Linux in a Nutshell, 6th Edition

Name

exec

Synopsis

exec [-a name] [-cl] [command args ... ]

Execute command in place of the current process (instead of creating a new process). exec is also useful for opening, closing, or copying file descriptors.

Options

-a name

Use name for the value of argv[0].

-c

Clear the environment before executing the program.

-l

Place a minus sign at the front of argv[0], just as login(1) does.

Examples

trap 'exec 2>&-' 0        Close standard error when

                                         shell script exits (signal 0)

$ exec /bin/csh           Replace shell with C shell
$ exec < infile           Reassign standard input to infile