Shell Programming and Scripting

have a script that calls child scripts depending on conditions. All of the child scripts source in a common file that contains shared functions.

At the moment each script has to source this file itself, is there a way for the master script to automagically source the file for them?

For clarity, right now the parent script is executing:

Code:

$theScriptPath $theParameters 2>&1 | tee $theOutput

right now the $theScriptPath file has to include the following line:

Code:

. /sharedFiles/commonFunctions

Can I do something magical in the parent script that will make this unnecessary?

Just use:

export -f FunctionName

in commonFunctions eg:

Code:

$ cat parent
. ./commonFunctions
./child
$ cat commonFunctions
function hash {
   echo "This is the hash function"
}
export -f hash
$ cat child
hash
$ ./parent
This is the hash function

I did this for one of my scripts in the past by making the master script be a front end for each individual script. The master invoked itself as a new process instance by using an option after the command name that told itself which thing to do. I used a triple dash option for that. When the master script saw a triple dash option, it checked for the existing of the individual script based on the characters after the triple dash. Then it sourced (or had already coded in it) the common functions. Then it SOURCED the individual script instead of running it, since this instance was already in a new process.

thanks Chubler_XL, worked perfect.

Cheers