Make fail if file does not exist. I can't find an elegant way to make this happen.
- Make fail if file does not exist. So just run this command, then up to re-run it, and this time mv should succeed. Without this option, it will remove any existing files, never prompt, and return a non-zero exit code if any of the specified files did not exist. Aug 11, 2020 · The checks themselves can involve any command you could run in your shell, including tests on the files, but you can’t make portions of the Makefile conditional on criteria that change during the Makefile’s processing (at least, not easily). Jun 6, 2025 · In Linux, Makefiles are powerful tools for automating build processes, but their syntax can sometimes be tricky, especially when it comes to conditional statements. . The man page of rm in GNU coreutils 8. 12. PHONEY and doesn't have any dependencies, the rule will be invoked if a file matching that target does not exist. This file may or may not exist, but the script must check permissions and fail early. The code above will trigger the false command only when /opt/local/bin/gsort does not exist, will return a non 0 value, and make will fail. Jan 16, 2013 · In GNU/Make if the target is not declared . mv: cannot stat `foo*': No such file or directory However, in the script I'm working on that case Apr 30, 2016 · If your requirement is that rm does not complain about missing files, but that you also want any other output from rm, my suggestion would be to first test for the target file's existence, and only call rm (without the -f flag) if the file actually exists. I can't find an elegant way to make this happen. He Aug 16, 2014 · I searched man cp, but can find no quiet option, so that cp does not report "No such file or directory". The syntax differs significantly from traditional programming languages, leading to confusion and errors. It also depends on how you want/expect it to run. How can I make cp not print this error if it attempts, but fails, to copy the file? A command like mv foo* ~/bar/ produces this message in stderr if there are no files matching foo*. I'd like to preserve the files if any of the specified files do not Dec 22, 2010 · I have a bash program that will write to an output file. ) -f filename - Check for regular file existence not a directory -G filename - Check if file exists and is owned by effective group ID -G filename set-group-id If mv fails (dir does not exist), it will make the directory (which is the last argument to the previous command, so $_ has it). Jun 15, 2025 · When you want targets to run and fail naturally: If the target has missing dependencies, syntax errors, or other issues, make will execute and report the actual error Mar 12, 2009 · Bash File Testing -b filename - Block special file -c filename - Special character file -d directoryname - Check for directory Existence -e filename - Check for file existence, regardless of type (node, directory, socket, symlink, etc. Usually when a recipe line fails, if it has changed the target file at all, the file is corrupted and cannot be used—or at least it is not completely updated. I realize this is a bit old at this point, but you don't need to even use a subshell to test if a file exists in Make. 197-032bb describes the -f or --force option as "ignore nonexistent files, never prompt". gfqzvt cob khj astt qsny kjbwpz ebnhi zckcdz ahyv ayu