Book Image

Mastering Linux Shell Scripting

By : Andrew Mallett
Book Image

Mastering Linux Shell Scripting

By: Andrew Mallett

Overview of this book

Shell scripting is a quick method to prototype a complex application or a problem by automating tasks when working on Linux-based systems. Using both simple one-line commands and command sequences complex problems can be solved with ease, from text processing to backing up sysadmin tools. In this book, you’ll discover everything you need to know to master shell scripting and make informed choices about the elements you employ. Get to grips with the fundamentals of creating and running a script in normal mode, and in debug mode. Learn about various conditional statements' code snippets, and realize the power of repetition and loops in your shell script. Implement functions and edit files using the Stream Editor, script in Perl, program in Python – as well as complete coverage of other scripting languages to ensure you can choose the best tool for your project.
Table of Contents (21 chapters)
Mastering Linux Shell Scripting
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewer
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Summary


We are still making progress by leaps and bounds in script writing. I hope these ideas stay with you and you find the code examples useful. Functions are very important for the ease of maintenance of your scripts and their ultimate functionality. The easier the scripts are to maintain, the more likely you are to add improvements over time. We can define functions at the command line or within scripts but they need to be included in the script before they are used.

The functions themselves are loaded in to memory while the script is running, but as long as the script is forked and not sourced, they will be released from memory once the script is finished. We have touched a little upon sed in this chapter and we will look more at using the stream editor (sed) in the next chapter. The sed command is very powerful and we can make good use of it within scripts.