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Linux Shell Scripting Cookbook

You're reading from   Linux Shell Scripting Cookbook Do amazing things with the shell and automate tedious tasks

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Product type Paperback
Published in May 2017
Publisher
ISBN-13 9781785881985
Length 552 pages
Edition 3rd Edition
Tools
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Authors (3):
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Clif Flynt Clif Flynt
Author Profile Icon Clif Flynt
Clif Flynt
Sarath Lakshman Sarath Lakshman
Author Profile Icon Sarath Lakshman
Sarath Lakshman
Shantanu Tushar Shantanu Tushar
Author Profile Icon Shantanu Tushar
Shantanu Tushar
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Toc

Table of Contents (14) Chapters Close

Preface 1. Shell Something Out FREE CHAPTER 2. Have a Good Command 3. File In, File Out 4. Texting and Driving 5. Tangled Web? Not At All! 6. Repository Management 7. The Backup Plan 8. The Old-Boy Network 9. Put On the Monitors Cap 10. Administration Calls 11. Tracing the Clues 12. Tuning a Linux System 13. Containers, Virtual Machines, and the Cloud

Automating interactive input

We looked at commands that accept arguments on the command line. Linux also supports many interactive applications ranging from passwd to ssh.

We can create our own interactive shell scripts. It's easier for casual users to interact with a set of prompts rather than remember command line flags and the proper order. For instance, a script to back up a user's work, but not to back up and lock files, might look like this:

$ backupWork.sh
  • What folder should be backed up? notes
  • What type of files should be backed up? .docx

Automating interactive applications can save you time when you need to rerun the same application and frustration while you're developing one.

Getting ready

The first step to automating a task...

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