Mixing
What is the difference between the terms “programâ€, “command†and “function†in Linux & Unix?
Clash Royale CLAN TAG#URR8PPP
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I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
shell command-line function bash-functions
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
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add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
favorite
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
shell command-line function bash-functions
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
favorite
up vote
6
down vote
favorite
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
shell command-line function bash-functions
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
shell command-line function bash-functions
shell command-line function bash-functions
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
edited 10 mins ago
Benjamin W.
393110
393110
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
asked 6 hours ago
Lion
403
403
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Lion is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
1
What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago
add a comment |Â
1
What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago
1
1
What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago
add a comment |Â
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
up vote
9
down vote
It depends.
Commands can fall into multiple categories: builtins, aliases,
functions, executables (scripts and binaries in the search path).
On the command line, these occupy a single, flat namespace which
makes overriding possible. There are numerous ways of telling
kinds of programs apart:
$ f () :;
$ alias a=cat
$ which f
f ()
:
We know that f is a function.
$ which a
alias a='cat'
/usr/bin/cat
We know that a is an alias.
$ which yes
/usr/bin/yes
We know that yes is a program.
$ builtin echo ; echo $?
0
The shell has an echo builtin …
$ builtin cat ; echo $?
bash: builtin: cat: not a shell builtin
1
… but none for cat. If there is a builtin or an alias
but you insist on calling the program instead, prefix the
command with a backslash:
$ builtin true | printf "%dn" $?
0
$ alias true=false
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
1
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
0
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'
– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,typeis preferable towhichfor almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943
– Wildcard
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
The definition of a function is returning single values, and does not output anything. Shell functions in particular may very well and could have an output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
A command is an instruction given by a user to tell a computer to do something, for example, executing a single program or a group of linked programs.
A program is a sequence of instructions (i.e. commands) that are given to a computer and understandable by the computer's central processing unit (CPU). these instructions indicates which operations the computer should perform on a set of data.
Having said that, functions are logical subset of the program. Calling one is entirely within your process. The command is a program (or a shell built-in) can be executed from the command shell. The command implements functions which perform a task. The opposite is not correct.
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't callchdir()orsetenv()in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.
– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
Yes.
Specifically, when you type in some text and press enter, the shell must determine whether it's:
- an
alias, - a function,
- a built-in command,
- an executable file.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
add a comment |Â
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
3 Answers
3
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
active
oldest
votes
up vote
9
down vote
It depends.
Commands can fall into multiple categories: builtins, aliases,
functions, executables (scripts and binaries in the search path).
On the command line, these occupy a single, flat namespace which
makes overriding possible. There are numerous ways of telling
kinds of programs apart:
$ f () :;
$ alias a=cat
$ which f
f ()
:
We know that f is a function.
$ which a
alias a='cat'
/usr/bin/cat
We know that a is an alias.
$ which yes
/usr/bin/yes
We know that yes is a program.
$ builtin echo ; echo $?
0
The shell has an echo builtin …
$ builtin cat ; echo $?
bash: builtin: cat: not a shell builtin
1
… but none for cat. If there is a builtin or an alias
but you insist on calling the program instead, prefix the
command with a backslash:
$ builtin true | printf "%dn" $?
0
$ alias true=false
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
1
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
0
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'
– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,typeis preferable towhichfor almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943
– Wildcard
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
9
down vote
It depends.
Commands can fall into multiple categories: builtins, aliases,
functions, executables (scripts and binaries in the search path).
On the command line, these occupy a single, flat namespace which
makes overriding possible. There are numerous ways of telling
kinds of programs apart:
$ f () :;
$ alias a=cat
$ which f
f ()
:
We know that f is a function.
$ which a
alias a='cat'
/usr/bin/cat
We know that a is an alias.
$ which yes
/usr/bin/yes
We know that yes is a program.
$ builtin echo ; echo $?
0
The shell has an echo builtin …
$ builtin cat ; echo $?
bash: builtin: cat: not a shell builtin
1
… but none for cat. If there is a builtin or an alias
but you insist on calling the program instead, prefix the
command with a backslash:
$ builtin true | printf "%dn" $?
0
$ alias true=false
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
1
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
0
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'
– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,typeis preferable towhichfor almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943
– Wildcard
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
9
down vote
up vote
9
down vote
It depends.
Commands can fall into multiple categories: builtins, aliases,
functions, executables (scripts and binaries in the search path).
On the command line, these occupy a single, flat namespace which
makes overriding possible. There are numerous ways of telling
kinds of programs apart:
$ f () :;
$ alias a=cat
$ which f
f ()
:
We know that f is a function.
$ which a
alias a='cat'
/usr/bin/cat
We know that a is an alias.
$ which yes
/usr/bin/yes
We know that yes is a program.
$ builtin echo ; echo $?
0
The shell has an echo builtin …
$ builtin cat ; echo $?
bash: builtin: cat: not a shell builtin
1
… but none for cat. If there is a builtin or an alias
but you insist on calling the program instead, prefix the
command with a backslash:
$ builtin true | printf "%dn" $?
0
$ alias true=false
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
1
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
0
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
It depends.
Commands can fall into multiple categories: builtins, aliases,
functions, executables (scripts and binaries in the search path).
On the command line, these occupy a single, flat namespace which
makes overriding possible. There are numerous ways of telling
kinds of programs apart:
$ f () :;
$ alias a=cat
$ which f
f ()
:
We know that f is a function.
$ which a
alias a='cat'
/usr/bin/cat
We know that a is an alias.
$ which yes
/usr/bin/yes
We know that yes is a program.
$ builtin echo ; echo $?
0
The shell has an echo builtin …
$ builtin cat ; echo $?
bash: builtin: cat: not a shell builtin
1
… but none for cat. If there is a builtin or an alias
but you insist on calling the program instead, prefix the
command with a backslash:
$ builtin true | printf "%dn" $?
0
$ alias true=false
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
1
$ true ; printf "%dn" $?
0
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
answered 6 hours ago
phg
557415
557415
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'
– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,typeis preferable towhichfor almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943
– Wildcard
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'
– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,typeis preferable towhichfor almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943
– Wildcard
3 mins ago
1
1
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
Also, a command that's a program in one implementation of *nix might well become a shell builtin (= function) in another.
– jamesqf
2 hours ago
1
1
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.
sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
@jamesqf, yeah, shell's have standard tools built in, but builtin commands are not the same as functions. Run e.g.
sh -c 'type true; f() echo x; ; type f'– ilkkachu
46 mins ago
Note that in general,
type is preferable to which for almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943– Wildcard
3 mins ago
Note that in general,
type is preferable to which for almost all purposes. See unix.stackexchange.com/q/85249/135943– Wildcard
3 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
The definition of a function is returning single values, and does not output anything. Shell functions in particular may very well and could have an output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
A command is an instruction given by a user to tell a computer to do something, for example, executing a single program or a group of linked programs.
A program is a sequence of instructions (i.e. commands) that are given to a computer and understandable by the computer's central processing unit (CPU). these instructions indicates which operations the computer should perform on a set of data.
Having said that, functions are logical subset of the program. Calling one is entirely within your process. The command is a program (or a shell built-in) can be executed from the command shell. The command implements functions which perform a task. The opposite is not correct.
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't callchdir()orsetenv()in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.
– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
The definition of a function is returning single values, and does not output anything. Shell functions in particular may very well and could have an output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
A command is an instruction given by a user to tell a computer to do something, for example, executing a single program or a group of linked programs.
A program is a sequence of instructions (i.e. commands) that are given to a computer and understandable by the computer's central processing unit (CPU). these instructions indicates which operations the computer should perform on a set of data.
Having said that, functions are logical subset of the program. Calling one is entirely within your process. The command is a program (or a shell built-in) can be executed from the command shell. The command implements functions which perform a task. The opposite is not correct.
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't callchdir()orsetenv()in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.
– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
6
down vote
up vote
6
down vote
The definition of a function is returning single values, and does not output anything. Shell functions in particular may very well and could have an output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
A command is an instruction given by a user to tell a computer to do something, for example, executing a single program or a group of linked programs.
A program is a sequence of instructions (i.e. commands) that are given to a computer and understandable by the computer's central processing unit (CPU). these instructions indicates which operations the computer should perform on a set of data.
Having said that, functions are logical subset of the program. Calling one is entirely within your process. The command is a program (or a shell built-in) can be executed from the command shell. The command implements functions which perform a task. The opposite is not correct.
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
The definition of a function is returning single values, and does not output anything. Shell functions in particular may very well and could have an output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
A command is an instruction given by a user to tell a computer to do something, for example, executing a single program or a group of linked programs.
A program is a sequence of instructions (i.e. commands) that are given to a computer and understandable by the computer's central processing unit (CPU). these instructions indicates which operations the computer should perform on a set of data.
Having said that, functions are logical subset of the program. Calling one is entirely within your process. The command is a program (or a shell built-in) can be executed from the command shell. The command implements functions which perform a task. The opposite is not correct.
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
edited 1 hour ago
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
answered 6 hours ago
Goro
1,68541644
1,68541644
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't callchdir()orsetenv()in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.
– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't callchdir()orsetenv()in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.
– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
5
5
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
"a function returns a single value, and does not output anything" -- well, yeah, in the mathematical sense maybe. But in imperative programming languages, it's really common for "function" to mean just a subroutine, one that could do anything. And shell functions in particular may very well have output or other side effects, since the return value of functions is so limited.
– ilkkachu
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
@ilkkachu. Thank you. I have updated the answer. Please feel free to revise ;-)
– Goro
6 hours ago
2
2
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
I think these definitions are from a programming-language context, not a shell context. Yes, I know the shell language is a programming language, but its idea of a "function" is quite different to the mathematical or computer-science definition - in shell, all commands (whether builtins, functions, aliases, programs or scripts) act alike, and are simply different kinds of implementation.
– Toby Speight
1 hour ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't call
chdir() or setenv() in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
...*mostly* alike; builtins can change the state of the shell itself, whereas external programs can't call
chdir() or setenv() in the shell that is, to them, a distinct parent process.– Charles Duffy
12 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
Yes.
Specifically, when you type in some text and press enter, the shell must determine whether it's:
- an
alias, - a function,
- a built-in command,
- an executable file.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
Yes.
Specifically, when you type in some text and press enter, the shell must determine whether it's:
- an
alias, - a function,
- a built-in command,
- an executable file.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
add a comment |Â
up vote
1
down vote
up vote
1
down vote
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
Yes.
Specifically, when you type in some text and press enter, the shell must determine whether it's:
- an
alias, - a function,
- a built-in command,
- an executable file.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
I would like to know whether the commands that we call in the shell are functions or programs?
Yes.
Specifically, when you type in some text and press enter, the shell must determine whether it's:
- an
alias, - a function,
- a built-in command,
- an executable file.
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
edited 27 mins ago
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
answered 1 hour ago
RonJohn
495213
495213
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
add a comment |Â
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
1
1
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
About 4. Figuring out if the executable is a binary program or a script is outside the scope of the calling shell. This task is handled by the kernel.
– jlliagre
42 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
@jlliagre thanks. Will edit the answer.
– RonJohn
27 mins ago
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What distinction are you making between "small program" and "function"?
– JdeBP
5 hours ago
What practical difference do you see this making?
– Jeff Schaller
4 hours ago