File: coreutils.info, Node: realpath invocation, Prev: mktemp invocation, Up: File name manipulation 18.5 ‘realpath’: Print the resolved file name. ============================================== ‘realpath’ expands all symbolic links and resolves references to ‘/./’, ‘/../’ and extra ‘/’ characters. By default, all but the last component of the specified files must exist. Synopsis: realpath [OPTION]... FILE... The file name canonicalization functionality overlaps with that of the ‘readlink’ command. This is the preferred command for canonicalization as it’s a more suitable and standard name. In addition this command supports relative file name processing functionality. The program accepts the following options. Also see *note Common options::. ‘-e’ ‘--canonicalize-existing’ Ensure that all components of the specified file names exist. If any component is missing or unavailable, ‘realpath’ will output a diagnostic unless the ‘-q’ option is specified, and exit with a nonzero exit code. A trailing slash requires that the name resolve to a directory. ‘-m’ ‘--canonicalize-missing’ If any component of a specified file name is missing or unavailable, treat it as a directory. ‘-L’ ‘--logical’ Symbolic links are resolved in the specified file names, but they are resolved after any subsequent ‘..’ components are processed. ‘-P’ ‘--physical’ Symbolic links are resolved in the specified file names, and they are resolved before any subsequent ‘..’ components are processed. This is the default mode of operation. ‘-q’ ‘--quiet’ Suppress diagnostic messages for specified file names. ‘--relative-to=DIR’ Print the resolved file names relative to the specified directory. Note this option honors the ‘-m’ and ‘-e’ options pertaining to file existence. ‘--relative-base=DIR’ Print the resolved file names as relative _if_ the files are descendants of DIR. Otherwise, print the resolved file names as absolute. Note this option honors the ‘-m’ and ‘-e’ options pertaining to file existence. For details about combining ‘--relative-to’ and ‘--relative-base’, *note Realpath usage examples::. ‘-s’ ‘--strip’ ‘--no-symlinks’ Do not resolve symbolic links. Only resolve references to ‘/./’, ‘/../’ and remove extra ‘/’ characters. When combined with the ‘-m’ option, realpath operates only on the file name, and does not touch any actual file. ‘-z’ ‘--zero’ Output a zero byte (ASCII NUL) at the end of each line, rather than a newline. This option enables other programs to parse the output even when that output would contain data with embedded newlines. Exit status: 0 if all file names were printed without issue. 1 otherwise. * Menu: * Realpath usage examples:: Realpath usage examples.