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bashshellunixls

how does this bash operation work in shell scipt

Hello i have come across a bash operation that i am finding hard to understand i have looked through the bash reference manual but have had no luck figuring out how this operation works.

i am having trouble understanding what the operation does i know ls -A will list all files including hidden files and the variable already has information stored within it, so what does the $() operation do.

this is the operation.

if [ "$(ls -A $variable)" ]

thanks for the feedback

Solution

  • if [ "$(ls -A $variable)" ] will be true if the command ls -A $variable returns any output - the $() "operator" (or command substitution) executes the command and returns it's output.