Linux / UNIX source Command Examples

How do I use source command under UNIX / Linux / BSD / OS X operating systems?

The source command in shell is used to execute commands from a file in the current shell. This is useful to load function or variables stored in another file.

source command syntax

The syntax is as follows:

source filename
source /path/to/file

It will read and execute commands from given FILENAME in the current shell. The entries in $PATH are used to find the directory containing FILENAME.

source command Examples

Create a function file called functions.sh as follows:

hello(){
  echo "I'm hello()"
}
getos(){
  echo "OS is - $(uname)"
}
 

Create a shell script called test.sh as follows

#!/bin/bash
source functions.sh
# call hello function
hello
# call getos function
getos

Save and close the file. Run it as follows:
chmod +x test.sh
./test.sh

See also:

• Writing your first shell function

• Tweet
• 
• 

You should follow me on twitter here or grab rss feed to keep track of new changes.

Featured Articles:

• 30 Handy Bash Shell Aliases For Linux / Unix / Mac OS X
• Top 30 Nmap Command Examples For Sys/Network Admins
• 25 PHP Security Best Practices For Sys Admins
• 20 Linux System Monitoring Tools Every SysAdmin Should Know
• 20 Linux Server Hardening Security Tips
• Linux: 20 Iptables Examples For New SysAdmins
• Top 20 OpenSSH Server Best Security Practices
• Top 20 Nginx WebServer Best Security Practices
• 20 Examples: Make Sure Unix / Linux Configuration Files Are Free From Syntax Errors
• 15 Greatest Open Source Terminal Applications Of 2012
• My 10 UNIX Command Line Mistakes
• Top 10 Open Source Web-Based Project Management Software
• Top 5 Email Client For Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows Users
• The Novice Guide To Buying A Linux Laptop