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sh(1sh)

getopt(3c)



GETOPT(1)               COMMAND REFERENCE               GETOPT(1)



NAME
     getopt - parse command options

SYNOPSIS
     set -- `getopt optstring $*`

DESCRIPTION
     Getopt is used to break up options in command lines for easy
     parsing by shell procedures and to check for legal options.
     Optstring is a string of recognized option letters (see
     getopt(3c)); if a letter is followed by a colon, the option
     is expected to have an argument which may or may not be
     separated from it by white space.  The special option -- is
     used to delimit the end of the options.  If it is used
     explicitly, getopt will recognize it; otherwise, getopt will
     generate it; in either case, getopt will place it at the end
     of the options.  The shell's positional parameters ($1 $2
     ...) are reset so that each option is preceded by a - and is
     in its own positional parameter; each option argument is
     also parsed into its own positional parameter.

EXAMPLES
     The following code fragment shows how one might process the
     arguments for a command that can take the options a or b, as
     well as the option o, which requires an argument:

          set -- `getopt abo: $*`
          if [ $? != 0 ]
          then
          echo $USAGE
          exit 2
          fi
          for i in $*
          do
          case $i in
          -a | -b) FLAG=$i; shift;;
          -o) OARG=$2; shift 2;;
          --) shift; break;;
          esac
          done

     This code will accept any of the following as equivalent:

          cmd -aoarg file file
          cmd -a -o arg file file
          cmd -oarg -a file file
          cmd -a -oarg -- file file

DIAGNOSTICS
     Getopt prints an error message on the standard error when it
     encounters an option letter not included in optstring.




Printed 4/6/89                                                  1





GETOPT(1)               COMMAND REFERENCE               GETOPT(1)



SEE ALSO
     sh(1sh) and getopt(3c).





















































Printed 4/6/89                                                  2



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