• Posts
  • RSS
  • ◂◂RSS
  • Contact

  • Run When Done

    May 20th, 2014
    tech
    If you want to run a command when another finishes, the shell can do that for you:
        $ long_running_process.sh && echo "runs on success"
        $ long_running_process.sh || echo "runs on failure"
        $ long_running_process.sh ;  echo "runs either way"
    
    One common thing to do this with is email, so you get a notification:
        $ long_running_process.sh ; echo done | mail -s done jeff@jefftk.com
    
    (This does require your server to be set up for sending mail in a way that won't get rejected, which is actually kind of tricky.)

    For years, though, I've gotten annoyed at myself when after a process has been running for a while I wish I had set something else to run after it. Should I kill the process and start it over with && something_else.sh, or should I let it finish and then run something_else.sh on my own?

    It turns out you don't have to choose! Shell job control can do this for you. Just background the first command, and then when you foreground it add the next command:

        $ sleep 10
        ^Z
        [1]+  Stopped                 sleep 10
        $ fg ; echo "finished, exit status is $?"
        sleep 10
    (a few seconds of waiting)
        finished, exit status is 0
    
    You can see fg substitutes for the original command, running as long as it would, and passing along the exit status so && and || still work.

    Comment via: google plus, facebook

    Recent posts on blogs I like:

    Moral aesthetics

    “Doing good” differs by subculture The post Moral aesthetics appeared first on Otherwise.

    via Otherwise September 29, 2022

    Futurist prediction methods and accuracy

    I've been reading a lot of predictions from people who are looking to understand what problems humanity will face 10-50 years out (and sometimes longer) in order to work in areas that will be instrumental for the future and wondering how accurate thes…

    via Posts on September 12, 2022

    On the Beach

    I really like going in the water and this beach is a great place for building sand castles and boogie boarding. I also like trying to float on top of big waves. I'm not very good at it. I only float on the flat waves.

    via Anna Wise's Blog Posts July 12, 2022

    more     (via openring)


  • Posts
  • RSS
  • ◂◂RSS
  • Contact