topic Re: script problem in Operating System - Linux

script problem

hp-ux_2 — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 06:56:11 GMT

Hi Guys,
when i create a script name is "test", after creation when i run the script, it always run ./test. please tell me why i need to give ./ for running. i am a root user and created thru root user.

Re: script problem

Bharat Katkar — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 06:59:29 GMT

Becuse your script is not in the execution path.
You either copy your script "test" in /usr/bin or add path of your test script to PATH.

# export PATH=$PATH:

This way you don't have to specify ./

Hope that helps.
Regards,

Re: script problem

Pete Randall — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 07:01:02 GMT

Check your path: "echo $PATH"

Most likely $PATH does not contain "." (your home directory). For the root user, this is deliberate, as putting "." in root's PATH is considered a security risk.

Pete

Re: script problem

Steve Steel — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 07:05:12 GMT

Hi

put it in /usr/contrib/bin or /usr/local/bin

But then everybody can get it.

Otherwise give it a meaningful name and use the alias command to set the short name = fullpathname

Steve Steel

Re: script problem

john korterman — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 07:15:22 GMT

Hi,

when you write "test", and do not get any error message, you actually execute a (standard) program named test.
"test" is normally located in /usr/bin and probably in yout path; therefor you do not get errors.
It is of course confusing to use a name like that.

regards,
John K.

Re: script problem

Mark Nieuwboer — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 07:27:26 GMT

Hi,

If you want to start the script in the directory where it stand you need ./ to exucute ./ stand for current directory.
If you just want to start the script int has to stand in the directory which stand in PATH. You can see al these directory's by echo $PATH.

p.s. please give pionts to the one who helped. try to make it 29 0f 29 instead of.
I have assigned points to 8 of 29 responses to my questions.

Re: script problem

H.Merijn Brand (procura — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 08:02:47 GMT

Worse even: for some shells, 'test' is a builtin. It is used before $PATH is searched.

Another bad idea is to make 'test' an alias or a shell-function :)

# which test

might give you that info

Enjoy, Have FUN! H.merijn

Re: script problem

Ralph Grothe — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 09:54:11 GMT

I was wondering why no one was mentioning what a bad name test is for a shell script until I read the so far final remark by procura.
This reminds me of the very amusing rants of Damian Conway in his Perl Best Practices about unintelligent, unimaginative, lazy, lousy, poor, and evil variable names ;-)

Re: script problem

Steven E. Protter — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 10:52:21 GMT

Shalom,

best practices:

Always do the ./scriptname thing when testing a new script. Recall a problem I once had where scp would not work because an application venderput its own script on the path with the name scp.

SEP

Re: script problem

Howard Marshall — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 13:25:53 GMT

I will agree with the statement that "test" is not a good name for a script. The program "test" is what "[" is linked to inside many shell scripts but sometimes the actual program test is called and if it calls your script the output will be different causing a random running of your script and a difficult to troubleshoot failure of the other script.

When you are developing a new script you can put it in a new subdirectory and add . as the first line in your PATH variable so it will search your current working directory first.

If in doubt use the which command to see if another program or script is in your path before the one you want.

H

Re: script problem

Howard Marshall — Thu, 19 Jan 2006 14:44:50 GMT

Oh yea. To answer your original question, the dot slash ./ is a relative path name where the dot . represents the current working directory as returned by the pwd command. The slash separates the directory from the filename of the script. So, if you change to the /usr/contrib/bin directory and execute /usr/contrib/bin/gzcat it would be the equivalent of ./gzcat sense . will translate to /usr/contrib/bin

Re: script problem

Arturo Galbiati — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 04:45:34 GMT

Hi,
test is a ksh command so you have to use ./ to inform the shell that you want to execute your script and not the bulldin command.
rename your script as test.ksh and you can simple test.ksh to invoke it (if you have . in teh PATH).
HTH,
Art

Re: script problem

RAC_1 — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 05:00:12 GMT

first test is not a good name for the script. test is built in command for most of the shells.
Do following to know what exactly you will be executing.

type test

If you want to execute yout script names test, give full path when starting it.

/some_dir/some_dir/test