reported
6044 -\b-b\bb The maximum socket buffer size
6045 -\b-c\bc The maximum size of core files created
6046 -\b-d\bd The maximum size of a process's data segment
6047 -\b-e\be The maximum scheduling priority ("nice")
3eb0018e 6048 -\b-f\bf The maximum size of files written by the shell and its
17345e5a
JA
6049 children
6050 -\b-i\bi The maximum number of pending signals
a0c0a00f 6051 -\b-k\bk The maximum number of kqueues that may be allocated
17345e5a 6052 -\b-l\bl The maximum size that may be locked into memory
3eb0018e 6053 -\b-m\bm The maximum resident set size (many systems do not honor
0001803f 6054 this limit)
17345e5a
JA
6055 -\b-n\bn The maximum number of open file descriptors (most systems
6056 do not allow this value to be set)
6057 -\b-p\bp The pipe size in 512-byte blocks (this may not be set)
6058 -\b-q\bq The maximum number of bytes in POSIX message queues
6059 -\b-r\br The maximum real-time scheduling priority
6060 -\b-s\bs The maximum stack size
6061 -\b-t\bt The maximum amount of cpu time in seconds
3eb0018e 6062 -\b-u\bu The maximum number of processes available to a single
17345e5a 6063 user
3eb0018e 6064 -\b-v\bv The maximum amount of virtual memory available to the
495aee44 6065 shell and, on some systems, to its children
17345e5a 6066 -\b-x\bx The maximum number of file locks
a0c0a00f 6067 -\b-P\bP The maximum number of pseudoterminals
3eb0018e 6068 -\b-R\bR The maximum time a real-time process can run before
712f80b0 6069 blocking, in microseconds
17345e5a
JA
6070 -\b-T\bT The maximum number of threads
6071
3eb0018e
CR
6072 If _\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt is given, and the -\b-a\ba option is not used, _\bl_\bi_\bm_\bi_\bt is the
6073 new value of the specified resource. If no option is given,
6074 then -\b-f\bf is assumed. Values are in 1024-byte increments, except
6075 for -\b-t\bt, which is in seconds; -\b-R\bR, which is in microseconds; -\b-p\bp,
6076 which is in units of 512-byte blocks; -\b-P\bP, -\b-T\bT, -\b-b\bb, -\b-k\bk, -\b-n\bn, and
6077 -\b-u\bu, which are unscaled values; and, when in posix mode, -\b-c\bc and
6078 -\b-f\bf, which are in 512-byte increments. The return status is 0
6079 unless an invalid option or argument is supplied, or an error
712f80b0 6080 occurs while setting a new limit.
17345e5a
JA
6081
6082 u\bum\bma\bas\bsk\bk [-\b-p\bp] [-\b-S\bS] [_\bm_\bo_\bd_\be]
6083 The user file-creation mask is set to _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be. If _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be begins with
3eb0018e
CR
6084 a digit, it is interpreted as an octal number; otherwise it is
6085 interpreted as a symbolic mode mask similar to that accepted by
6086 _\bc_\bh_\bm_\bo_\bd(1). If _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be is omitted, the current value of the mask is
6087 printed. The -\b-S\bS option causes the mask to be printed in sym-
6088 bolic form; the default output is an octal number. If the -\b-p\bp
17345e5a
JA
6089 option is supplied, and _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be is omitted, the output is in a form
6090 that may be reused as input. The return status is 0 if the mode
3eb0018e 6091 was successfully changed or if no _\bm_\bo_\bd_\be argument was supplied,
17345e5a
JA
6092 and false otherwise.
6093
6094 u\bun\bna\bal\bli\bia\bas\bs [-a\ba] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
3eb0018e
CR
6095 Remove each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be from the list of defined aliases. If -\b-a\ba is
6096 supplied, all alias definitions are removed. The return value
17345e5a
JA
6097 is true unless a supplied _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is not a defined alias.
6098
ac50fbac 6099 u\bun\bns\bse\bet\bt [-f\bfv\bv] [-n\bn] [_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be ...]
3eb0018e 6100 For each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be, remove the corresponding variable or function.
ac50fbac 6101 If the -\b-v\bv option is given, each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be refers to a shell variable,
3eb0018e
CR
6102 and that variable is removed. Read-only variables may not be
6103 unset. If -\b-f\bf is specified, each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be refers to a shell func-
6104 tion, and the function definition is removed. If the -\b-n\bn option
6105 is supplied, and _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is a variable with the _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be_\br_\be_\bf attribute,
6106 _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be will be unset rather than the variable it references. -\b-n\bn
6107 has no effect if the -\b-f\bf option is supplied. If no options are
6108 supplied, each _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be refers to a variable; if there is no vari-
6109 able by that name, a function with that name, if any, is unset.
6110 Each unset variable or function is removed from the environment
6111 passed to subsequent commands. If any of B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAL\bLI\bIA\bAS\bSE\bES\bS,
712f80b0 6112 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV0\b0, B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCM\bMD\bDS\bS, B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMM\bMA\bAN\bND\bD, B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_S\bSU\bUB\bBS\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL, B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bHP\bPI\bID\bD,
3eb0018e
CR
6113 C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bP_\b_W\bWO\bOR\bRD\bDB\bBR\bRE\bEA\bAK\bKS\bS, D\bDI\bIR\bRS\bST\bTA\bAC\bCK\bK, E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHR\bRE\bEA\bAL\bLT\bTI\bIM\bME\bE, E\bEP\bPO\bOC\bCH\bHS\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS, F\bFU\bUN\bNC\bC-\b-
6114 N\bNA\bAM\bME\bE, G\bGR\bRO\bOU\bUP\bPS\bS, H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTC\bCM\bMD\bD, L\bLI\bIN\bNE\bEN\bNO\bO, R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM, S\bSE\bEC\bCO\bON\bND\bDS\bS, or S\bSR\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM are
ac50fbac
CR
6115 unset, they lose their special properties, even if they are sub-
6116 sequently reset. The exit status is true unless a _\bn_\ba_\bm_\be is read-
6117 only.
6118
712f80b0 6119 w\bwa\bai\bit\bt [-\b-f\bfn\bn] [-\b-p\bp _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be] [_\bi_\bd _\b._\b._\b.]
ac50fbac 6120 Wait for each specified child process and return its termination
3eb0018e
CR
6121 status. Each _\bi_\bd may be a process ID or a job specification; if
6122 a job spec is given, all processes in that job's pipeline are
6123 waited for. If _\bi_\bd is not given, w\bwa\bai\bit\bt waits for all running
6124 background jobs and the last-executed process substitution, if
712f80b0 6125 its process id is the same as $\b$!\b!, and the return status is zero.
3eb0018e 6126 If the -\b-n\bn option is supplied, w\bwa\bai\bit\bt waits for a single job from
712f80b0 6127 the list of _\bi_\bds or, if no _\bi_\bds are supplied, any job, to complete
3eb0018e 6128 and returns its exit status. If none of the supplied arguments
712f80b0 6129 is a child of the shell, or if no arguments are supplied and the
3eb0018e
CR
6130 shell has no unwaited-for children, the exit status is 127. If
6131 the -\b-p\bp option is supplied, the process or job identifier of the
6132 job for which the exit status is returned is assigned to the
6133 variable _\bv_\ba_\br_\bn_\ba_\bm_\be named by the option argument. The variable
6134 will be unset initially, before any assignment. This is useful
6135 only when the -\b-n\bn option is supplied. Supplying the -\b-f\bf option,
6136 when job control is enabled, forces w\bwa\bai\bit\bt to wait for _\bi_\bd to ter-
712f80b0 6137 minate before returning its status, instead of returning when it
3eb0018e
CR
6138 changes status. If _\bi_\bd specifies a non-existent process or job,
6139 the return status is 127. Otherwise, the return status is the
712f80b0
CR
6140 exit status of the last process or job waited for.
6141
6142S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bTI\bIB\bBI\bIL\bLI\bIT\bTY\bY M\bMO\bOD\bDE\bE
6143 Bash-4.0 introduced the concept of a `shell compatibility level', spec-
6144 ified as a set of options to the shopt builtin c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b31\b1, c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2, c\bco\bom\bm-\b-
3eb0018e 6145 p\bpa\bat\bt4\b40\b0, c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b41\b1, and so on). There is only one current compatibility
712f80b0 6146 level -- each option is mutually exclusive. The compatibility level is
3eb0018e
CR
6147 intended to allow users to select behavior from previous versions that
6148 is incompatible with newer versions while they migrate scripts to use
6149 current features and behavior. It's intended to be a temporary solu-
712f80b0
CR
6150 tion.
6151
3eb0018e
CR
6152 This section does not mention behavior that is standard for a particu-
6153 lar version (e.g., setting c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2 means that quoting the rhs of the
6154 regexp matching operator quotes special regexp characters in the word,
712f80b0
CR
6155 which is default behavior in bash-3.2 and above).
6156
3eb0018e
CR
6157 If a user enables, say, c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2, it may affect the behavior of other
6158 compatibility levels up to and including the current compatibility
6159 level. The idea is that each compatibility level controls behavior
6160 that changed in that version of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh, but that behavior may have been
6161 present in earlier versions. For instance, the change to use locale-
6162 based comparisons with the [\b[[\b[ command came in bash-4.1, and earlier
712f80b0 6163 versions used ASCII-based comparisons, so enabling c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2 will enable
3eb0018e
CR
6164 ASCII-based comparisons as well. That granularity may not be suffi-
6165 cient for all uses, and as a result users should employ compatibility
6166 levels carefully. Read the documentation for a particular feature to
712f80b0
CR
6167 find out the current behavior.
6168
3eb0018e 6169 Bash-4.3 introduced a new shell variable: B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT. The value as-
712f80b0 6170 signed to this variable (a decimal version number like 4.2, or an inte-
3eb0018e 6171 ger corresponding to the c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt_\bN_\bN option, like 42) determines the com-
712f80b0
CR
6172 patibility level.
6173
3eb0018e
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6174 Starting with bash-4.4, Bash has begun deprecating older compatibility
6175 levels. Eventually, the options will be removed in favor of B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bM-\b-
712f80b0
CR
6176 P\bPA\bAT\bT.
6177
3eb0018e
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6178 Bash-5.0 is the final version for which there will be an individual
6179 shopt option for the previous version. Users should use B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT on
712f80b0
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6180 bash-5.0 and later versions.
6181
3eb0018e 6182 The following table describes the behavior changes controlled by each
712f80b0
CR
6183 compatibility level setting. The c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt_\bN_\bN tag is used as shorthand for
6184 setting the compatibility level to _\bN_\bN using one of the following mecha-
3eb0018e
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6185 nisms. For versions prior to bash-5.0, the compatibility level may be
6186 set using the corresponding c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt_\bN_\bN shopt option. For bash-4.3 and
6187 later versions, the B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_C\bCO\bOM\bMP\bPA\bAT\bT variable is preferred, and it is re-
712f80b0
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6188 quired for bash-5.1 and later versions.
6189
6190 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b31\b1
6191 +\bo quoting the rhs of the [\b[[\b[ command's regexp matching oper-
6192 ator (=~) has no special effect
6193
6194 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt3\b32\b2
3eb0018e
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6195 +\bo interrupting a command list such as "a ; b ; c" causes
6196 the execution of the next command in the list (in
6197 bash-4.0 and later versions, the shell acts as if it re-
6198 ceived the interrupt, so interrupting one command in a
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6199 list aborts the execution of the entire list)
6200
6201 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b40\b0
3eb0018e 6202 +\bo the <\b< and >\b> operators to the [\b[[\b[ command do not consider
712f80b0
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6203 the current locale when comparing strings; they use ASCII
6204 ordering. Bash versions prior to bash-4.1 use ASCII col-
3eb0018e 6205 lation and _\bs_\bt_\br_\bc_\bm_\bp(3); bash-4.1 and later use the current
712f80b0
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6206 locale's collation sequence and _\bs_\bt_\br_\bc_\bo_\bl_\bl(3).
6207
6208 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b41\b1
3eb0018e 6209 +\bo in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx mode, t\bti\bim\bme\be may be followed by options and still
712f80b0
CR
6210 be recognized as a reserved word (this is POSIX interpre-
6211 tation 267)
6212 +\bo in _\bp_\bo_\bs_\bi_\bx mode, the parser requires that an even number of
3eb0018e
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6213 single quotes occur in the _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd portion of a double-
6214 quoted parameter expansion and treats them specially, so
6215 that characters within the single quotes are considered
712f80b0
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6216 quoted (this is POSIX interpretation 221)
6217
6218 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b42\b2
6219 +\bo the replacement string in double-quoted pattern substitu-
3eb0018e 6220 tion does not undergo quote removal, as it does in ver-
712f80b0 6221 sions after bash-4.2
3eb0018e
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6222 +\bo in posix mode, single quotes are considered special when
6223 expanding the _\bw_\bo_\br_\bd portion of a double-quoted parameter
6224 expansion and can be used to quote a closing brace or
6225 other special character (this is part of POSIX interpre-
6226 tation 221); in later versions, single quotes are not
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6227 special within double-quoted word expansions
6228
6229 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b43\b3
3eb0018e
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6230 +\bo the shell does not print a warning message if an attempt
6231 is made to use a quoted compound assignment as an argu-
6232 ment to declare (declare -a foo='(1 2)'). Later versions
712f80b0 6233 warn that this usage is deprecated
3eb0018e
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6234 +\bo word expansion errors are considered non-fatal errors
6235 that cause the current command to fail, even in posix
6236 mode (the default behavior is to make them fatal errors
712f80b0 6237 that cause the shell to exit)
3eb0018e 6238 +\bo when executing a shell function, the loop state
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6239 (while/until/etc.) is not reset, so b\bbr\bre\bea\bak\bk or c\bco\bon\bnt\bti\bin\bnu\bue\be in
6240 that function will break or continue loops in the calling
3eb0018e 6241 context. Bash-4.4 and later reset the loop state to pre-
712f80b0
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6242 vent this
6243
6244 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt4\b44\b4
3eb0018e
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6245 +\bo the shell sets up the values used by B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGV\bV and
6246 B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_A\bAR\bRG\bGC\bC so they can expand to the shell's positional
712f80b0 6247 parameters even if extended debugging mode is not enabled
3eb0018e
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6248 +\bo a subshell inherits loops from its parent context, so
6249 b\bbr\bre\bea\bak\bk or c\bco\bon\bnt\bti\bin\bnu\bue\be will cause the subshell to exit.
6250 Bash-5.0 and later reset the loop state to prevent the
712f80b0 6251 exit
3eb0018e 6252 +\bo variable assignments preceding builtins like e\bex\bxp\bpo\bor\brt\bt and
712f80b0
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6253 r\bre\bea\bad\bdo\bon\bnl\bly\by that set attributes continue to affect variables
6254 with the same name in the calling environment even if the
6255 shell is not in posix mode
6256
6257 c\bco\bom\bmp\bpa\bat\bt5\b50\b0
3eb0018e 6258 +\bo Bash-5.1 changed the way $\b$R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM is generated to intro-
712f80b0 6259 duce slightly more randomness. If the shell compatibility
3eb0018e
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6260 level is set to 50 or lower, it reverts to the method
6261 from bash-5.0 and previous versions, so seeding the ran-
6262 dom number generator by assigning a value to R\bRA\bAN\bND\bDO\bOM\bM will
712f80b0 6263 produce the same sequence as in bash-5.0
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6264 +\bo If the command hash table is empty, bash versions prior
6265 to bash-5.1 printed an informational message to that ef-
6266 fect, even when producing output that can be reused as
6267 input. Bash-5.1 suppresses that message when the -\b-l\bl op-
6268 tion is supplied.
17345e5a
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6269
6270R\bRE\bES\bST\bTR\bRI\bIC\bCT\bTE\bED\bD S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL
6271 If b\bba\bas\bsh\bh is started with the name r\brb\bba\bas\bsh\bh, or the -\b-r\br option is supplied at
3eb0018e
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6272 invocation, the shell becomes restricted. A restricted shell is used
6273 to set up an environment more controlled than the standard shell. It
6274 behaves identically to b\bba\bas\bsh\bh with the exception that the following are
17345e5a
JA
6275 disallowed or not performed:
6276
6277 +\bo changing directories with c\bcd\bd
6278
3eb0018e 6279 +\bo setting or unsetting the values of S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bL, P\bPA\bAT\bTH\bH, H\bHI\bIS\bST\bTF\bFI\bIL\bLE\bE, E\bEN\bNV\bV,
712f80b0 6280 or B\bBA\bAS\bSH\bH_\b_E\bEN\bNV\bV
17345e5a
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6281
6282 +\bo specifying command names containing /\b/
6283
3eb0018e 6284 +\bo specifying a filename containing a /\b/ as an argument to the .\b.
17345e5a
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6285 builtin command
6286
3eb0018e 6287 +\bo specifying a filename containing a slash as an argument to the
712f80b0
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6288 h\bhi\bis\bst\bto\bor\bry\by builtin command
6289
3eb0018e 6290 +\bo specifying a filename containing a slash as an argument to the
17345e5a
JA
6291 -\b-p\bp option to the h\bha\bas\bsh\bh builtin command
6292
3eb0018e 6293 +\bo importing function definitions from the shell environment at
17345e5a
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6294 startup
6295
3eb0018e 6296 +\bo parsing the value of S\bSH\bHE\bEL\bLL\bLO\bOP\bPT\bTS\bS from the shell environment at
17345e5a
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6297 startup
6298
6299 +\bo redirecting output using the >, >|, <>, >&, &>, and >> redirect-
6300 ion operators
6301
6302 +\bo using the e\bex\bxe\bec\bc builtin command to replace the shell with another
6303 command
6304
3eb0018e 6305 +\bo adding or deleting builtin commands with the -\b-f\bf and -\b-d\bd options
17345e5a
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6306 to the e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be builtin command
6307
3eb0018e 6308 +\bo using the e\ben\bna\bab\bbl\ble\be builtin command to enable disabled shell
17345e5a
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6309 builtins
6310
6311 +\bo specifying the -\b-p\bp option to the c\bco\bom\bmm\bma\ban\bnd\bd builtin command
6312
6313 +\bo turning off restricted mode with s\bse\bet\bt +\b+r\br or s\bse\bet\bt +\b+o\bo r\bre\bes\bst\btr\bri\bic\bct\bte\bed\bd.
6314
6315 These restrictions are enforced after any startup files are read.
6316
6317 When a command that is found to be a shell script is executed (see C\bCO\bOM\bM-\b-
3eb0018e 6318 M\bMA\bAN\bND\bD E\bEX\bXE\bEC\bCU\bUT\bTI\bIO\bON\bN above), r\brb\bba\bas\bsh\bh turns off any restrictions in the shell
17345e5a
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6319 spawned to execute the script.
6320
6321S\bSE\bEE\bE A\bAL\bLS\bSO\bO
6322 _\bB_\ba_\bs_\bh _\bR_\be_\bf_\be_\br_\be_\bn_\bc_\be _\bM_\ba_\bn_\bu_\ba_\bl, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
6323 _\bT_\bh_\be _\bG_\bn_\bu _\bR_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be _\bL_\bi_\bb_\br_\ba_\br_\by, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
6324 _\bT_\bh_\be _\bG_\bn_\bu _\bH_\bi_\bs_\bt_\bo_\br_\by _\bL_\bi_\bb_\br_\ba_\br_\by, Brian Fox and Chet Ramey
3eb0018e 6325 _\bP_\bo_\br_\bt_\ba_\bb_\bl_\be _\bO_\bp_\be_\br_\ba_\bt_\bi_\bn_\bg _\bS_\by_\bs_\bt_\be_\bm _\bI_\bn_\bt_\be_\br_\bf_\ba_\bc_\be _\b(_\bP_\bO_\bS_\bI_\bX_\b) _\bP_\ba_\br_\bt _\b2_\b: _\bS_\bh_\be_\bl_\bl _\ba_\bn_\bd _\bU_\bt_\bi_\bl_\bi_\b-
ac50fbac
CR
6326 _\bt_\bi_\be_\bs, IEEE --
6327 http://pubs.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/9699919799/
6328 http://tiswww.case.edu/~chet/bash/POSIX -- a description of posix mode
17345e5a
JA
6329 _\bs_\bh(1), _\bk_\bs_\bh(1), _\bc_\bs_\bh(1)
6330 _\be_\bm_\ba_\bc_\bs(1), _\bv_\bi(1)
6331 _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be(3)
6332
6333F\bFI\bIL\bLE\bES\bS
6334 _\b/_\bb_\bi_\bn_\b/_\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh
6335 The b\bba\bas\bsh\bh executable
6336 _\b/_\be_\bt_\bc_\b/_\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
6337 The systemwide initialization file, executed for login shells
6338 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bp_\br_\bo_\bf_\bi_\bl_\be
6339 The personal initialization file, executed for login shells
6340 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\br_\bc
6341 The individual per-interactive-shell startup file
6342 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b__\bl_\bo_\bg_\bo_\bu_\bt
3eb0018e 6343 The individual login shell cleanup file, executed when a login
17345e5a
JA
6344 shell exits
6345 _\b~_\b/_\b._\bi_\bn_\bp_\bu_\bt_\br_\bc
6346 Individual _\br_\be_\ba_\bd_\bl_\bi_\bn_\be initialization file
6347
6348A\bAU\bUT\bTH\bHO\bOR\bRS\bS
6349 Brian Fox, Free Software Foundation
6350 bfox@gnu.org
6351
6352 Chet Ramey, Case Western Reserve University
0001803f 6353 chet.ramey@case.edu
17345e5a
JA
6354
6355B\bBU\bUG\bG R\bRE\bEP\bPO\bOR\bRT\bTS\bS
6356 If you find a bug in b\bba\bas\bsh\bh,\b, you should report it. But first, you should
3eb0018e
CR
6357 make sure that it really is a bug, and that it appears in the latest
6358 version of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh. The latest version is always available from
495aee44
CR
6359 _\bf_\bt_\bp_\b:_\b/_\b/_\bf_\bt_\bp_\b._\bg_\bn_\bu_\b._\bo_\br_\bg_\b/_\bp_\bu_\bb_\b/_\bg_\bn_\bu_\b/_\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b/.
6360
3eb0018e
CR
6361 Once you have determined that a bug actually exists, use the _\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\bb_\bu_\bg
6362 command to submit a bug report. If you have a fix, you are encouraged
6363 to mail that as well! Suggestions and `philosophical' bug reports may
6364 be mailed to _\bb_\bu_\bg_\b-_\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\b@_\bg_\bn_\bu_\b._\bo_\br_\bg or posted to the Usenet newsgroup
17345e5a
JA
6365 g\bgn\bnu\bu.\b.b\bba\bas\bsh\bh.\b.b\bbu\bug\bg.
6366
6367 ALL bug reports should include:
6368
6369 The version number of b\bba\bas\bsh\bh
6370 The hardware and operating system
6371 The compiler used to compile
6372 A description of the bug behaviour
6373 A short script or `recipe' which exercises the bug
6374
3eb0018e 6375 _\bb_\ba_\bs_\bh_\bb_\bu_\bg inserts the first three items automatically into the template
17345e5a
JA
6376 it provides for filing a bug report.
6377
6378 Comments and bug reports concerning this manual page should be directed
ac50fbac 6379 to _\bc_\bh_\be_\bt_\b._\br_\ba_\bm_\be_\by_\b@_\bc_\ba_\bs_\be_\b._\be_\bd_\bu.
17345e5a
JA
6380
6381B\bBU\bUG\bGS\bS
6382 It's too big and too slow.
6383
6384 There are some subtle differences between b\bba\bas\bsh\bh and traditional versions
6385 of s\bsh\bh, mostly because of the P\bPO\bOS\bSI\bIX\bX specification.
6386
6387 Aliases are confusing in some uses.
6388
6389 Shell builtin commands and functions are not stoppable/restartable.
6390
6391 Compound commands and command sequences of the form `a ; b ; c' are not
3eb0018e
CR
6392 handled gracefully when process suspension is attempted. When a
6393 process is stopped, the shell immediately executes the next command in
6394 the sequence. It suffices to place the sequence of commands between
6395 parentheses to force it into a subshell, which may be stopped as a
17345e5a
JA
6396 unit.
6397
6398 Array variables may not (yet) be exported.
6399
6400 There may be only one active coprocess at a time.
6401
6402
6403
3eb0018e 6404GNU Bash 5.1 2020 August 25 BASH(1)