running linux executables from linux shell scripts

Question

I want to run a executable from my shell script. The executable is located at /usr/bin/to_run.

My shell script(which is calling the above executable) is in the /usr/bin folder.

The shell script is :

#!/bin/bash

#kill all existing instances of synergy

killall synergys
sh "/usr/bin/synergys"

if [ $? -eq 1 ]; then
echo "synergy server started"
else
echo "error in starting"
fi

I am getting an error saying : "synergys : no process found".

When I run the same thing - /usr/bin/synergys directly from the terminal it runs fine, but from within a script there are problems. I don't understand why.

Thank you in advance.

paxdiablo · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-14 01:42:48Z

3

That error is from the killall command, it's saying there are no candidate processes matching your argument.

If you don't want to be notified where no processes match, just use the quiet option:

killall -q synergys

From the killall man page:

-q, --quiet
Do not complain if no processes were killed.

answered May 14, 2013 at 1:42

paxdiablo

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2 Comments

user590849 Over a year ago

I also wanted a recommendation. In situations like mine, is it better to make alias or write full fledged scripts ?

paxdiablo Over a year ago

@user590849, I tend to prefer scripts (or shell functions) for anything more complicated than a one-liner. In addition, because aliases are just word substitutions, you can't put arguments in there like alias fls=find . -name $1 | less - it's only good for commands where the arguments come at the end.

Jonathan Leffler · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-14 02:10:02Z

0

If /usr/bin/synergys is an executable and not a shell script, you will run it directly, not via the shell:

/usr/bin/synergys

Or, since /usr/bin is on the $PATH of most people, you could simply write:

synergys

If /usr/bin/synergys is actually a shell script, it should be executable (for example, 555 or -r-xr-xr-x permissions), and you can still write just synergys to execute it. You only need to use an explicit sh if the file /usr/bin/synergys is not executable and is a shell script.

answered May 14, 2013 at 2:10

Jonathan Leffler

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