---
this is the markdown contents for the rendered site at: [https://xero.github.io/bash-bible](https://xero.github.io/bash-bible)
---
{reference,survival} guide to scripting in the bash shell
- Foreword
- Subshells
- Variables
- Special Characters
- Strings
- Trim leading and trailing white-space from string
- Trim all white-space from string and truncate spaces
- Use regex on a string
- Split a string on a delimiter
- Change a string to lowercase
- Change a string to uppercase
- Reverse a string case
- Trim quotes from a string
- Strip all instances of pattern from string
- Strip first occurrence of pattern from string
- Strip pattern from start of string
- Strip pattern from end of string
- Percent-encode a string
- Decode a percent-encoded string
- Check if string contains a sub-string
- Check if string starts with sub-string
- Check if string ends with sub-string
- Arrays
- Loops
- File Handling
- File Paths
- Variables
- Escape Sequences
- Parameter Expansion
- Brace Expansion
- Conditional Expressions
- Arithmetic Operators
- Arithmetic
- Traps
- Performance
- Obsolete Syntax
- Internal Variables
- Get the location to the bash binary
- Get the version of the current running bash process
- Open the user's preferred text editor
- Get the name of the current function
- Get the host-name of the system
- Get the architecture of the Operating System
- Get the name of the Operating System / Kernel
- Get the current working directory
- Get the number of seconds the script has been running
- Get a pseudorandom integer
- Information About the Terminal
- Conversion
- Code Golf
- Misc
- Use read as an alternative to the sleep command
- Check if a program is in the user's PATH
- Get the current date using strftime
- Get the username of the current user
- Generate a UUID V4
- Progress bars
- Get the list of functions in a script
- Bypass shell aliases
- Bypass shell functions
- Run a command in the background
- Capture function return without command substitution
- References and Further Reading
- Afterword
Shell scripting can sometimes feel esoteric, cryptic, unintuitive, and error-prone. The goal of the document is to both offer a primer and quick reference of solutions to common issues and pitfalls for the bourne again shell. Examples will be in function format showcasing how to incorporate them into your code. Much of this guide will be presented as a collection of pure bash alternatives to external processes and programs. Calling an external process in bash is expensive and excessive use will cause a noticeable slowdown. Scripts and programs written using built-in methods can be faster, and fewer dependencies makes them more portable.
A subshell, also known as a child shell, is a separate instance of the shell that is spawned from the current shell process. It inherits the environment and variables from its parent shell but operates independently, allowing for isolated execution of commands and scripts. When a subshell is created, it runs in a separate process, distinct from the parent shell. This means that any changes made to the environment within the subshell, such as modifying variables or defining functions, are isolated and do not persist in the parent shell after the subshell terminates.
The commands enclosed within parentheses are executed in a subshell. This is one of the most common and straightforward ways to create a subshell in Bash.
# Create a subshell
$ (pwd; ls; whoami)
# Using curly braces {...} around a set of commands can also create a subshell
$ { sleep 3; printf '%s\n' "Hello from subshell"; }
# Subshell created
$ echo "Back in parent shell"
Command substitution creates a subshell and captures its output, which can be assigned to a variable or used in another command.
# Assign the output of a subshell to a variable
localfunc(){ echo hi;}
$output=$(localfunc;whoami)
The bash built-in command can be used to start a subshell and execute commands within it explicitly. The -c option allows you to specify the commands to be executed.
# Execute a subshell
$ bash -c "ls; whoami"
The parent shell and its subshells have a hierarchical relationship. As I have mentioned, the subshell inherits the environment variables, functions, and other settings from the parent shell, but any modifications made to the environment within the subshell are isolated and do not affect the parent shell.
declare a b c
a=foo
b=bar
c=baz
foo() {
local a=1 b=2 c=3
echo "function scope"
declare -p a
declare -p b
declare -p c
}
foo
echo "global scope"
declare -p a
declare -p b
declare -p c
Output:
function scope
declare -- a="1"
declare -- b="2"
declare -- c="3"
global scope
declare -- a="foo"
declare -- b="bar"
declare -- c="baz"
$ var1=var2=var3="same value"
$ hello_world="value"
# Create the variable name.
$ var="world"
$ ref="hello_$var"
# Print the value of the variable name stored in 'hello_$var'.
$ printf '%s\n' "${!ref}"
value
Alternatively, on bash 4.3+:
$ hello_world="value"
$ var="world"
# Declare a nameref.
$ declare -n ref=hello_$var
$ printf '%s\n' "$ref"
value
$ var="world"
$ declare "hello_$var=value"
$ printf '%s\n' "$hello_world"
value
Some characters are evaluated by Bash to have a non-literal meaning. Instead, these characters carry out a special instruction, or have an alternate meaning; they are called "special characters", or "meta-characters".
| Char | Description |
|---|---|
" " |
Whitespace this is a tab, newline, vertical tab, form feed, carriage return, or space. Bash uses whitespace to determine where words begin and end. The first word is the command name and additional words become arguments to that command. |
$ |
Expansion introduces various types of expansion: parameter expansion (e.g. |
'' |
Single Quotes protect the text inside them so that it has a literal meaning. With them, generally any kind of interpretation by Bash is ignored: special characters are passed over and multiple words are prevented from being split. |
"" |
Double Quotes protect the text inside them from being split into multiple words or arguments, yet allow substitutions to occur; the meaning of most other special characters is usually prevented. |
\ |
Escape (backslash) prevents the next character from being interpreted as a special character. This works outside of quoting, inside double quotes, and generally ignored in single quotes. |
# |
Comment the # character begins a commentary that extends to the end of the line. Comments are notes of explanation and are not processed by the shell. |
= |
Assignment assign a value to a variable (e.g. logdir=/var/log/myprog). Whitespace is not allowed on either side of the = character. |
[[ ]] |
Test an evaluation of a conditional expression to determine whether it is "true" or "false". Tests are used in Bash to compare strings, check the existence of a file, etc. More of this will be covered later. |
! |
Negate used to negate or reverse a test or exit status. For example: ! grep text file; exit $?. |
>, >>, < |
Redirection redirect a command's output or input to a file. Redirections will be covered later. |
| ``` | ``` |
; |
Command Separator used to separate multiple commands that are on the same line. |
{ } |
Inline Group commands inside the curly braces are treated as if they were one command. It is convenient to use these when Bash syntax requires only one command and a function doesn't feel warranted. |
( ) |
Subshell Group similar to the above but where commands within are executed in a subshell (a new process). Used much like a sandbox, if a command causes side effects (like changing variables), it will have no effect on the current shell. |
(( )) |
Arithmetic Expression with an arithmetic expression, characters such as +, -, *, and / are mathematical operators used for calculations. They can be used for variable assignments like (( a = 1 + 4 )) as well as tests like if (( a < b )). More on this later. |
$(( )) |
Arithmetic Expansion Comparable to the above, but the expression is replaced with the result of its arithmetic evaluation. Example: echo "The average is $(( (a+b)/2 ))". |
*, ? |
Globs "wildcard" characters which match parts of filenames (e.g. ls *.txt). |
~ |
Home directory the tilde is a representation of a home directory. When alone or followed by a /, it means the current user's home directory; otherwise, a username must be specified (e.g. ls ~/Documents; cp ~john/.bashrc .). |
& |
Background when used at the end of a command, run the command in the background (do not wait for it to complete). |
Examples:
$ LOGNAME="LOG"
$ echo "I am "$LOGNAME""
I am LOG
$ echo 'I am $LOGNAME'
I am $LOGNAME
$ # ignore me
$ echo An open\ \ \ space
An open space
$ echo "My computer is $(hostname)"
My computer is localhost
$ echo "$STUFF" > file
$ echo "append" >> file
$ echo $(( 5 + 5 ))
10
$ (( 5 > 0 )) && echo "Five is greater than zero."
Five is greater than zero.
This is an alternative to sed, awk, perl and other tools. The
function below works by finding all leading and trailing white-space and
removing it from the start and end of the string. The : built-in is used in place of a temporary variable.
Example Function:
trim_string() {
# Usage: trim_string " example string "
: "${1#"${1%%[![:space:]]*}"}"
: "${_%"${_##*[![:space:]]}"}"
printf '%s\n' "$_"
}Example Usage:
$ trim_string " Hello, World "
Hello, World
$ name=" John Black "
$ trim_string "$name"
John BlackThis is an alternative to sed, awk, perl and other tools. The
function below works by abusing word splitting to create a new string
without leading/trailing white-space and with truncated spaces.
Example Function:
# shellcheck disable=SC2086,SC2048
trim_all() {
# Usage: trim_all " example string "
set -f
set -- $*
printf '%s\n' "$*"
set +f
}Example Usage:
$ trim_all " Hello, World "
Hello, World
$ name=" John Black is my name. "
$ trim_all "$name"
John Black is my name.The result of bash's regex matching can be used to replace sed for a
large number of use-cases.
CAVEAT: This is one of the few platform dependent bash features.
bash will use whatever regex engine is installed on the user's system.
Stick to POSIX regex features if aiming for compatibility.
CAVEAT: This example only prints the first matching group. When using multiple capture groups some modification is needed.
Example Function:
regex() {
# Usage: regex "string" "regex"
[[ $1 =~ $2 ]] && printf '%s\n' "${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
}Example Usage:
$ # Trim leading white-space.
$ regex ' hello' '^\s*(.*)'
hello
$ # Validate a hex color.
$ regex "#FFFFFF" '^(#?([a-fA-F0-9]{6}|[a-fA-F0-9]{3}))$'
#FFFFFF
$ # Validate a hex color (invalid).
$ regex "red" '^(#?([a-fA-F0-9]{6}|[a-fA-F0-9]{3}))$'
# no output (invalid)Example Usage in script:
is_hex_color() {
if [[ $1 =~ ^(#?([a-fA-F0-9]{6}|[a-fA-F0-9]{3}))$ ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "${BASH_REMATCH[1]}"
else
printf '%s\n' "error: $1 is an invalid color."
return 1
fi
}
read -r color
is_hex_color "$color" || color="#FFFFFF"
# Do stuff.NOTE: Requires bash 4+
This is an alternative to cut, awk and other tools.
Example Function:
split() {
# Usage: split "string" "delimiter"
IFS=$'\n' read -d "" -ra arr <<< "${1//$2/$'\n'}"
printf '%s\n' "${arr[@]}"
}Example Usage:
$ split "apples,oranges,pears,grapes" ","
apples
oranges
pears
grapes
$ split "1, 2, 3, 4, 5" ", "
1
2
3
4
5
# Multi char delimiters work too!
$ split "hello---world---my---name---is---john" "---"
hello
world
my
name
is
johnNOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
lower() {
# Usage: lower "string"
printf '%s\n' "${1,,}"
}Example Usage:
$ lower "HELLO"
hello
$ lower "HeLlO"
hello
$ lower "hello"
helloNOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
upper() {
# Usage: upper "string"
printf '%s\n' "${1^^}"
}Example Usage:
$ upper "hello"
HELLO
$ upper "HeLlO"
HELLO
$ upper "HELLO"
HELLONOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
reverse_case() {
# Usage: reverse_case "string"
printf '%s\n' "${1~~}"
}Example Usage:
$ reverse_case "hello"
HELLO
$ reverse_case "HeLlO"
hElLo
$ reverse_case "HELLO"
helloExample Function:
trim_quotes() {
# Usage: trim_quotes "string"
: "${1//\'}"
printf '%s\n' "${_//\"}"
}Example Usage:
$ var="'Hello', \"World\""
$ trim_quotes "$var"
Hello, WorldExample Function:
strip_all() {
# Usage: strip_all "string" "pattern"
printf '%s\n' "${1//$2}"
}Example Usage:
$ strip_all "The Quick Brown Fox" "[aeiou]"
Th Qck Brwn Fx
$ strip_all "The Quick Brown Fox" "[[:space:]]"
TheQuickBrownFox
$ strip_all "The Quick Brown Fox" "Quick "
The Brown FoxExample Function:
strip() {
# Usage: strip "string" "pattern"
printf '%s\n' "${1/$2}"
}Example Usage:
$ strip "The Quick Brown Fox" "[aeiou]"
Th Quick Brown Fox
$ strip "The Quick Brown Fox" "[[:space:]]"
TheQuick Brown FoxExample Function:
lstrip() {
# Usage: lstrip "string" "pattern"
printf '%s\n' "${1##$2}"
}Example Usage:
$ lstrip "The Quick Brown Fox" "The "
Quick Brown FoxExample Function:
rstrip() {
# Usage: rstrip "string" "pattern"
printf '%s\n' "${1%%$2}"
}Example Usage:
$ rstrip "The Quick Brown Fox" " Fox"
The Quick BrownExample Function:
urlencode() {
# Usage: urlencode "string"
local LC_ALL=C
for (( i = 0; i < ${#1}; i++ )); do
: "${1:i:1}"
case "$_" in
[a-zA-Z0-9.~_-])
printf '%s' "$_"
;;
*)
printf '%%%02X' "'$_"
;;
esac
done
printf '\n'
}Example Usage:
$ urlencode "https://github.com/dylanaraps/pure-bash-bible"
https%3A%2F%2Fgithub.com%2Fdylanaraps%2Fpure-bash-bibleExample Function:
urldecode() {
# Usage: urldecode "string"
: "${1//+/ }"
printf '%b\n' "${_//%/\\x}"
}Example Usage:
$ urldecode "https%3A%2F%2Fgithub.com%2Fdylanaraps%2Fpure-bash-bible"
https://github.com/dylanaraps/pure-bash-bibleUsing a test:
if [[ $var == *sub_string* ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "sub_string is in var."
fi
# Inverse (substring not in string).
if [[ $var != *sub_string* ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "sub_string is not in var."
fi
# This works for arrays too!
if [[ ${arr[*]} == *sub_string* ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "sub_string is in array."
fiUsing a case statement:
case "$var" in
*sub_string*)
# Do stuff
;;
*sub_string2*)
# Do more stuff
;;
*)
# Else
;;
esacif [[ $var == sub_string* ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "var starts with sub_string."
fi
# Inverse (var does not start with sub_string).
if [[ $var != sub_string* ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "var does not start with sub_string."
fiif [[ $var == *sub_string ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "var ends with sub_string."
fi
# Inverse (var does not end with sub_string).
if [[ $var != *sub_string ]]; then
printf '%s\n' "var does not end with sub_string."
fiEnabling extdebug allows access to the BASH_ARGV array which stores
the current function’s arguments in reverse.
NOTE: Requires shopt -s compat44 in bash 5.0+.
Example Function:
reverse_array() {
# Usage: reverse_array "array"
shopt -s extdebug
f()(printf '%s\n' "${BASH_ARGV[@]}"); f "$@"
shopt -u extdebug
}Example Usage:
$ reverse_array 1 2 3 4 5
5
4
3
2
1
$ arr=(red blue green)
$ reverse_array "${arr[@]}"
green
blue
redCreate a temporary associative array. When setting associative array values and a duplicate assignment occurs, bash overwrites the key. This allows us to effectively remove array duplicates.
NOTE: Requires bash 4+
CAVEAT: List order may not stay the same.
Example Function:
remove_array_dups() {
# Usage: remove_array_dups "array"
declare -A tmp_array
for i in "$@"; do
[[ $i ]] && IFS=" " tmp_array["${i:- }"]=1
done
printf '%s\n' "${!tmp_array[@]}"
}Example Usage:
$ remove_array_dups 1 1 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5
1
2
3
4
5
$ arr=(red red green blue blue)
$ remove_array_dups "${arr[@]}"
red
green
blueExample Function:
random_array_element() {
# Usage: random_array_element "array"
local arr=("$@")
printf '%s\n' "${arr[RANDOM % $#]}"
}Example Usage:
$ array=(red green blue yellow brown)
$ random_array_element "${array[@]}"
yellow
# Multiple arguments can also be passed.
$ random_array_element 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
3Each time the printf is called, the next array element is printed. When
the print hits the last array element it starts from the first element
again.
arr=(a b c d)
cycle() {
printf '%s ' "${arr[${i:=0}]}"
((i=i>=${#arr[@]}-1?0:++i))
}This works the same as above, this is just a different use case.
arr=(true false)
cycle() {
printf '%s ' "${arr[${i:=0}]}"
((i=i>=${#arr[@]}-1?0:++i))
}Alternative to seq.
# Loop from 0-100 (no variable support).
for i in {0..100}; do
printf '%s\n' "$i"
doneAlternative to seq.
# Loop from 0-VAR.
VAR=50
for ((i=0;i<=VAR;i++)); do
printf '%s\n' "$i"
donearr=(apples oranges tomatoes)
# Just elements.
for element in "${arr[@]}"; do
printf '%s\n' "$element"
donearr=(apples oranges tomatoes)
# Elements and index.
for i in "${!arr[@]}"; do
printf '%s\n' "${arr[i]}"
done
# Alternative method.
for ((i=0;i<${#arr[@]};i++)); do
printf '%s\n' "${arr[i]}"
donewhile read -r line; do
printf '%s\n' "$line"
done < "file"Don’t use ls.
# Greedy example.
for file in *; do
printf '%s\n' "$file"
done
# PNG files in dir.
for file in ~/Pictures/*.png; do
printf '%s\n' "$file"
done
# Iterate over directories.
for dir in ~/Downloads/*/; do
printf '%s\n' "$dir"
done
# Brace Expansion.
for file in /path/to/parentdir/{file1,file2,subdir/file3}; do
printf '%s\n' "$file"
done
# Iterate recursively.
shopt -s globstar
for file in ~/Pictures/**/*; do
printf '%s\n' "$file"
done
shopt -u globstarCAVEAT: bash does not handle binary data properly in versions < 4.4.
Alternative to the cat command.
file_data="$(<"file")"Alternative to the cat command.
# Bash <4 (discarding empty lines).
IFS=$'\n' read -d "" -ra file_data < "file"
# Bash <4 (preserving empty lines).
while read -r line; do
file_data+=("$line")
done < "file"
# Bash 4+
mapfile -t file_data < "file"Alternative to the head command.
NOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
head() {
# Usage: head "n" "file"
mapfile -tn "$1" line < "$2"
printf '%s\n' "${line[@]}"
}Example Usage:
$ head 2 ~/.bashrc
# Prompt
PS1='➜ '
$ head 1 ~/.bashrc
# PromptAlternative to the tail command.
NOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
tail() {
# Usage: tail "n" "file"
mapfile -tn 0 line < "$2"
printf '%s\n' "${line[@]: -$1}"
}Example Usage:
$ tail 2 ~/.bashrc
# Enable tmux.
# [[ -z "$TMUX" ]] && exec tmux
$ tail 1 ~/.bashrc
# [[ -z "$TMUX" ]] && exec tmuxAlternative to wc -l.
Example Function (bash 4):
lines() {
# Usage: lines "file"
mapfile -tn 0 lines < "$1"
printf '%s\n' "${#lines[@]}"
}Example Function (bash 3):
This method uses less memory than the mapfile method and works in bash 3 but it is slower for bigger files.
lines_loop() {
# Usage: lines_loop "file"
count=0
while IFS= read -r _; do
((count++))
done < "$1"
printf '%s\n' "$count"
}Example Usage:
$ lines ~/.bashrc
48
$ lines_loop ~/.bashrc
48This works by passing the output of the glob to the function and then counting the number of arguments.
Example Function:
count() {
# Usage: count /path/to/dir/*
# count /path/to/dir/*/
printf '%s\n' "$#"
}Example Usage:
# Count all files in dir.
$ count ~/Downloads/*
232
# Count all dirs in dir.
$ count ~/Downloads/*/
45
# Count all jpg files in dir.
$ count ~/Pictures/*.jpg
64Alternative to touch.
# Shortest.
>file
# Longer alternatives:
:>file
echo -n >file
printf '' >fileExample Function:
extract() {
# Usage: extract file "opening marker" "closing marker"
while IFS=$'\n' read -r line; do
[[ $extract && $line != "$3" ]] &&
printf '%s\n' "$line"
[[ $line == "$2" ]] && extract=1
[[ $line == "$3" ]] && extract=
done < "$1"
}Example Usage:
# Extract code blocks from MarkDown file.
$ extract ~/projects/pure-bash/README.md '```sh' '```'
# Output here...Alternative to the dirname command.
Example Function:
dirname() {
# Usage: dirname "path"
local tmp=${1:-.}
[[ $tmp != *[!/]* ]] && {
printf '/\n'
return
}
tmp=${tmp%%"${tmp##*[!/]}"}
[[ $tmp != */* ]] && {
printf '.\n'
return
}
tmp=${tmp%/*}
tmp=${tmp%%"${tmp##*[!/]}"}
printf '%s\n' "${tmp:-/}"
}Example Usage:
$ dirname ~/Pictures/Wallpapers/1.jpg
/home/black/Pictures/Wallpapers
$ dirname ~/Pictures/Downloads/
/home/black/PicturesAlternative to the basename command.
Example Function:
basename() {
# Usage: basename "path" ["suffix"]
local tmp
tmp=${1%"${1##*[!/]}"}
tmp=${tmp##*/}
tmp=${tmp%"${2/"$tmp"}"}
printf '%s\n' "${tmp:-/}"
}Example Usage:
$ basename ~/Pictures/Wallpapers/1.jpg
1.jpg
$ basename ~/Pictures/Wallpapers/1.jpg .jpg
1
$ basename ~/Pictures/Downloads/
Downloadsdeclare a b c
a=foo
b=bar
c=baz
foo() {
local a=1 b=2 c=3
echo "function scope"
declare -p a
declare -p b
declare -p c
}
foo
echo "global scope"
declare -p a
declare -p b
declare -p cOutput:
function scope
declare -- a="1"
declare -- b="2"
declare -- c="3"
global scope
declare -- a="foo"
declare -- b="bar"
declare -- c="baz"$ var1=var2=var3="same value"$ hello_world="value"
# Create the variable name.
$ var="world"
$ ref="hello_$var"
# Print the value of the variable name stored in 'hello_$var'.
$ printf '%s\n' "${!ref}"
valueAlternatively, on bash 4.3+:
$ hello_world="value"
$ var="world"
# Declare a nameref.
$ declare -n ref=hello_$var
$ printf '%s\n' "$ref"
value$ var="world"
$ declare "hello_$var=value"
$ printf '%s\n' "$hello_world"
valueContrary to popular belief, there is no issue in utilizing raw escape sequences. Using tput abstracts the same ANSI sequences as if printed manually. Worse still, tput is not actually portable. There are a number of tput variants each with different commands and syntaxes (try tput setaf 3 on a FreeBSD system). Raw sequences are fine.
NOTE: Sequences requiring RGB values only work in True-Color Terminal Emulators.
| Sequence | Description | Value |
|---|---|---|
\e[38;5;<NUM>m |
Set text foreground color. | 0-255 |
\e[48;5;<NUM>m |
Set text background color. | 0-255 |
\e[38;2;<R>;<G>;<B>m |
Set text foreground color to RGB color. | R, G, B |
\e[48;2;<R>;<G>;<B>m |
Set text background color to RGB color. | R, G, B |
NOTE: Prepend 2 to any code below to turn it's effect off (examples: 21=bold text off, 22=faint text off, 23=italic text off).
| Sequence | Description |
|---|---|
\e[m |
Reset text formatting and colors. |
\e[1m |
Bold text. |
\e[2m |
Faint text. |
\e[3m |
Italic text. |
\e[4m |
Underline text. |
\e[5m |
Blinking text. |
\e[7m |
Highlighted text. |
\e[8m |
Hidden text. |
\e[9m |
Strike-through text. |
| Sequence | Description | Value |
|---|---|---|
\e[<LINE>;<COLUMN>H |
Move cursor to absolute position. | line, column |
\e[H |
Move cursor to home position (0,0). |
|
\e[<NUM>A |
Move cursor up N lines. | num |
\e[<NUM>B |
Move cursor down N lines. | num |
\e[<NUM>C |
Move cursor right N columns. | num |
\e[<NUM>D |
Move cursor left N columns. | num |
\e[s |
Save cursor position. | |
\e[u |
Restore cursor position. |
| Sequence | Description |
|---|---|
\e[K |
Erase from cursor position to end of line. |
\e[1K |
Erase from cursor position to start of line. |
\e[2K |
Erase the entire current line. |
\e[J |
Erase from the current line to the bottom of the screen. |
\e[1J |
Erase from the current line to the top of the screen. |
\e[2J |
Clear the screen. |
\e[2J\e[H |
Clear the screen and move cursor to 0,0. |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
${!VAR} |
Access a variable based on the value of VAR. |
${!VAR*} |
Expand to IFS separated list of variable names starting with VAR. |
${!VAR@} |
Expand to IFS separated list of variable names starting with VAR. If double-quoted, each variable name expands to a separate word. |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
${VAR#PATTERN} |
Remove shortest match of pattern from start of string. |
${VAR##PATTERN} |
Remove longest match of pattern from start of string. |
${VAR%PATTERN} |
Remove shortest match of pattern from end of string. |
${VAR%%PATTERN} |
Remove longest match of pattern from end of string. |
${VAR/PATTERN/REPLACE} |
Replace first match with string. |
${VAR//PATTERN/REPLACE} |
Replace all matches with string. |
${VAR/PATTERN} |
Remove first match. |
${VAR//PATTERN} |
Remove all matches. |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
${#VAR} |
Length of var in characters. |
${#ARR[@]} |
Length of array in elements. |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
${VAR:OFFSET} |
Remove first N chars from variable. |
${VAR:OFFSET:LENGTH} |
Get substring from N character to N character. ( ${VAR:10:10}: Get sub-string from char 10 to char 20) |
${VAR:: OFFSET} |
Get first N chars from variable. |
${VAR:: -OFFSET} |
Remove last N chars from variable. |
${VAR: -OFFSET} |
Get last N chars from variable. |
${VAR:OFFSET:-OFFSET} |
Cut first N chars and last N chars. |
| Parameter | Description | Notes |
|---|---|---|
${VAR^} |
Uppercase first character. | bash 4+ |
${VAR^^} |
Uppercase all characters. | bash 4+ |
${VAR,} |
Lowercase first character. | bash 4+ |
${VAR,,} |
Lowercase all characters. | bash 4+ |
${VAR~} |
Reverse case of first character. | bash 4+ |
${VAR~~} |
Reverse case of all characters. | bash 4+ |
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
${VAR:-STRING} |
If VAR is empty or unset, use STRING as its value. |
${VAR-STRING} |
If VAR is unset, use STRING as its value. |
${VAR:=STRING} |
If VAR is empty or unset, set the value of VAR to STRING. |
${VAR=STRING} |
If VAR is unset, set the value of VAR to STRING. |
${VAR:+STRING} |
If VAR is not empty, use STRING as its value. |
${VAR+STRING} |
If VAR is set, use STRING as its value. |
${VAR:?STRING} |
Display an error if empty or unset. |
${VAR?STRING} |
Display an error if unset. |
# Syntax: {<START>..<END>}
# Print numbers 1-100.
echo {1..100}
# Print range of floats.
echo 1.{1..9}
# Print chars a-z.
echo {a..z}
echo {A..Z}
# Nesting.
echo {A..Z}{0..9}
# Print zero-padded numbers.
# NOTE: requires bash 4+
echo {01..100}
# Change increment amount.
# Syntax: {<START>..<END>..<INCREMENT>}
# NOTE: requires bash 4+
echo {1..10..2} # Increment by 2.echo {apples,oranges,pears,grapes}
# Example Usage:
# Remove dirs Movies, Music and ISOS from ~/Downloads/.
rm -rf ~/Downloads/{Movies,Music,ISOS}| Expression | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
-a |
file |
If file exists. |
-b |
file |
If file exists and is a block special file. |
-c |
file |
If file exists and is a character special file. |
-d |
file |
If file exists and is a directory. |
-e |
file |
If file exists. |
-f |
file |
If file exists and is a regular file. |
-g |
file |
If file exists and its set-group-id bit is set. |
-h |
file |
If file exists and is a symbolic link. |
-k |
file |
If file exists and its sticky-bit is set |
-p |
file |
If file exists and is a named pipe (FIFO). |
-r |
file |
If file exists and is readable. |
-s |
file |
If file exists and its size is greater than zero. |
-t |
fd |
If file descriptor is open and refers to a terminal. |
-u |
file |
If file exists and its set-user-id bit is set. |
-w |
file |
If file exists and is writable. |
-x |
file |
If file exists and is executable. |
-G |
file |
If file exists and is owned by the effective group ID. |
-L |
file |
If file exists and is a symbolic link. |
-N |
file |
If file exists and has been modified since last read. |
-O |
file |
If file exists and is owned by the effective user ID. |
-S |
file |
If file exists and is a socket. |
| Expression | Description |
|---|---|
file -ef file2 |
If both files refer to the same inode and device numbers. |
file -nt file2 |
If file is newer than file2 (uses modification time) or file exists and file2 does not. |
file -ot file2 |
If file is older than file2 (uses modification time) or file2 exists and file does not. |
| Expression | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
-o |
opt |
If shell option is enabled. |
-v |
var |
If variable has a value assigned. |
-R |
var |
If variable is a name reference. |
-z |
var |
If the length of string is zero. |
-n |
var |
If the length of string is non-zero. |
| Expression | Description |
|---|---|
var = var2 |
Equal to. |
var == var2 |
Equal to (synonym for =). |
var != var2 |
Not equal to. |
var < var2 |
Less than (in ASCII alphabetical order.) |
var > var2 |
Greater than (in ASCII alphabetical order.) |
| Operators | Description |
|---|---|
= |
Initialize or change the value of a variable. |
| Operators | Description |
|---|---|
+ |
Addition |
- |
Subtraction |
* |
Multiplication |
/ |
Division |
** |
Exponentiation |
% |
Modulo |
+= |
Plus-Equal (Increment a variable.) |
-= |
Minus-Equal (Decrement a variable.) |
*= |
Times-Equal (Multiply a variable.) |
/= |
Slash-Equal (Divide a variable.) |
%= |
Mod-Equal (Remainder of dividing a variable.) |
| Operators | Description |
|---|---|
<< |
Bitwise Left Shift |
<<= |
Left-Shift-Equal |
>> |
Bitwise Right Shift |
>>= |
Right-Shift-Equal |
& |
Bitwise AND |
&= |
Bitwise AND-Equal |
| |
Bitwise OR |
|= |
Bitwise OR-Equal |
~ |
Bitwise NOT |
^ |
Bitwise XOR |
^= |
Bitwise XOR-Equal |
| Operators | Description |
|---|---|
! |
NOT |
&& |
AND |
|| |
OR |
| Operators | Description | Example |
|---|---|---|
, |
Comma Separator | ((a=1,b=2,c=3)) |
# Simple math
((var=1+2))
# Decrement/Increment variable
((var++))
((var--))
((var+=1))
((var-=1))
# Using variables
((var=var2*arr[2]))# Set the value of var to var2 if var2 is greater than var.
# var: variable to set.
# var2>var: Condition to test.
# ?var2: If the test succeeds.
# :var: If the test fails.
((var=var2>var?var2:var))Traps allow a script to execute code on various signals. In pxltrm (a pixel art editor written in bash) traps are used to redraw the user interface on window resize. Another use case is cleaning up temporary files on script exit.
Traps should be added near the start of scripts so any early errors are also caught.
NOTE: For a full list of signals, see trap -l.
# Clear screen on script exit.
trap 'printf \\e[2J\\e[H\\e[m' EXITtrap '' INT# Call a function on window resize.
trap 'code_here' SIGWINCHtrap 'code_here' DEBUGtrap 'code_here' RETURNIf unicode is not required, it can be disabled for a performance increase. Results may vary however there have been noticeable improvements in neofetch and other programs.
# Disable unicode.
LC_ALL=C
LANG=CUse #!/usr/bin/env bash instead of #!/bin/bash.
- The former searches the user's
PATHto find thebashbinary. - The latter assumes it is always installed to
/bin/which can cause issues.
NOTE: There are times when one may have a good reason for using #!/bin/bash or another direct path to the binary.
# Right:
#!/usr/bin/env bash
# Less right:
#!/bin/bashUse $() instead of ` `.
# Right.
var="$(command)"
# Wrong.
var=`command`
# $() can easily be nested whereas `` cannot.
var="$(command "$(command)")"Do not use the function keyword, it reduces compatibility with older versions of bash.
# Right.
do_something() {
# ...
}
# Wrong.
function do_something() {
# ...
}"$BASH"# As a string.
"$BASH_VERSION"
# As an array.
"${BASH_VERSINFO[@]}""$EDITOR" "$file"
# NOTE: This variable may be empty, set a fallback value.
"${EDITOR:-vi}" "$file"# Current function.
"${FUNCNAME[0]}"
# Parent function.
"${FUNCNAME[1]}"
# So on and so forth.
"${FUNCNAME[2]}"
"${FUNCNAME[3]}"
# All functions including parents.
"${FUNCNAME[@]}""$HOSTNAME"
# NOTE: This variable may be empty.
# Optionally set a fallback to the hostname command.
"${HOSTNAME:-$(hostname)}""$HOSTTYPE"This can be used to add conditional support for different Operating
Systems without needing to call uname.
"$OSTYPE"This is an alternative to the pwd built-in.
"$PWD""$SECONDS"Each time $RANDOM is used, a different integer between 0 and 32767 is returned. This variable should not be used for anything related to security (this includes encryption keys etc).
"$RANDOM"This is handy when writing scripts in pure bash and stty/tput can’t be
called.
Example Function:
get_term_size() {
# Usage: get_term_size
# (:;:) is a micro sleep to ensure the variables are
# exported immediately.
shopt -s checkwinsize; (:;:)
printf '%s\n' "$LINES $COLUMNS"
}Example Usage:
# Output: LINES COLUMNS
$ get_term_size
15 55CAVEAT: This does not work in some terminal emulators.
Example Function:
get_window_size() {
# Usage: get_window_size
printf '%b' "${TMUX:+\\ePtmux;\\e}\\e[14t${TMUX:+\\e\\\\}"
IFS=';t' read -d t -t 0.05 -sra term_size
printf '%s\n' "${term_size[1]}x${term_size[2]}"
}Example Usage:
# Output: WIDTHxHEIGHT
$ get_window_size
1200x800
# Output (fail):
$ get_window_size
xThis is useful when creating a TUI in pure bash.
Example Function:
get_cursor_pos() {
# Usage: get_cursor_pos
IFS='[;' read -p $'\e[6n' -d R -rs _ y x _
printf '%s\n' "$x $y"
}Example Usage:
# Output: X Y
$ get_cursor_pos
1 8Example Function:
hex_to_rgb() {
# Usage: hex_to_rgb "#FFFFFF"
# hex_to_rgb "000000"
: "${1/\#}"
((r=16#${_:0:2},g=16#${_:2:2},b=16#${_:4:2}))
printf '%s\n' "$r $g $b"
}Example Usage:
$ hex_to_rgb "#FFFFFF"
255 255 255Example Function:
rgb_to_hex() {
# Usage: rgb_to_hex "r" "g" "b"
printf '#%02x%02x%02x\n' "$1" "$2" "$3"
}Example Usage:
$ rgb_to_hex "255" "255" "255"
#FFFFFF# Tiny C Style.
for((;i++<10;)){ echo "$i";}
# Undocumented method.
for i in {1..10};{ echo "$i";}
# Expansion.
for i in {1..10}; do echo "$i"; done
# C Style.
for((i=0;i<=10;i++)); do echo "$i"; done# Normal method
while :; do echo hi; done
# Shorter
for((;;)){ echo hi;}# Normal method
f(){ echo hi;}
# Using a subshell
f()(echo hi)
# Using arithmetic
# This can be used to assign integer values.
# Example: f a=1
# f a++
f()(($1))
# Using tests, loops etc.
# NOTE: ‘while’, ‘until’, ‘case’, ‘(())’, ‘[[]]’ can also be used.
f()if true; then echo "$1"; fi
f()for i in "$@"; do echo "$i"; done# One line
# Note: The 3rd statement may run when the 1st is true
[[ $var == hello ]] && echo hi || echo bye
[[ $var == hello ]] && { echo hi; echo there; } || echo bye
# Multi line (no else, single statement)
# Note: The exit status may not be the same as with an if statement
[[ $var == hello ]] &&
echo hi
# Multi line (no else)
[[ $var == hello ]] && {
echo hi
# ...
}The : built-in can be used to avoid repeating variable= in a case statement. The $_ variable stores the last argument of the last command. : always succeeds so it can be used to store the variable value.
# Modified snippet from Neofetch.
case "$OSTYPE" in
"darwin"*)
: "MacOS"
;;
"linux"*)
: "Linux"
;;
*"bsd"* | "dragonfly" | "bitrig")
: "BSD"
;;
"cygwin" | "msys" | "win32")
: "Windows"
;;
*)
printf '%s\n' "Unknown OS detected, aborting..." >&2
exit 1
;;
esac
# Finally, set the variable.
os="$_"Surprisingly, sleep is an external command and not a bash built-in.
NOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
read_sleep() {
# Usage: read_sleep 1
# read_sleep 0.2
read -rt "$1" <> <(:) || :
}Example Usage:
read_sleep 1
read_sleep 0.1
read_sleep 30For performance-critical situations, where it is not economic to open and close an excessive number of file descriptors, the allocation of a file descriptor may be done only once for all invocations of read:
(See the generic original implementation at https://blog.dhampir.no/content/sleeping-without-a-subprocess-in-bash-and-how-to-sleep-forever)
exec {sleep_fd}<> <(:)
while some_quick_test; do
# equivalent of sleep 0.001
read -t 0.001 -u $sleep_fd
done# There are 3 ways to do this and either one can be used.
type -p executable_name &>/dev/null
hash executable_name &>/dev/null
command -v executable_name &>/dev/null
# As a test.
if type -p executable_name &>/dev/null; then
# Program is in PATH.
fi
# Inverse.
if ! type -p executable_name &>/dev/null; then
# Program is not in PATH.
fi
# Example (Exit early if program is not installed).
if ! type -p convert &>/dev/null; then
printf '%s\n' "error: convert is not installed, exiting..."
exit 1
fiBash’s printf has a built-in method of getting the date which can be used in place of the date command.
NOTE: Requires bash 4+
Example Function:
date() {
# Usage: date "format"
# See: 'man strftime' for format.
printf "%($1)T\\n" "-1"
}Example Usage:
# Using above function.
$ date "%a %d %b - %l:%M %p"
Fri 15 Jun - 10:00 AM
# Using printf directly.
$ printf '%(%a %d %b - %l:%M %p)T\n' "-1"
Fri 15 Jun - 10:00 AM
# Assigning a variable using printf.
$ printf -v date '%(%a %d %b - %l:%M %p)T\n' '-1'
$ printf '%s\n' "$date"
Fri 15 Jun - 10:00 AMNOTE: Requires bash 4.4+
$ : \\u
# Expand the parameter as if it were a prompt string.
$ printf '%s\n' "${_@P}"
blackCAVEAT: The generated value is not cryptographically secure.
Example Function:
uuid() {
# Usage: uuid
C="89ab"
for ((N=0;N<16;++N)); do
B="$((RANDOM%256))"
case "$N" in
6) printf '4%x' "$((B%16))" ;;
8) printf '%c%x' "${C:$RANDOM%${#C}:1}" "$((B%16))" ;;
3|5|7|9)
printf '%02x-' "$B"
;;
*)
printf '%02x' "$B"
;;
esac
done
printf '\n'
}Example Usage:
$ uuid
d5b6c731-1310-4c24-9fe3-55d556d44374This is a simple way of drawing progress bars without needing a for loop in the function itself.
Example Function:
bar() {
# Usage: bar 1 10
# ^----- Elapsed Percentage (0-100).
# ^-- Total length in chars.
((elapsed=$1*$2/100))
# Create the bar with spaces.
printf -v prog "%${elapsed}s"
printf -v total "%$(($2-elapsed))s"
printf '%s\r' "[${prog// /-}${total}]"
}Example Usage:
for ((i=0;i<=100;i++)); do
# Pure bash micro sleeps (for the example).
(:;:) && (:;:) && (:;:) && (:;:) && (:;:)
# Print the bar.
bar "$i" "10"
done
printf '\n'get_functions() {
# Usage: get_functions
IFS=$'\n' read -d "" -ra functions < <(declare -F)
printf '%s\n' "${functions[@]//declare -f }"
}# alias
ls
# command
# shellcheck disable=SC1001
\ls# function
ls
# command
command lsThis will run the given command and keep it running, even after the terminal or SSH connection is terminated. All output is ignored.
bkr() {
(nohup "$@" &>/dev/null &)
}
bkr ./some_script.sh # some_script.sh is now running in the backgroundNOTE: Requires bash 4+
This uses local namerefs to avoid using var=$(some_func) style command substitution for function output capture.
to_upper() {
local -n ptr=${1}
ptr=${ptr^^}
}
foo="bar"
to_upper foo
printf "%s\n" "${foo}" # BAR- The Bash-Hackers Wiki - Human-readable documentation of any kind about GNU Bash
[ARCHIVED]. - Bash beginner's mistakes - List of Bash beginner mistakes (by the Bash-Hackers Wiki)
[ARCHIVED]. - Bash Guide - A bash guide for beginners (by Lhunath).
- Bash FAQ - Answers most of your questions (by Lhunath).
- Bash Pitfalls - Lists the common pitfalls beginners fall into, and how to avoid them.
- Bash manual - Bourne-Again Shell manual.
- Bash FAQ (by Chet Ramey)
- Advanced Bash-Scripting Guide - An in-depth exploration of the art of shell scripting.
- Bash Guide for Beginners - Bash guide for beginners (by Machtelt Garrels).
- Bash Programming - Intro/How-to
- bash-handbook - A handbook for those who want to learn Bash without diving in too deeply.
- Google's Shell Style Guide - Reasonable advice about code style.
- Sobell's Book - A practical guide to commands, editors, and shell programming.
- WikiBooks: Bash Shell Scripting
- Use the Unofficial Bash Strict Mode (Unless You Looove Debugging)
- learnyoubash - An interactive workshopper which will teach you how to use the terminal and write your the first Bash script.
- Defensive BASH Programming - Methods to defend your programs from breaking as well as keeping the code tidy and clean.
- explainshell - A website that breaks down and explains shell /
bashcommands (including their flags and options). - Safe ways to do things in bash - How to do things safely in Bash (by the shellharden team).
Contribute to the project here: github.com/xero/bash-bible
The now defunct, original pure bash bible was available at: https://github.com/dylanaraps/pure-bash-bible
:rip: RIP ol McDylan, enjoy your farm