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Shell Script Loops Explained

The document explains four types of shell script loops: For, While, Until, and Select loops, detailing their syntax and functionality. Each loop type is accompanied by an example script demonstrating its use, along with a summary of use cases for each loop. The For loop is for predefined lists, While loop for conditions that remain true, Until loop for conditions that need to become true, and Select loop for creating interactive menus.

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19 views5 pages

Shell Script Loops Explained

The document explains four types of shell script loops: For, While, Until, and Select loops, detailing their syntax and functionality. Each loop type is accompanied by an example script demonstrating its use, along with a summary of use cases for each loop. The For loop is for predefined lists, While loop for conditions that remain true, Until loop for conditions that need to become true, and Select loop for creating interactive menus.

Uploaded by

aryankothambia
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Shell Script Loops Explained

1. For Loop:

Syntax:

for var in word1 word2 ... wordN

do

# Commands to execute for each word

done

How it works:

- A for loop iterates through a list of words (or numbers, files, etc.), assigning each value to the variable var

- Useful when you know the range or set of items beforehand.

Example:

#!/bin/bash

echo "Printing numbers from 1 to 5:"

for num in 1 2 3 4 5

do

echo $num

done

Output:

Printing numbers from 1 to 5:

3
4

---------------------------------------------------

2. While Loop:

Syntax:

while command

do

# Commands to execute while the command is true

done

How it works:

- A while loop keeps executing as long as the given command or condition evaluates to true.

- Useful when you do not know in advance how many iterations are needed.

Example:

#!/bin/bash

num=1

echo "Printing numbers from 1 to 5 using while loop:"

while [ $num -le 5 ]

do

echo $num

num=$((num + 1)) # Increment the counter

done

Output:
Printing numbers from 1 to 5 using while loop:

---------------------------------------------------

3. Until Loop:

Syntax:

until [ condition ];

do

# Commands to execute until the condition becomes true

done

How it works:

- An until loop is the opposite of a while loop: it keeps running as long as the condition is false and stops wh

- Useful for tasks where you need to wait for a condition to become true.

Example:

#!/bin/bash

num=1

echo "Printing numbers from 1 to 5 using until loop:"

until [ $num -gt 5 ]

do

echo $num
num=$((num + 1)) # Increment the counter

done

Output:

Printing numbers from 1 to 5 using until loop:

---------------------------------------------------

4. Select Loop:

Syntax:

select var in word1 word2 ... wordN

do

# Commands to execute for each word

done

How it works:

- A select loop is used to create simple menus.

- It displays a numbered list of items and waits for the user to select an option by entering the correspondin

- Very useful for creating interactive scripts.

Example:

#!/bin/bash
echo "Choose a programming language:"

select lang in Python Java C++ Bash

do

echo "You selected: $lang"

break # Exit after the first selection

done

Output:

1) Python

2) Java

3) C++

4) Bash

#? 2

You selected: Java

---------------------------------------------------

Summary of Use Cases:

| Loop | Use Case |

|--------------|---------------------------------------------------------|

| For Loop | Predefined list of items to iterate through |

| While Loop | Repeat as long as a condition is true |

| Until Loop | Repeat until a condition becomes true |

| Select Loop | Create menus or prompt the user to choose an option |

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