UNIX for Advanced & Expert Users

Hi All ,

We usually tend to use rm -f or rm -rf commands to delete files and directories in UNIX based Systems. But despite of utter care while deletion, there is high possibility that some of important files get deleted by mistake (as in the case of rm -f *).

So , one way to avoid this could be creating the backup of files deleted to some other directory. But for this , the execution of each rm -f and rm -rf command needs to be tracked.

So , can we devise any mechanism with the help of Shell Script or some other way that everytime rm -f or rm-rf command is executed , the files being deleted will be copied to some other directory ?

Hi,
I know!
Make an alias for rm (and disable the true rm command just to be sure), so that instead of removing files and directories, You just move them to another place!



Best regards,
Lakris

PS Hmmm, I think Il just might patent that... I can call it the "recycle can", or such like...

That's how we did it 20 years ago on HP-UX. Create a recycle directory and move files there with an rm alias (making sure that everyone finds the alias first in their PATH). Then we created a clean-up job that ran in cron and emptied this directory once a week.

I got many a free lunch from a very happy programmer after he deleted an important directory or file. I'd always tell them there might be a way to get it back and make them sweat a day or so, then copy it back and be the hero.

Hey, you have to take it where you can get it.

Long ago, I wrote a script that would cpio de files elsewhere to be archived in compressed format and cron job would run to delete the archives after 3- months...

Thanks to all for replying. All replies were great.It is so simple to deal with problem.

Just an additional thing , I want to know how can we disable actual rm command of UNIX system so that every time I run rm command it would point to my alias only. Or just setting alias will take care of it.

Thanks a lot to all again

rm's used by scripts, not just interactive things, so you'd better leave it alone. Imagine your backup dir filling up with temp files! An alias lets you manage rm only for interactive users; plus if they really, genuinely need the real rm they can call it with its absolute path.