Think of /dev/null as a "black hole". It is the nearest equivalent to a write-only file. Everything written to it disappears forever. Attempts to read or output from it result in nothing. Nevertheless, /dev/null can be quite useful from both the command line and in scripts.
Suppressing stdout.
cat $filename >/dev/null # Contents of the file will not list to stdout. |
Suppressing stderr (from Example 12-2).
rm $badname 2>/dev/null # So error messages [stderr] deep-sixed. |
Suppressing output from both stdout and stderr.
cat $filename 2>/dev/null >/dev/null # If "$filename" does not exist, there will be no error message output. # If "$filename" does exist, the contents of the file will not list to stdout. # Therefore, no output at all will result from the above line of code. # # This can be useful in situations where the return code from a command #+ needs to be tested, but no output is desired. # # cat $filename &>/dev/null # also works, as Baris Cicek points out. |
Deleting contents of a file, but preserving the file itself, with all attendant permissions (from Example 2-1 and Example 2-2):
cat /dev/null > /var/log/messages # : > /var/log/messages has same effect, but does not spawn a new process. cat /dev/null > /var/log/wtmp |
Automatically emptying the contents of a logfile (especially good for dealing with those nasty "cookies" sent by Web commercial sites):
Example 29-1. Hiding the cookie jar
if [ -f ~/.netscape/cookies ] # Remove, if exists. then rm -f ~/.netscape/cookies fi ln -s /dev/null ~/.netscape/cookies # All cookies now get sent to a black hole, rather than saved to disk. |
Like /dev/null, /dev/zero is a pseudo file, but it actually contains nulls (numerical zeros, not the ASCII kind). Output written to it disappears, and it is fairly difficult to actually read the nulls in /dev/zero, though it can be done with od or a hex editor. The chief use for /dev/zero is in creating an initialized dummy file of specified length intended as a temporary swap file.
Example 29-2. Setting up a swapfile using /dev/zero
#!/bin/bash
# Creating a swapfile.
# This script must be run as root.
ROOT_UID=0 # Root has $UID 0.
E_WRONG_USER=65 # Not root?
FILE=/swap
BLOCKSIZE=1024
MINBLOCKS=40
SUCCESS=0
if [ "$UID" -ne "$ROOT_UID" ]
then
echo; echo "You must be root to run this script."; echo
exit $E_WRONG_USER
fi
blocks=${1:-$MINBLOCKS} # Set to default of 40 blocks,
#+ if nothing specified on command line.
# This is the equivalent of the command block below.
# --------------------------------------------------
# if [ -n "$1" ]
# then
# blocks=$1
# else
# blocks=$MINBLOCKS
# fi
# --------------------------------------------------
if [ "$blocks" -lt $MINBLOCKS ]
then
blocks=$MINBLOCKS # Must be at least 40 blocks long.
fi
echo "Creating swap file of size $blocks blocks (KB)."
dd if=/dev/zero of=$FILE bs=$BLOCKSIZE count=$blocks # Zero out file.
mkswap $FILE $blocks # Designate it a swap file.
swapon $FILE # Activate swap file.
echo "Swap file created and activated."
exit $SUCCESS |
Another application of /dev/zero is to "zero out" a file of a designated size for a special purpose, such as mounting a filesystem on a loopback device (see Example 13-6) or securely deleting a file (see Example 12-42).
Example 29-3. Creating a ramdisk
#!/bin/bash
# ramdisk.sh
# A "ramdisk" is a segment of system RAM memory
#+ that acts as if it were a filesystem.
# Its advantage is very fast access (read/write time).
# Disadvantages: volatility, loss of data on reboot or powerdown.
# less RAM available to system.
#
# What good is a ramdisk?
# Keeping a large dataset, such as a table or dictionary on ramdisk
#+ speeds up data lookup, since memory access is much faster than disk access.
E_NON_ROOT_USER=70 # Must run as root.
ROOTUSER_NAME=root
MOUNTPT=/mnt/ramdisk
SIZE=2000 # 2K blocks (change as appropriate)
BLOCKSIZE=1024 # 1K (1024 byte) block size
DEVICE=/dev/ram0 # First ram device
username=`id -nu`
if [ "$username" != "$ROOTUSER_NAME" ]
then
echo "Must be root to run \"`basename $0`\"."
exit $E_NON_ROOT_USER
fi
if [ ! -d "$MOUNTPT" ] # Test whether mount point already there,
then #+ so no error if this script is run
mkdir $MOUNTPT #+ multiple times.
fi
dd if=/dev/zero of=$DEVICE count=$SIZE bs=$BLOCKSIZE # Zero out RAM device.
mke2fs $DEVICE # Create an ext2 filesystem on it.
mount $DEVICE $MOUNTPT # Mount it.
chmod 777 $MOUNTPT # So ordinary user can access ramdisk.
# However, must be root to unmount it.
echo "\"$MOUNTPT\" now available for use."
# The ramdisk is now accessible for storing files, even by an ordinary user.
# Caution, the ramdisk is volatile, and its contents will disappear
#+ on reboot or power loss.
# Copy anything you want saved to a regular directory.
# After reboot, run this script again to set up ramdisk.
# Remounting /mnt/ramdisk without the other steps will not work.
exit 0 |