Chuck Simmons wrote: > I could not remove a file whose name began with a dash (e.g. > "-main-file.tmp"). (Hmmm I suppose I could have tried "rm > ./-main-file.tmp".) [Actually, I removed the file, but I used a Solaris > tool to do the job instead of a GNU tool because the Solaris tool seemed > easier to use.]
You are correct that you could have (should have?) used ./ to avoid using - as the first character. > Solaris allows "rm - -main-file.tmp". You almost had a good general purpose answer. You should use -- instead. rm -- -main-file.tmp This is an FAQ. http://www.gnu.org/software/coreutils/faq/ Look for "How do I remove files that start with a '-'". > ade:[csimmons_main] dlsun620 csimmons 231> rm --help > Usage: rm [OPTION]... FILE... > Remove (unlink) the FILE(s). > > -d, --directory unlink directory, even if non-empty (super-user > only) > -f, --force ignore nonexistent files, never prompt > -i, --interactive prompt before any removal > -r, -R, --recursive remove the contents of directories recursively > -v, --verbose explain what is being done > --help display this help and exit > --version output version information and exit > > Report bugs to <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>. Thanks for the report. Newer versions also say this in their help output. To remove a file whose name starts with a `-', for example `-foo', use one of these commands: rm -- -foo rm ./-foo Please consider updating to a newer version of coreutils. ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/coreutils/coreutils-5.2.1.tar.gz ftp://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/coreutils/coreutils-5.2.1.tar.bz2 (coreutils is the union of fileutils, textutils, and sh-utils) Bob _______________________________________________ Bug-fileutils mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.gnu.org/mailman/listinfo/bug-fileutils
