Linux › Section K · Shell scripts › Topic K.1

Script basics, quoting, and literals

A shell script is a file of the same commands you type at the prompt, saved so that it can run as a program. Most of the bugs that puzzle new script writers come from one habit of the shell, rewriting a command line before it runs, and quoting is how you take control of that.

In this topic

  • From typed commands to a script
  • The shebang line
  • Comments, long lines and permissions
  • What the shell does before a command runs
  • Worked example: a pattern eaten by a glob
  • Single quotes: everything literal
  • Double quotes: variables in, globs out
  • Backslashes and literal single quotes
  • Worked example: quoting an awkward string
  • Common mistakes to avoid
  • Key takeaways

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