Problem with an if statement in shell script

Question

I just started shell scripting, and I need to check if a file exists so I used command :

    if [[-e "./doc/issues/$1.md" ]];

But the command seems to be invalid.

Does anybody knows why ?

user11447236 · Accepted Answer · 2019-05-03 14:17:41Z

5

You forgot to put a whitespace before -e, try :

if [[ -e "./doc/issues/$1.md" ]];

answered May 3, 2019 at 14:17

user11447236

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3 Comments

glenn jackman Over a year ago

The reason the space is required is that [[ is not mere syntax: it is (essentially) a command, and like every command, it needs a space to separate it from its arguments.

Gordon Davisson Over a year ago

Spaces are critical parts of shell syntax; there are places where they're required (like between [[ and -e -- and also -e and the filename, and the filename and ]]), and places where they're not allowed (like around the = in an assignment), but very few places where they're optional. When copying an example, be sure to copy the spacing along with everything else.

Wiimm Over a year ago

Or in other words: shell scripts work with words. 2 words are usually separated by any number of space, tabs or linefeeds. quotes are used to create words with included spaces/tabs. So [[-e is one word without special meaning. I contrast, [[ -e are 2 words. [[ opens a condition test mode and -e is a condition that accepts the next word as param.

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