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find(1)

NAME

     find -- walk a file hierarchy

SYNOPSIS

     find [-H | -L | -P] [-EXdsx] [-f pathname] [pathname ...] expression

DESCRIPTION

     The find utility recursively descends the directory tree for each
     pathname listed, evaluating an expression (composed of the ``primaries''
     and ``operands'' listed below) in terms of each file in the tree.

     The options are as follows:

     -E      Interpret regular expressions followed by -regex and -iregex
	     options as extended (modern) regular expressions rather than
	     basic regular expressions (BRE's).  The re_format(7) manual page
	     fully describes both formats.

     -H      Cause the file information and file type (see stat(2)) returned
	     for each symbolic link specified on the command line to be those
	     of the file referenced by the link, not the link itself.  If the
	     referenced file does not exist, the file information and type
	     will be for the link itself.  File information of all symbolic
	     links not on the command line is that of the link itself.

     -L      Cause the file information and file type (see stat(2)) returned
	     for each symbolic link to be those of the file referenced by the
	     link, not the link itself.  If the referenced file does not
	     exist, the file information and type will be for the link itself.

	     This option is equivalent to the deprecated -follow primary.

     -P      Cause the file information and file type (see stat(2)) returned
	     for each symbolic link to be those of the link itself.  This is
	     the default.

     -X      Permit find to be safely used in conjunction with xargs(1).  If a
	     file name contains any of the delimiting characters used by
	     xargs(1), a diagnostic message is displayed on standard error,
	     and the file is skipped.  The delimiting characters include sin-
	     gle (`` ' '') and double (`` " '') quotes, backslash (``\''),
	     space, tab and newline characters.

	     However, you may wish to consider the -print0 primary in conjunc-
	     tion with ``xargs -0'' as an effective alternative.

     -d      Cause find to perform a depth-first traversal, i.e., directories
	     are visited in post-order and all entries in a directory will be
	     acted on before the directory itself.  By default, find visits
	     directories in pre-order, i.e., before their contents.  Note, the
	     default is not a breadth-first traversal.

	     This option is equivalent to the -depth primary of IEEE Std
	     1003.1-2001 (``POSIX.1'').  -d can be useful when find is used
	     with cpio(1) to process files that are contained in directories
	     with unusual permissions.	It ensures that you have write permis-
	     sion while you are placing files in a directory, then sets the
	     `find -s' and `find | sort' may give different results.

     -x      Prevent find from descending into directories that have a device
	     number different than that of the file from which the descent
	     began.

	     This option is equivalent to the deprecated -xdev primary.

PRIMARIES

     -acl    May be used in conjunction with other options to locate files
	     with extended ACLs.  See acl(3) for more information.

     -amin n
	     True if the difference between the file last access time and the
	     time find was started, rounded up to the next full minute, is n
	     minutes.

     -anewer file
	     Same as -neweram.

     -atime n[smhdw]
	     If no units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the file last access time and the time find
	     was started, rounded up to the next full 24-hour period, is n
	     24-hour periods.

	     If units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the file last access time and the time find
	     was started is exactly n units.  Possible time units are as fol-
	     lows:

	     s	     second
	     m	     minute (60 seconds)
	     h	     hour (60 minutes)
	     d	     day (24 hours)
	     w	     week (7 days)

	     Any number of units may be combined in one -atime argument, for
	     example, ``-atime -1h30m''.  Units are probably only useful when
	     used in conjunction with the + or - modifier.

     -cmin n
	     True if the difference between the time of last change of file
	     status information and the time find was started, rounded up to
	     the next full minute, is n minutes.

     -cnewer file
	     Same as -newercm.

     -ctime n[smhdw]
	     If no units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the time of last change of file status infor-
	     mation and the time find was started, rounded up to the next full
	     24-hour period, is n 24-hour periods.

	     If units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the time of last change of file status infor-
	     mation and the time find was started is exactly n units.  Please
	     reasons.  Depth-first traversal processing is implied by this
	     option.

     -depth  Always true; same as the -d option.

     -depth n
	     True if the depth of the file relative to the starting point of
	     the traversal is n.

     -empty  True if the current file or directory is empty.

     -exec utility [argument ...] ;
	     True if the program named utility returns a zero value as its
	     exit status.  Optional arguments may be passed to the utility.
	     The expression must be terminated by a semicolon (``;'').	If you
	     invoke find from a shell you may need to quote the semicolon if
	     the shell would otherwise treat it as a control operator.	If the
	     string ``{}'' appears anywhere in the utility name or the argu-
	     ments it is replaced by the pathname of the current file.
	     Utility will be executed from the directory from which find was
	     executed.	Utility and arguments are not subject to the further
	     expansion of shell patterns and constructs.

     -exec utility [argument ...] {} +
	     Same as -exec, except that ``{}'' is replaced with as many path-
	     names as possible for each invocation of utility.	This behaviour
	     is similar to that of xargs(1).

     -execdir utility [argument ...] ;
	     The -execdir primary is identical to the -exec primary with the
	     exception that utility will be executed from the directory that
	     holds the current file.  The filename substituted for the string
	     ``{}'' is not qualified.

     -flags [-|+]flags,notflags
	     The flags are specified using symbolic names (see chflags(1)).
	     Those with the "no" prefix (except "nodump") are said to be
	     notflags.	Flags in flags are checked to be set, and flags in
	     notflags are checked to be not set.  Note that this is different
	     from -perm, which only allows the user to specify mode bits that
	     are set.

	     If flags are preceded by a dash (``-''), this primary evaluates
	     to true if at least all of the bits in flags and none of the bits
	     in notflags are set in the file's flags bits.  If flags are pre-
	     ceded by a plus (``+''), this primary evaluates to true if any of
	     the bits in flags is set in the file's flags bits, or any of the
	     bits in notflags is not set in the file's flags bits.  Otherwise,
	     this primary evaluates to true if the bits in flags exactly match
	     the file's flags bits, and none of the flags bits match those of
	     notflags.

     -fstype type
	     True if the file is contained in a file system of type type.  The
	     sysctl(8) command can be used to find out the types of file sys-
	     tems that are available on the system:

		   sysctl vfs
	     and there is no such group name, then gname is treated as a group
	     ID.

     -iname pattern
	     Like -name, but the match is case insensitive.

     -inum n
	     True if the file has inode number n.

     -ipath pattern
	     Like -path, but the match is case insensitive.

     -iregex pattern
	     Like -regex, but the match is case insensitive.

     -links n
	     True if the file has n links.

     -ls     This primary always evaluates to true.  The following information
	     for the current file is written to standard output: its inode
	     number, size in 512-byte blocks, file permissions, number of hard
	     links, owner, group, size in bytes, last modification time, and
	     pathname.	If the file is a block or character special file, the
	     major and minor numbers will be displayed instead of the size in
	     bytes.  If the file is a symbolic link, the pathname of the
	     linked-to file will be displayed preceded by ``->''.  The format
	     is identical to that produced by ls -dgils.

     -maxdepth n
	     Always true; descend at most n directory levels below the command
	     line arguments.  If any -maxdepth primary is specified, it
	     applies to the entire expression even if it would not normally be
	     evaluated.  -maxdepth 0 limits the whole search to the command
	     line arguments.

     -mindepth n
	     Always true; do not apply any tests or actions at levels less
	     than n.  If any -mindepth primary is specified, it applies to the
	     entire expression even if it would not normally be evaluated.
	     -mindepth 1 processes all but the command line arguments.

     -mmin n
	     True if the difference between the file last modification time
	     and the time find was started, rounded up to the next full
	     minute, is n minutes.

     -mnewer file
	     Same as -newer.

     -mtime n[smhdw]
	     If no units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the file last modification time and the time
	     find was started, rounded up to the next full 24-hour period, is
	     n 24-hour periods.

	     If units are specified, this primary evaluates to true if the
	     difference between the file last modification time and the time
	     find was started is exactly n units.  Please refer to the -atime

     -newer file
	     True if the current file has a more recent last modification time
	     than file.

     -newerXY file
	     True if the current file has a more recent last access time
	     (X=a), change time (X=c), or modification time (X=m) than the
	     last access time (Y=a), change time (Y=c), or modification time
	     (Y=m) of file.  In addition, if Y=t, then file is instead inter-
	     preted as a direct date specification of the form understood by
	     cvs(1).  Note that -newermm is equivalent to -newer.

     -nogroup
	     True if the file belongs to an unknown group.

     -nouser
	     True if the file belongs to an unknown user.

     -ok utility [argument ...] ;
	     The -ok primary is identical to the -exec primary with the excep-
	     tion that find requests user affirmation for the execution of the
	     utility by printing a message to the terminal and reading a
	     response.	If the response is other than ``y'' the command is not
	     executed and the value of the -ok expression is false.

     -okdir utility [argument ...] ;
	     The -okdir primary is identical to the -execdir primary with the
	     same exception as described for the -ok primary.

     -path pattern
	     True if the pathname being examined matches pattern.  Special
	     shell pattern matching characters (``['', ``]'', ``*'', and
	     ``?'') may be used as part of pattern.  These characters may be
	     matched explicitly by escaping them with a backslash (``\'').
	     Slashes (``/'') are treated as normal characters and do not have
	     to be matched explicitly.

     -perm [-|+]mode
	     The mode may be either symbolic (see chmod(1)) or an octal num-
	     ber.  If the mode is symbolic, a starting value of zero is
	     assumed and the mode sets or clears permissions without regard to
	     the process' file mode creation mask.  If the mode is octal, only
	     bits 07777 (S_ISUID | S_ISGID | S_ISTXT | S_IRWXU | S_IRWXG |
	     S_IRWXO) of the file's mode bits participate in the comparison.
	     If the mode is preceded by a dash (``-''), this primary evaluates
	     to true if at least all of the bits in the mode are set in the
	     file's mode bits.	If the mode is preceded by a plus (``+''),
	     this primary evaluates to true if any of the bits in the mode are
	     set in the file's mode bits.  Otherwise, this primary evaluates
	     to true if the bits in the mode exactly match the file's mode
	     bits.  Note, the first character of a symbolic mode may not be a
	     dash (``-'').

     -print  This primary always evaluates to true.  It prints the pathname of
	     the current file to standard output.  If none of -exec, -ls,
	     -print0, or -ok is specified, the given expression shall be
	     effectively replaced by ( given expression ) -print.
	     effect if the -d option was specified.

     -regex pattern
	     True if the whole path of the file matches pattern using regular
	     expression.  To match a file named ``./foo/xyzzy'', you can use
	     the regular expression ``.*/[xyz]*'' or ``.*/foo/.*'', but not
	     ``xyzzy'' or ``/foo/''.

     -size n[c]
	     True if the file's size, rounded up, in 512-byte blocks is n.  If
	     n is followed by a c, then the primary is true if the file's size
	     is n bytes (characters).

     -type t
	     True if the file is of the specified type.  Possible file types
	     are as follows:

	     b	     block special
	     c	     character special
	     d	     directory
	     f	     regular file
	     l	     symbolic link
	     p	     FIFO
	     s	     socket

     -user uname
	     True if the file belongs to the user uname.  If uname is numeric
	     and there is no such user name, then uname is treated as a user
	     ID.

     All primaries which take a numeric argument allow the number to be pre-
     ceded by a plus sign (``+'') or a minus sign (``-'').  A preceding plus
     sign means ``more than n'', a preceding minus sign means ``less than n''
     and neither means ``exactly n''.

OPERATORS

     The primaries may be combined using the following operators.  The opera-
     tors are listed in order of decreasing precedence.

     ( expression )  This evaluates to true if the parenthesized expression
		     evaluates to true.

     ! expression
     -false expression
     -not expression
		     This is the unary NOT operator.  It evaluates to true if
		     the expression is false.

     expression -and expression
     expression expression
		     The -and operator is the logical AND operator.  As it is
		     implied by the juxtaposition of two expressions it does
		     not have to be specified.	The expression evaluates to
		     true if both expressions are true.  The second expression
		     is not evaluated if the first expression is false.

     expression -or expression
		     The -or operator is the logical OR operator.  The expres-

EXAMPLES

     The following examples are shown as given to the shell:

     find / \! -name "*.c" -print
	     Print out a list of all the files whose names do not end in .c.

     find / -newer ttt -user wnj -print
	     Print out a list of all the files owned by user ``wnj'' that are
	     newer than the file ttt.

     find / \! \( -newer ttt -user wnj \) -print
	     Print out a list of all the files which are not both newer than
	     ttt and owned by ``wnj''.

     find / \( -newer ttt -or -user wnj \) -print
	     Print out a list of all the files that are either owned by
	     ``wnj'' or that are newer than ttt.

     find / -newerct '1 minute ago' -print
	     Print out a list of all the files whose inode change time is more
	     recent than the current time minus one minute.

     find / -type f -exec echo {} \;
	     Use the echo(1) command to print out a list of all the files.

     find -L /usr/ports/packages -type l -delete
	     Delete all broken symbolic links in /usr/ports/packages.

     find /usr/src -name CVS -prune -o -depth +6 -print
	     Find files and directories that are at least seven levels deep in
	     the working directory /usr/src.

     find /usr/src -name CVS -prune -o -mindepth 7 -print
	     Is not equivalent to the previous example, since -prune is not
	     evaluated below level seven.

COMPATIBILITY

     The -follow primary is deprecated; the -L option should be used instead.
     See the STANDARDS section below for details.

SEE ALSO

     chflags(1), chmod(1), cvs(1), locate(1), whereis(1), which(1), xargs(1),
     stat(2), acl(3), fts(3), getgrent(3), getpwent(3), strmode(3),
     re_format(7), symlink(7)

STANDARDS

     The find utility syntax is a superset of the syntax specified by the IEEE
     Std 1003.1-2001 (``POSIX.1'') standard.

     All the single character options except -H and -L as well as the -iname,
     -inum, -iregex, -print0, -delete, -ls, and -regex primaries are exten-
     sions to IEEE Std 1003.1-2001 (``POSIX.1'').

     Historically, the -d, -L and -x options were implemented using the pri-
     maries -depth, -follow, and -xdev.  These primaries always evaluated to
     true.  As they were really global variables that took effect before the
     traversal began, some legal expressions could have unexpected results.
     An example is the expression -print -o -depth.  As -print always evalu-
     preceding or following non-whitespace characters.	This version replaces
     it no matter where in the utility name or arguments it appears.

     The -E option was inspired by the equivalent grep(1) and sed(1) options.

HISTORY

     A find command appeared in Version 1 AT&T UNIX.

BUGS

     The special characters used by find are also special characters to many
     shell programs.  In particular, the characters ``*'', ``['', ``]'',
     ``?'', ``('', ``)'', ``!'', ``\'' and ``;'' may have to be escaped from
     the shell.

     As there is no delimiter separating options and file names or file names
     and the expression, it is difficult to specify files named -xdev or !.
     These problems are handled by the -f option and the getopt(3) ``--'' con-
     struct.

     The -delete primary does not interact well with other options that cause
     the file system tree traversal options to be changed.

     The -mindepth and -maxdepth primaries are actually global options (as
     documented above).  They should probably be replaced by options which
     look like options.

FreeBSD 5.4			 July 29, 2004			   FreeBSD 5.4

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