Bash: remove oldest file

Hi,

I'm trying to remove the oldest file (whenever there's 14 or more):

Code:

---

               
                FILECOUNT=`ls | wc -l`;
                if [ $FILECOUNT > 14 ]
                then
                        cd "$PATH" && ls -tr | head -n 1 | xargx rm -f;
                        echo "Removed oldest file ...";
                else
                        echo "No 14 files in the filesystem yet, nothing to remove";
                fi

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I keep getting the following error though:

Quote:

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./mysqlbackup: line 1: ls: command not found
./mysqlbackup: line 1: wc: command not found
No 14 files in the filesystem yet, nothing to remove

---

Can anyone tell me what I'm doing wrong here ?

Thnx in advance !

PATH is a special variable. Apparently your script is overwriting its value and breaking path search. Never use a variable called PATH.

Yes, that was the problem, thnx

But it's not removing the file though .. is there any way to do this without xargx ? Cause it's not installed :\

Code:

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cd "$PATH" && ls -tr | head -n 1 | read file &&  rm -f $file

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Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReggieBE

Yes, that was the problem, thnx

But it's not removing the file though .. is there any way to do this without xargx ? Cause it's not installed :\

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It's not xargx, it's xargs

lol ok thanks brewbuck and mcnamara, it's fixed !

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ReggieBE

lol ok thanks brewbuck and mcnamara, it's fixed !

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You can do it without xargs OR read:

Code:

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cd "$MY_PATH" && rm -f `ls -tr | head -n 1`

---

Those are backward single quotes, known as backticks. It takes the output of the pipeline within the backticks and substitutes it lexically into the command line. Very useful.

Quote:

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Code:

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cd "$MY_PATH" && rm -f `ls -tr | head -n 1`

---

Those are backward single quotes, known as backticks. It takes the output of the pipeline within the backticks and substitutes it lexically into the command line. Very useful.

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That's the old-style syntax. For POSIX compatibility, one should be using $() instead of ``:

Code:

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cd "$MY_PATH" && rm -f $(ls -tr | head -n 1)

---

Besides portability (between newer systems, anyway), $() has several advantages. For example, you can nest them, unlike backquotes.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dwks

That's the old-style syntax. For POSIX compatibility, one should be using $() instead of ``:

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I don't really buy the portability argument. I don't know of any Bourne-style shell that does not understand the back ticks. However, I know of at least 4 systems within 100 feet of me that do NOT understand $().

So in practice, I use back ticks because it's more portable.

Quote:

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Besides portability (between newer systems, anyway), $() has several advantages. For example, you can nest them, unlike backquotes.

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I'd call the inability to nest back ticks a feature, not a disadvantage. Nesting substitutions leads to an unreadable mess.

Quote:

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I don't really buy the portability argument.

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How about portability between keyboards? Getting backticks on the console can be a real pain with German keyboards until the system is completely set up and tuned.

Backquotes are more portable now, simply because they have been around for a longer period of time. But POSIX-style shell substitution is part of the POSIX standard, and they make more sense anyway: the characters are easier to type, the characters are easy to distinguish (` can look like '), and they can be nested.

I would use the POSIX style unless the shell doesn't support it.