Created SC2243 (markdown)

Vidar Holen
2018-12-28 19:36:19 -08:00
parent b55ab54d90
commit cbffeb3653

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SC2243.md Normal file

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## Prefer explicit -n to check for output (or run command without [/[[ to check for success)
### Problematic code:
```sh
if [ "$(mycommand --myflags)" ]
then
echo "True"
fi
```
### Correct code:
```sh
# Check that the command outputs something on stdout
if [ -n "$(mycommand --myflags)" ]
then
echo "The command had output on stdout"
fi
# Check instead that the command succeeded (exit code = 0)
if mycommand --myflags
then
echo "The command reported success"
fi
```
(if the command instead outputs "0" or "false", see [[SC2244]] for integer and "boolean" comparisons)
### Rationale:
`[ "$(mycommand)" ]` is equivalent to `[ -n "$(mycommand)" ]` and checks whether the command's output on stdout was non-empty.
Users more familiar with other languages are often surprised to learn that it is nothing like e.g. `if (myfunction())`, since it does not care about what the command/function `return`s.
Using an explicit `-n` helps clarify that this is purely a string operation. And of course, if the intention was to check whether the command ran successfully, now would be a good time to fix it as in the alternate example.
### Exceptions:
If you are familiar with the semantics of `[`, you can [[ignore]] this suggestion with no ill effects.
### Related resources:
* Help by adding links to BashFAQ, StackOverflow, man pages, POSIX, etc!