Re: Script does not do what it is told to do

[Michael Howard <mike@dewberryfields.co.uk>]

On 24/10/2019 23:37, Ken Heard wrote:
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> Whenever I run this script -- or several others like it
>
> #!/bin/bash
> # Script to back up all browser files in directory /home/ken/mozilla.
> STARTDIR=$PWD
> cd /home/ken
> tar -czf /media/fde/backups/kbrowsers.tgz  --exclude-caches \
> - --wildcards -T docs/tarlists/kbrowsers.lst
> cd "$STARTDIR"
>
> it returns the following:
>
> ken@Turing:~$ tarkbrowsers
> tar (child): /media/ssda/backups/kbrowsers.tgz: Cannot open: No such
> file or directory
> tar (child): Error is not recoverable: exiting now
> tar: /media/ssda/backups/kbrowsers.tgz: Cannot write: Broken pipe
> tar: Child returned status 2
> tar: Error is not recoverable: exiting now
>
> It is trying to save the tarball to a different portable storage
> device, ssda, which had failed and consequently is no longer in
> /etc/fstab.  How could such a thing happen?

There is nothing inherently wrong with the script, in that it would work 
if all other things were equal, but they are clearly not.

Do an 'ls -l' on '/media/fde/backups', does it reveal anything? It might 
well do.

Using the -C option to tar is preferable to the way you are doing it.  So,

tar -czf /media/fde/backups/kbrowsers.tgz --exclude-caches --wildcards -C /home/ken
 -T ./docs/tarlists/kbrowsers.lst

might be better. You  will return to your starting location then, 
without the need for STARTDIR gubbings.

Mike.

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