How can I keep a file busy

[Hakki Aydin Ucar]

I wanted to keep a file ;plain text file; busy so that I can monitor with fuser and cannot rm with an error "text file busy"

[V. Nyga]

Hi,

you can try with editing it - with vi for example.

Volkmar

[Suraj K Sankari]

hi,
if you open a file in vi then you can't unmount that file system fuser will show devise is busy,
but
>>cannot rm with an error "text file busy"
This will not be possible because if a file is open in one session you can delete this file from other session.

Suraj

[Venkatesh BL · Accepted solution]

try this:

# cat exe1.c ;; program which just waits for input.
#include

int main(argc,argv)
int argc;
char **argv;
{
getchar();
exit(0);

/* NOTREACHED */
return 0;
}

# cc exe1.c -o exe1 ;;compile

# ./exe1& ;; run in background
[1] + Stopped (SIGTTIN) ./exe1&

# rm exe1 ;;now try to remove the file.
rm: exe1 not removed. Text file busy

#

[Laurent Menase]

it just need to be a running executable.

[Hakki Aydin Ucar]

vi a plain text file it is not possible to get error like text file busy cannot rm that . .

I think it is only in question for executables, not possible to reproduce for plain text ? Am I right ?

[Laurent Menase]

Yes ,scripts can be removed while executing because they are not text file in the sens of process description where text is the code part.

[Venkatesh BL]

Yes, as Laurent mentioned, your definition of 'Text file' is different from what kernel refers.

[Michael Steele_2]

tail -f file & (* indefinite and in background - will have to kill -9 the process to close file *)

[Laurent Menase]

no tail -f will indeed keep it open, but as it is not a "text" -understand executable text and not plain text, and it is not executed -
it will not avoid rm to work on the file.