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FIND
!!!FIND
NAME
SYNOPSIS
DESCRIPTION
EXPRESSIONS
SEE ALSO
----
!!NAME


find - search for files in a directory hierarchy
!!SYNOPSIS


__find__ [[path...] [[expression]
!!DESCRIPTION


This manual page documents the GNU version of __find__.
__find__ searches the directory tree rooted at each given
file name by evaluating the given expression from left to
right, according to the rules of precedence (see section
OPERATORS), until the outcome is known (the left hand side
is false for ''and'' operations, true for ''or''), at
which point __find__ moves on to the next file
name.


The first argument that begins with `-', `(', `)', `,', or
`!' is taken to be the beginning of the expression; any
arguments before it are paths to search, and any arguments
after it are the rest of the expression. If no paths are
given, the current directory is used. If no expression is
given, the expression `-print' is used.


__find__ exits with status 0 if all files are processed
successfully, greater than 0 if errors occur.
!!EXPRESSIONS


The expression is made up of options (which affect overall
operation rather than the processing of a specific file, and
always return true), tests (which return a true or false
value), and actions (which have side effects and return a
true or false value), all separated by operators. -and is
assumed where the operator is omitted. If the expression
contains no actions other than -prune, -print is performed
on all files for which the expression is true.


__OPTIONS__


All options always return true. They always take effect,
rather than being processed only when their place in the
expression is reached. Therefore, for clarity, it is best to
place them at the beginning of the expression.


-daystart


Measure times (for -amin, -atime, -cmin, -ctime, -mmin, and
-mtime) from the beginning of today rather than from 24
hours ago.


-depth


Process each directory's contents before the directory
itself.


-follow


Dereference symbolic links. Implies -noleaf.


-help, --help


Print a summary of the command-line usage of __find__ and
exit.


-maxdepth ''levels''


Descend at most ''levels'' (a non-negative integer)
levels of directories below the command line arguments.
`-maxdepth 0' means only apply the tests and actions to the
command line arguments.


-mindepth ''levels''


Do not apply any tests or actions at levels less than
''levels'' (a non-negative integer). `-mindepth 1' means
process all files except the command line
arguments.


-mount


Don't descend directories on other filesystems. An alternate
name for -xdev, for compatibility with some other versions
of __find__.


-noleaf


Do not optimize by assuming that directories contain 2 fewer
subdirectories than their hard link count. This option is
needed when searching filesystems that do not follow the
Unix directory-link convention, such as CD-ROM or MS-DOS
filesystems or AFS volume mount points. Each directory on a
normal Unix filesystem has at least 2 hard links: its name
and its `.' entry. Additionally, its subdirectories (if any)
each have a `..' entry linked to that directory. When
__find__ is examining a directory, after it has statted 2
fewer subdirectories than the directory's link count, it
knows that the rest of the entries in the directory are
non-directories (`leaf' files in the directory tree). If
only the files' names need to be examined, there is no need
to stat them; this gives a significant increase in search
speed.


-version, --version


Print the __find__ version number and exit.


-xdev


Don't descend directories on other filesystems.


__TESTS__


Numeric arguments can be specified as


''+n''


for greater than ''n'',


''-n''


for less than ''n'',


''n''


for exactly ''n''.


-amin ''n''


File was last accessed ''n'' minutes ago.


-anewer ''file''


File was last accessed more recently than ''file'' was
modified. -anewer is affected by -follow only if -follow
comes before -anewer on the command line.


-atime ''n''


File was last accessed ''n''*24 hours ago.


-cmin ''n''


File's status was last changed ''n'' minutes
ago.


-cnewer ''file''


File's status was last changed more recently than
''file'' was modified. -cnewer is affected by -follow
only if -follow comes before -cnewer on the command
line.


-ctime ''n''


File's status was last changed ''n''*24 hours
ago.


-empty


File is empty and is either a regular file or a
directory.


-false


Always false.


-fstype ''type''


File is on a filesystem of type ''type''. The valid
filesystem types vary among different versions of Unix; an
incomplete list of filesystem types that are accepted on
some version of Unix or another is: ufs, 4.2, 4.3, nfs, tmp,
mfs, S51K, S52K. You can use -printf with the %F directive
to see the types of your filesystems.


-gid ''n''


File's numeric group ID is ''n''.


-group ''gname''


File belongs to group ''gname'' (numeric group ID
allowed).


-ilname ''pattern''


Like -lname, but the match is case insensitive.


-iname ''pattern''


Like -name, but the match is case insensitive. For example,
the patterns `fo*' and `F??' match the file names `Foo',
`FOO', `foo', `fOo', etc.


-inum ''n''


File has inode number ''n''.


-ipath ''pattern''


Like -path, but the match is case insensitive.


-iregex ''pattern''


Like -regex, but the match is case insensitive.


-links ''n''


File has ''n'' links.


-lname ''pattern''


File is a symbolic link whose contents match shell pattern
''pattern''. The metacharacters do not treat `/' or `.'
specially.


-mmin ''n''


File's data was last modified ''n'' minutes
ago.


-mtime ''n''


File's data was last modified ''n''*24 hours
ago.


-name ''pattern''


Base of file name (the path with the leading directories
removed) matches shell pattern ''pattern''. The
metacharacters (`*', `?', and `[[]') do not match a `.' at
the start of the base name. To ignore a directory and the
files under it, use -prune; see an example in the
description of -path.


-newer ''file''


File was modified more recently than ''file''. -newer is
affected by -follow only if -follow comes before -newer on
the command line.


-nouser


No user corresponds to file's numeric user ID.


-nogroup


No group corresponds to file's numeric group
ID.


-path ''pattern''


File name matches shell pattern ''pattern''. The
metacharacters do not treat `/' or `.' specially; so, for
example,


find . -path './sr*sc'


will print an entry for a directory called './src/misc' (if
one exists). To ignore a whole directory tree, use -prune
rather than checking every file in the tree. For example, to
skip the directory `src/emacs' and all files and directories
under it, and print the names of the other files found, do
something like this:


find . -path './src/emacs' -prune -o -print


-perm ''mode''


File's permission bits are exactly ''mode'' (octal or
symbolic). Symbolic modes use mode 0 as a point of
departure.


-perm -''mode''


All of the permission bits ''mode'' are set for the
file.


-perm +''mode''


Any of the permission bits ''mode'' are set for the
file.


-regex ''pattern''


File name matches regular expression ''pattern''. This is
a match on the whole path, not a search. For example, to
match a file named `./fubar3', you can use the regular
expression `.*bar.' or `.*b.*3', but not
`b.*r3'.


-size ''n''[[bckw]


File uses ''n'' units of space. The units are 512-byte
blocks by default or if `b' follows ''n'', bytes if `c'
follows ''n'', kilobytes if `k' follows ''n'', or
2-byte words if `w' follows ''n''. The size does not
count indirect blocks, but it does count blocks in sparse
files that are not actually allocated.


-true


Always true.


-type ''c''


File is of type ''c'':


b


block (buffered) special


c


character (unbuffered) special


d


directory


p


named pipe (FIFO)


f


regular file


l


symbolic link


s


socket


D


door (Solaris)


-uid ''n''


File's numeric user ID is ''n''.


-used ''n''


File was last accessed ''n'' days after its status was
last changed.


-user ''uname''


File is owned by user ''uname'' (numeric user ID
allowed).


-xtype ''c''


The same as -type unless the file is a symbolic link. For
symbolic links: if -follow has not been given, true if the
file is a link to a file of type ''c''; if -follow has
been given, true if ''c'' is `l'. In other words, for
symbolic links, -xtype checks the type of the file that
-type does not check.


__ACTIONS__


-exec ''command'' ;


Execute ''command''; true if 0 status is returned. All
following arguments to __find__ are taken to be arguments
to the command until an argument consisting of `;' is
encountered. The string `{}' is replaced by the current file
name being processed everywhere it occurs in the arguments
to the command, not just in arguments where it is alone, as
in some versions of __find__. Both of these constructions
might need to be escaped (with a `') or quoted to protect
them from expansion by the shell. The command is executed in
the starting directory.


-fls ''file''


True; like -ls but write to ''file'' like
-fprint.


-fprint ''file''


True; print the full file name into file ''file''. If
''file'' does not exist when __find__ is run, it is
created; if it does exist, it is truncated. The file names
``/dev/stdout'' and ``/dev/stderr'' are handled specially;
they refer to the standard output and standard error output,
respectively.


-fprint0 ''file''


True; like -print0 but write to ''file'' like
-fprint.


-fprintf ''file format''


True; like -printf but write to ''file'' like
-fprint.


-ok ''command'' ;


Like -exec but ask the user first (on the standard input);
if the response does not start with `y' or `Y', do not run
the command, and return false.


-print


True; print the full file name on the standard output,
followed by a newline.


-print0


True; print the full file name on the standard output,
followed by a null character. This allows file names that
contain newlines to be correctly interpreted by programs
that process the __find__ output.


-printf ''format''


True; print ''format'' on the standard output,
interpreting `' escapes and `%' directives. Field widths and
precisions can be specified as with the `printf' C function.
Unlike -print, -printf does not add a newline at the end of
the string. The escapes and directives are:


a


Alarm bell.


b


Backspace.


c


Stop printing from this format immediately and flush the
output.


f


Form feed.


n


Newline.


r


Carriage return.


t


Horizontal tab.


v


Vertical tab.


\


A literal backslash (`').


A `' character followed by any other character is treated as
an ordinary character, so they both are
printed.


%%


A literal percent sign.


%a


File's last access time in the format returned by the C
`ctime' function.


%A''k''


File's last access time in the format specified by ''k'',
which is either `@' or a directive for the C `strftime'
function. The possible values for ''k'' are listed below;
some of them might not be available on all systems, due to
differences in `strftime' between systems.


@


seconds since Jan. 1, 1970, 00:00 GMT.


Time fields:


H


hour (00..23)


I


hour (01..12)


k


hour ( 0..23)


l


hour ( 1..12)


M


minute (00..59)


p


locale's AM or PM


r


time, 12-hour (hh:mm:ss [[AP]M)


S


second (00..61)


T


time, 24-hour (hh:mm:ss)


X


locale's time representation (H:M:S)


Z


time zone (e.g., EDT), or nothing if no time zone is
determinable


Date fields:


a


locale's abbreviated weekday name (Sun..Sat)


A


locale's full weekday name, variable length
(Sunday..Saturday)


b


locale's abbreviated month name (Jan..Dec)


B


locale's full month name, variable length
(January..December)


c


locale's date and time (Sat Nov 04 12:02:33 EST
1989)


d


day of month (01..31)


D


date (mm/dd/yy)


h


same as b


j


day of year (001..366)


m


month (01..12)


U


week number of year with Sunday as first day of week
(00..53)


w


day of week (0..6)


W


week number of year with Monday as first day of week
(00..53)


x


locale's date representation (mm/dd/yy)


y


last two digits of year (00..99)


Y


year (1970...)


%b


File's size in 512-byte blocks (rounded up).


%c


File's last status change time in the format returned by the
C `ctime' function.


%C''k''


File's last status change time in the format specified by
''k'', which is the same as for %A.


%d


File's depth in the directory tree; 0 means the file is a
command line argument.


%f


File's name with any leading directories removed (only the
last element).


%F


Type of the filesystem the file is on; this value can be
used for -fstype.


%g


File's group name, or numeric group ID if the group has no
name.


%G


File's numeric group ID.


%h


Leading directories of file's name (all but the last
element).


%H


Command line argument under which file was
found.


%i


File's inode number (in decimal).


%k


File's size in 1K blocks (rounded up).


%l


Object of symbolic link (empty string if file is not a
symbolic link).


%m


File's permission bits (in octal).


%n


Number of hard links to file.


%p


File's name.


%P


File's name with the name of the command line argument under
which it was found removed.


%s


File's size in bytes.


%t


File's last modification time in the format returned by the
C `ctime' function.


%T''k''


File's last modification time in the format specified by
''k'', which is the same as for %A.


%u


File's user name, or numeric user ID if the user has no
name.


%U


File's numeric user ID.


A `%' character followed by any other character is discarded
(but the other character is printed).


-prune


If -depth is not given, true; do not descend the current
directory.
If -depth is given, false; no effect.


-ls


True; list current file in `ls -dils' format on standard
output. The block counts are of 1K blocks, unless the
environment variable POSIXLY_CORRECT is set, in which case
512-byte blocks are used.


__OPERATORS__


Listed in order of decreasing precedence:


( ''expr'' )


Force precedence.


! ''expr''


True if ''expr'' is false.


-not ''expr''


Same as ! ''expr''.


''expr1 expr2''


And (implied); ''expr2'' is not evaluated if ''expr1''
is false.


''expr1'' -a ''expr2''


Same as ''expr1 expr2''.


''expr1'' -and ''expr2''


Same as ''expr1 expr2''.


''expr1'' -o ''expr2''


Or; ''expr2'' is not evaluated if ''expr1'' is
true.


''expr1'' -or ''expr2''


Same as ''expr1'' -o ''expr2''.


''expr1'' , ''expr2''


List; both ''expr1'' and ''expr2'' are always
evaluated. The value of ''expr1'' is discarded; the value
of the list is the value of ''expr2''.
!!SEE ALSO


__locate__(1L), __locatedb__(5L), __updatedb__(1L),
__xargs__(1L) __Finding Files__ (on-line in Info, or
printed)
----
150 pages link to find(1):
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Last edited on Monday, June 3, 2002 6:50:12 pm by "perry"
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