Linux® Command Line and Shell Scripting Bible

Chapter 14. Creating Functions

IN THIS CHAPTER

• Creating a function

• Using parameters

• Sharing functions

Often while writing shell scripts you'll find yourself using the same code in multiple locations. If it's just a small code snippet, it's usually not that big of a deal. However, if you're rewriting large chunks of code multiple times in your shell script, that can get tiring. The bash shell provides a way to help you out by supporting user-defined functions. You can encapsulate your shell script code into a function, which you can then use as many times as you want anywhere in your script. This chapter walks you through the process of creating your own shell script functions, and demonstrates how to use them in other shell script applications.

Basic Script Functions

As you start writing more complex shell scripts, you'll find yourself reusing parts of code that perform specific tasks. Sometimes it's something simple, such as displaying a text message and retrieving an answer from the script users. Other times it's a complicated calculation that's used multiple times in your script as part of a larger process.

In each of these situations, it can get tiresome writing the same blocks of code over and over again in your script. It would be nice to just write the block of code once, then be able to refer to that block of code anywhere in your script without having to rewrite it.

The bash shell provides a feature allowing you to do just that. Functions are blocks of script code that you assign ...