Question

Need shell script to rename files, and then move them

Asked by: cfetzer

Hello all!

At this time I have an application on my Solaris box that exports reports to a particular directory.  Every morning, the files are exported there, with the same name every day, (this is necessary because another application uses them and depends on that particular name).  Anyway, if I don't move those files out of that directory at the end of the day, the next morning's export won't happen as the application that exports will not copy over existing files with the same name.  The other thing is that we need to keep all prior versions of the report in an archive directory.  I would like to automate this.

Would it be possible to have a shell script, (we use Korn shell, if that matters) that will do the following:

1) look in the export directory, and append all file names with the current date, (not date and time, just "short" date).

2) move all newly modified files to a specified directory where we archive old reports.

3) delete the files left over in the export directory so that it is always clean for the next morning's exports.

I would really appreciate any help!

Thanks!
Chad

This Question has been solved and asker verified All Experts Exchange premium technology solutions are available to subscription members.

Subscribe now for full access to Experts Exchange and get

Instant Access to this Solution

  • Plus...
  • 30 Day FREE access, no risk, no obligation
  • Collaborate with the world's top tech experts
  • Unlimited access to our exclusive solution database
  • Never be left without tech help again

Subscribe Now

Asked On
2003-04-25 at 06:30:45ID20596210
Tags

rename

,

script

,

shell

,

file

Topic

Sun Solaris

Participating Experts
2
Points
300
Comments
6

Trusted by hundreds of thousands everyday for fast, accurate and reliable tech support.

  • "The time we save is the biggest benefit of Experts Exchange to Warner Bros. What could take multiple guys 2 hours or more each to find is accessed in around 15 minutes on Experts Exchange." Mike Kapnisakis, Warner Bros.
  • "Our team likes having a resource that is more secure than just using Google and most experts using this service really know their stuff. It's nice to look here first versus using Google." Dayna Sellner, Lockheed Martin
  • "Anytime that I've been stumped with a problem, 9 out of 10 times Experts Exchange has either the accepted solution or an open discussion of the potential solution to the problem." Kenny Red, eBay Inc.

See what Experts Exchange can do for you.

Got a question?

We've got the answer.

Experts Exchange has been collecting answers to technology questions since 1996…3 million and counting! If you have a question, chances are we already have your answer.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Need individual assistance?

Our experts are ready to help.

If you can't find the exact answer you're looking for, ask our exclusive community of 50,000 experts. You’ll get a personalized answer from a trusted professional.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Want to learn from the best?

Read articles from industry experts.

Thousands of free tech tips, tricks, how-to’s and tutorials are available in our peer reviewed articles section. See for yourself how smart our experts are, no login required.

Screenshot of an Article

Working on a long term project?

Store your work and research.

Save solutions to your questions, answers you’ve discovered through searching plus helpful articles in your personal knowledgebase for easy future access.

Screenshot of Experts Exchange Knowledgebase

Access the answers to your technology questions today.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

What Makes Experts Exchange Unique?

Members of the expert community talk about why the experience at Experts Exchange is different than what you will find anywhere else.

Trusted by the world's most respected brands.

image of each brand's logo

Faithfully serving IT professionals since 1996.

Experts Exchange Logo

Try it out and discover for yourself.

Subscribe Now

30-day free trial. Register in 60 seconds.

Related Solutions

  1. Switching to Korn shell
    My user account is placed in the C-shell by default. I would like to have the Korn shell as my default shell. What file(s) need(s) to be modified and what commands are used?
  2. how to set file completion in Korn shell
    Is it possible to set file completion ( like filec in csh) in a Korn shell environment? If so, please explain.
  3. Korn SHell script
    I have a directory like. main_dir - contains some files. One file 'Filelist.lst' conatins the name of the files to be moved to the new directory. I need a korn shell script to take filenames from a file. Creat a directory with datestamp and move the files listed in file 'Fi...
  4. to use korn shell
    hi .. my solaris is using borne shell now. how to use korn shell. is there any setting i need to do in my solaris tq
  5. KORN shell basics
    hai all, whatz the meaning of the following statement echo 1>&2 Year \"$year\" out of range i need some source codes for applications in unix shells.Can any one suggest me some topics for simple applications in unix shells. Currently I a learning Korn shell.H...

Free Tech Articles

  1. WARNING: 5 Reasons why you should NEVER fix a computer for free.
    It is in our nature to love the puzzle. We are obsessed. The lot of us. We love puzzles. We love the challenge. We thrive on finding the answer. We hate disarray. It bothers us deep in our soul. W...
  2. SCCM OSD Basic troubleshooting
    SCCM 2007 OSD is a fantastic way to deploy operating systems, however, like most things SCCM issues can sometimes be difficult to resolve due to the sheer volume of logs to sift through and the dispe...
  3. Migrate Small Business Server 2003 to Exchange 2010 and Windows 2008 R2
    This guide is intended to provide step by step instructions on how to migrate from Small Business Server 2003 to Windows 2008 R2 with Exchange 2010. For this migration to work you will need the fo...
  4. Create a Win7 Gadget
    This article shows you how to create a simple "Gadget" -- a sort of mini-application supported by Windows 7 and Vista. Gadgets can be dropped anywhere on the desktop to provide instant information, ...
  5. Outlook continually prompting for username and password
    There have been a lot of questions recently regarding Outlook prompting for a username and password whilst using Exchange 2007. There are a few reasons why this would happen and I will try to cover t...
  6. Backup Exchange 2010 Information Store using Windows Backup
    There seems to be quite a lot of confusion around the ability to backup Exchange 2010 using the built in Windows Backup feature. This stems from the omission of this feature prior to Exchange 2007 s...

Cloud Class Webinars

  1. Avoiding Bugs in Microsoft Access
    Alison Balter takes and in-depth look at avoiding bugs in Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the immediate window to debug your applications, invoking the debugger, using breakpoints to troubleshoot, stepping through code, setting the next statement to execute, ...
  2. Top 10 Best New Features in Visio 2010
    Scott Helmers gives live demonstrations of the top 10 new features in Visio 2010. This webinar will teach you how to create compelling diagrams by adding shapes to the page with a single click, linking the shapes in a diagram to data in Excel (or SQL Server, or SharePoint), ...
  3. IT Consultant Business Secrets Revealed
    Michael Munger, Experts Exchange tech pro and IT consultant, pulls back the curtain on his very successful businesses and answers question on every IT consultant and business owner should know about. He shares secrets on what he did to solve the 5 most common problems in IT, ...
  4. Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity
    Quest CTO, Mike Billon, gives an overview of the steps involved in building a dunamic disaster recovery plan. Through case studies and an examination of software/hardware tooles for monitoring and testing, you'll gain a better understandin of where you are, where you want ...
  5. Organize Your Visio Diagrams with Containers and Lists
    Scott Helmers uses cross functional flowcharts, wireframe diagrams, data graphic legends and seating charts to teach you: how to ustilize all three new structured diagram components in Visio 2010, the best practices for organizeing shapes in previous version of Visio, how to organize ...
  6. How to Us Objects, Properties, Events and Methods in Microsoft Access
    Alison Dalter gives an in-depbth look at objects, properties, events and methods in Microsoft Access. In this webinar you will learn about using the object browser, referring to objects, working with properties and methods, working with object variables, understanding the ...

Join the Community

Give a Little. Get a Lot.

Join the community of experts here and help other tech pros by answering question in your area of expertise. You can earn FREE access to all Experts Exchange's premium features and resources.

Join the Community

Answers

 

by: liddlerPosted on 2003-04-25 at 06:45:35ID: 8395236

#!/bin/ksh
for file in `ls /export_dir`
do
mv $file /path/to/archive/$file.`date +%y%m%d`
done

automate this by running it from cron, say once a day
crontab -e
0 4 * * * /path/to/script
would run it at 4am each day

 

by: cfetzerPosted on 2003-04-25 at 08:04:32ID: 8395802

Hello liddler,

Thanks for the info.. the script doesn't work but it's probably 90% there..

When I run the script.. (sh script) I get this output:

mv: cannot access archive  #this is the directory
mv: cannot access export1.htm
mv: cannot access export1.css

but if I run this command manually then it works:

mv export1.htm Archive/export1.htm.`date +%y%m%d`

Any ideas?  It looks like it's getting to the directory where the files are.. it just can't seem to move them...

I upped the points by an extra 50..

Thanks!
Chad

 

by: cfetzerPosted on 2003-04-25 at 08:07:52ID: 8395831

Hello liddler,

Thanks for the info.. the script doesn't work but it's probably 90% there..

When I run the script.. (sh script) I get this output:

mv: cannot access archive  #this is the directory
mv: cannot access export1.htm
mv: cannot access export1.css

but if I run this command manually then it works:

mv export1.htm Archive/export1.htm.`date +%y%m%d`

Any ideas?  It looks like it's getting to the directory where the files are.. it just can't seem to move them...

I upped the points by an extra 50..

Thanks!
Chad

 

by: liddlerPosted on 2003-04-25 at 08:16:39ID: 8395902

should be
mv /export_dir/$file /path/to/archive/$file.`date +%y%m%d`
might also be better to change
ls /export_dir
to
ls /export_dir |grep -v archive
so it doesn't try and mv the archive directory

 

by: soupdragonPosted on 2003-04-25 at 08:17:07ID: 8395909

Remember that from a cron job you will be in the users home directory initially. If your ls is using a fully qualified path name but your mv isn't you may be getting the errors you see.

Use the full path name in both the find and the move or cd into the correct directory at the start of the script.

 

by: cfetzerPosted on 2003-04-25 at 08:24:34ID: 8395964

Thank you liddler!

You helped me over a pretty big hurdle!  Your advice was just what I needed!

20120131-EE-VQP-002

3 Ways to Join

30-Day Free Trial

The Experts

98% positive feedback on 31,087 answers since March 2000. angeliii is a Microsoft Most Valuable Professional for his work with MS SQL Server & Develoment.

He has also proven his knowledge of Visual Basic Programming, PHP Scripting and Oracle Databases.

The Experts

97% positive feedback on 10,752 answers since July 2000. lrmoore has more than 18 years experience in the networking industry.

The six-time Mircosoft MVPs specialties include firewalls, virtual private networking, and network management.

Testimonials

"...and excellent source for support... Kind of like having your very own IT dept." Electriciansnet

Testimonials

"I was apprehensive at signing up at first. However... it has already made my life as an IT administrator much easier." JaCrews

Testimonials

"WOW! You guys have great, active, and knowledgeable people on here." moore50

Business Clients

Business Clients

In the Press

"If you’ve got a question... Experts Exchange can supply an answer.”

In the Press

"...an invaluable aid for both IT professionals and those who require tech support."

In the Press

"where IT professionals provide quick answers on just about any topic"

Business Account Plans

Loading Advertisement...