Developing Bash

Expert guidance for writing robust, portable shell scripts.

Quick Start

For immediate help, identify your task type and consult the relevant reference:

Core Principles

These principles apply across all shell scripting:

Defensive by Default

1. Start every script with safety flags: set -euo pipefail
2. Quote all variable expansions: "$var" not $var
3. Use [[ ]] for conditionals in Bash (more predictable than [ ])
4. Validate inputs before using them
5. Clean up resources with traps

Explicit Over Clever

1. Prefer readable pipelines over dense one-liners
2. Use descriptive variable names: input_file not f
3. Add comments for non-obvious shell constructs
4. Avoid relying on shell-specific behavior without documenting it

Fail Fast, Fail Loud

1. Exit immediately on errors (set -e)
2. Treat unset variables as errors (set -u)
3. Propagate pipeline failures (set -o pipefail)
4. Provide meaningful error messages with context

Portability Awareness

1. Know your target: POSIX sh, Bash 3.x, Bash 4+, or Zsh
2. Document shell requirements in script header
3. Test on target platforms, not just development machine
4. Prefer POSIX when portability matters more than features

Script Template

#!/usr/bin/env bash
set -euo pipefail

# Description: What this script does
# Usage: script.sh <arg1> [arg2]

readonly SCRIPT_DIR="$(cd "$(dirname "${BASH_SOURCE[0]}")" && pwd)"
readonly SCRIPT_NAME="$(basename "$0")"

cleanup() {
    # Remove temp files, kill background processes
    :
}
trap cleanup EXIT

die() {
    echo "${SCRIPT_NAME}: error: $*" >&2
    exit 1
}

usage() {
    echo "Usage: ${SCRIPT_NAME} <arg1> [arg2]"
    exit 1
}

main() {
    [[ $# -lt 1 ]] && usage
    local arg1="$1"

    # Implementation here
}

main "$@"

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

Safety Violations

• Unquoted variables: $var instead of "$var"
• Missing error handling: no set -e or explicit checks
• Parsing ls output instead of using globs or find -print0
• Using eval with untrusted input

Portability Traps

• Bash arrays in #!/bin/sh scripts
• GNU-specific flags without fallbacks
• Hardcoded paths (/usr/local/bin vs /usr/bin)
• Assuming echo behavior (use printf for portability)

Maintainability Issues

• Magic numbers without explanation
• Deep nesting instead of early returns
• Massive functions doing multiple things
• No usage message or help flag

Reference File IDs

For programmatic access: posix-scripting · bash-features · defensive-patterns · cross-platform