Newsgroups: comp.unix.questions
Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!uupsi!rodan.acs.syr.edu!jstewart
From: jstewart@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Ace Stewart)
Subject: Problems with rm -f
Message-ID: <1991May14.190816.17169@rodan.acs.syr.edu>
Sender: jstewart@rodan.acs.syr.edu (Ace Stewart)
Organization: Syracuse Univ/Eastman Kodak Co.
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 14 May 91 19:08:16 GMT


System: Sun 4/490 running 4.1_PSR_A

Problem: When running a "rm -f" on files that may or may not be in a
sub-directory, the -f doesn't seem to suppress the error output if a
file doesn't exist. Script as follows:

----------------
% ls .Mail/drafts			Listing of directory
1	2
3	,1
,4

% rm -f .Mail/drafts/,*			Remove the , files (temp files)
%					All okay!  :)

% rm -f .Mail/drafts/,*			Do it again, _problems!_
No match.
%
----------------

What the heck is the -f option there for if it still throws up at you
if files in a sub-directory don't exist? It works fine if you are _in_
a that directory (i.e. 'rm -f ,*'  run twice in the sub-directory
suppresses errors correctly)

Comments/suggestions/help? Am I doing something incredibly stupid?

--Ace


-- 
    Ace Stewart | Affiliation: Eastman Kodak Company, Rochester, New York
jstewart@rodan.acs.syr.edu jstewart@sunrise.bitnet jstewart@mothra.cns.syr.edu
   jstewart@sunspot.cns.syr.edu     ace@suvm.bitnet     rsjns@suvm.bitnet