docs/test: Simplify

A bit stuffy, also link to string/path
This commit is contained in:
Fabian Boehm 2023-02-28 20:43:36 +01:00
parent c7ea768a74
commit aff84ef87d

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@ -11,7 +11,6 @@ Synopsis
test [EXPRESSION]
[ [EXPRESSION] ]
Description
-----------
@ -21,13 +20,11 @@ Description
To see the documentation on the ``test`` command you might have,
use ``command man test``.
Tests the expression given and sets the exit status to 0 if true, and 1 if false. An expression is made up of one or more operators and their arguments.
``test`` checks the given conditions and sets the exit status to 0 if they are true, 1 if they are false.
The first form (``test``) is preferred. For compatibility with other shells, the second form is available: a matching pair of square brackets (``[ [EXPRESSION] ]``).
This test is mostly POSIX-compatible.
When using a variable as an argument for a test operator you should almost always enclose it in double-quotes. There are only two situations it is safe to omit the quote marks. The first is when the argument is a literal string with no whitespace or other characters special to the shell (e.g., semicolon). For example, ``test -b /my/file``. The second is using a variable that expands to exactly one element including if that element is the empty string (e.g., ``set x ''``). If the variable is not set, set but with no value, or set to more than one value you must enclose it in double-quotes. For example, ``test "$x" = "$y"``. Since it is always safe to enclose variables in double-quotes when used as ``test`` arguments that is the recommended practice.
When using a variable as an argument with ``test`` you should almost always enclose it in double-quotes, as variables expanding to zero or more than one argument will most likely interact badly with ``test``.
Operators for files and directories
-----------------------------------
@ -163,8 +160,6 @@ Examples
If the ``/tmp`` directory exists, copy the ``/etc/motd`` file to it:
::
if test -d /tmp
@ -174,8 +169,6 @@ If the ``/tmp`` directory exists, copy the ``/etc/motd`` file to it:
If the variable :envvar:`MANPATH` is defined and not empty, print the contents. (If :envvar:`MANPATH` is not defined, then it will expand to zero arguments, unless quoted.)
::
if test -n "$MANPATH"
@ -185,8 +178,6 @@ If the variable :envvar:`MANPATH` is defined and not empty, print the contents.
Parentheses and the ``-o`` and ``-a`` operators can be combined to produce more complicated expressions. In this example, success is printed if there is a ``/foo`` or ``/bar`` file as well as a ``/baz`` or ``/bat`` file.
::
if test \( -f /foo -o -f /bar \) -a \( -f /baz -o -f /bat \)
@ -196,30 +187,22 @@ Parentheses and the ``-o`` and ``-a`` operators can be combined to produce more
Numerical comparisons will simply fail if one of the operands is not a number:
::
if test 42 -eq "The answer to life, the universe and everything"
echo So long and thanks for all the fish # will not be executed
end
A common comparison is with :envvar:`status`:
::
if test $status -eq 0
echo "Previous command succeeded"
end
The previous test can likewise be inverted:
::
if test ! $status -eq 0
@ -229,8 +212,6 @@ The previous test can likewise be inverted:
which is logically equivalent to the following:
::
if test $status -ne 0
@ -241,10 +222,16 @@ which is logically equivalent to the following:
Standards
---------
``test`` implements a subset of the `IEEE Std 1003.1-2008 (POSIX.1) standard <https://www.unix.com/man-page/posix/1p/test/>`__. The following exceptions apply:
Unlike many things in fish, ``test`` implements a subset of the `IEEE Std 1003.1-2008 (POSIX.1) standard <https://www.unix.com/man-page/posix/1p/test/>`__. The following exceptions apply:
- The ``<`` and ``>`` operators for comparing strings are not implemented.
- Because this test is a shell builtin and not a standalone utility, using the -c flag on a special file descriptors like standard input and output may not return the same result when invoked from within a pipe as one would expect when invoking the ``test`` utility in another shell.
In cases such as this, one can use ``command`` ``test`` to explicitly use the system's standalone ``test`` rather than this ``builtin`` ``test``.
See also
--------
Other commands that may be useful as a condition, and are often easier to use:
- :doc:`string`, which can do string operations including wildcard and regular expression matching
- :doc:`path`, which can do file checks and operations, including filters on multiple paths at once