matlab execute script from linux command line

Question

is there a way to run a matlab script from linux command line? For instance, I have the following simple script "test.m":

x = [1,2,3];
y = [2;3;4];

prod = x*y
disp(prod)

So what I want is to be able to execute that script from the linux command line without opening the matlab GUI or the matlab command line. That is, I expect something like that:

~$ matlab test.m

and I expect to see the result of the product on the linux command line.

I know that you can do that with python e.g.,

~$ python test.py

but was wondering if the same can be achieved with matlab.

If you have the Matlab Linux version installed, you just uk.mathworks.com/help/matlab/ref/matlablinux.html Note if you are running a windows version using Wine or some other VE, you will not be able to use this feature :( — GameOfThrows
– GameOfThrows, Commented Aug 2, 2016 at 14:34

score 57 · Accepted Answer · 2016-08-02 14:53:31Z

57

In order to run a script you can open Matlab (you can prevent run it without the GUI using -nodisplay and -nodesktop flags), then run the script using the run command, and finally close matlab using exit.

You can do all this from a terminal with a single instruction:

matlab -nodisplay -nosplash -nodesktop -r "run('path/to/your/script.m');exit;"

However Matlab outputs the welcome message to the console before running your script. To get rid of the welcome message just skip the first 11 lines (10 depending on your Matlab version) using tail -n +11

So your final instruction will be:

matlab -nodisplay -nosplash -nodesktop -r "run('path/to/your/script.m');exit;" | tail -n +11

edited Aug 2, 2016 at 14:53

answered Aug 2, 2016 at 14:39

user2261062

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3 Comments

GameOfThrows Over a year ago

:D you can also add nojvm in there to keep RAM consumption low, but loses Java handles.

Peter Over a year ago

It seems to be important to make the path to your script absolute and note relative as suggested here since Matlab doesn't search for files relative to the directory in which it was started (depending on your configurations).

Waldir Leoncio Over a year ago

You may want to use -batch instead of -r so the commands run non-interactively and you get a cleaner output (source).

bdsinger · Accepted Answer · 2020-04-27 20:02:53Z

Starting with R2019a, the preferred method would be, for your test.m script:

matlab -batch "test"

This has several advantages, mainly no need for all the -no flags and MATLAB will exit with non-zero status if test.m (must be on search path) contains an error.

From the documentation page, matlab (Linux):

Execute MATLAB script, statement, or function non-interactively. MATLAB:

Starts without the desktop

Does not display the splash screen

Executes statement

Disables changes to preferences

Disables toolbox caching

Logs text to stdout and stderr

Does not display dialog boxes

Exits automatically with exit code 0 if script executes successfully. Otherwise, MATLAB terminates with a non-zero exit code.

statement is MATLAB code enclosed in double quotation marks. If statement is the name of a MATLAB function or script, do not specify the file extension. Any required file must be on the MATLAB search path or in the startup folder.

Use the -batch option in non-interactive scripting or command line work flows. Do not use this option with the -r option.

To test if a session of MATLAB is running in batch mode, call the batchStartupOptionUsed function.

Example: -batch "myscript"

Adriaan · Accepted Answer · 2019-07-29 13:47:01Z

4

I created a basic shell script called runm and put in my path:

$ runm mymatlab.m

Script:

# simple script to run matlab script
if [ $# -eq 0 ]
  then
    echo "please pass m script"
fi

matlab -nodisplay -nosplash -nodesktop -r "run('$1');"

edited Jul 29, 2019 at 13:47

Adriaan

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answered Jul 28, 2019 at 10:59

Ab Bennett

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