SCRIPT(1) User Commands SCRIPT(1)
NAME
script - make typescript of terminal session
SYNOPSIS
script [options] [file]
DESCRIPTION
script makes a typescript of everything on your terminal session. The
terminal data are stored in raw form to the log file and information
about timing to another (optional) structured log file. The timing log
file is necessary to replay the session later by scriptreplay (1) and
to store additional information about the session.
Since version 2.35 script supports multiple streams and allows to log
input and output to separate files or all the one file. This version
also supports new timing file which records additional information.
The command scriptreplay --summary then provides all the information.
If the argument file or option --log-out file is given, script saves
the dialogue in this file. If no filename is given, the dialogue is
saved in the file typescript.
Note that log input by --log-in or --log-io may be security sensitive
operation as the log file contains all terminal session input (it means
also passwords) independently on the terminal echo flag setting.
OPTIONS
Below, the size argument may be followed by the multiplicative suffixes
KiB (=1024), MiB (=1024*1024), and so on for GiB, TiB, PiB, EiB, ZiB
and YiB (the "iB" is optional, e.g., "K" has the same meaning as
"KiB"), or the suffixes KB (=1000), MB (=1000*1000), and so on for GB,
TB, PB, EB, ZB and YB.
-a, --append
Append the output to file or to typescript, retaining the prior
contents.
-c, --command command
Run the command rather than an interactive shell. This makes it
easy for a script to capture the output of a program that be-
haves differently when its stdout is not a tty.
-E, --echo when
This option controls the ECHO flag for pseudoterminal within the
session. The supported modes are always, never, or auto. The
default is auto -- in this case, ECHO is disabled if the current
standard input is a terminal to avoid double-echo, and enabled
if standard input is not terminal (for example pipe: echo date |
script) to avoid missing input in the session log.
-e, --return
Return the exit code of the child process. Uses the same format
as bash termination on signal termination exit code is 128+n.
The exit code of the child process is always stored in type
script file too.
-f, --flush
Flush output after each write. This is nice for telecoopera-
tion: one person does `mkfifo foo; script -f foo', and another
can supervise real-time what is being done using `cat foo'.
Note that flush has an impact on performance, it's possible to
use SIGUSR1 to flush logs on demand.
--force
Allow the default output file typescript to be a hard or sym-
bolic link. The command will follow a symbolic link.
-B, --log-io file
Log input and output to the same file. Note, this option makes
sense only if --log-timing is also specified, otherwise it's im-
possible to separate output and input streams from the log file.
-I, --log-in file
Log input to the file. The log output is disabled if only
--log-in specified.
Use this logging functionality carefully as it logs all input,
including input when terminal has disabled echo flag (for exam-
ple password inputs).
-O, --log-out file
Log output to the file. The default is to log output to the
file with name typescript if the option --log-out or --log-in is
not given. The log output is disabled if only --log-in speci-
fied.
-T, --log-timing file
Log timing information to the file. Two timing file formats are
supported now. The classic format is used when only one stream
(input or output) logging is enabled. The multi-stream format
is used on --log-io or when --log-in and --log-out are used to-
gether. See also --logging-format.
-m, --logging-format format
Force use advanced or classic format. The default is the clas-
sic format to log only output and the advanced format when input
as well as output logging is requested.
Classic format
The log contains two fields, separated by a space. The first
field indicates how much time elapsed since the previous output.
The second field indicates how many characters were output this
time.
Advanced (multi-stream) format
The first field is entry type itentifier ('I'nput, 'O'utput,
'H'eader, 'S'ignal). The socond field is how much time elapsed
since the previous entry, and rest of the entry is type specific
data.
-o, --output-limit size
Limit the size of the typescript and timing files to size and
stop the child process after this size is exceeded. The calcu-
lated file size does not include the start and done messages
that the script command prepends and appends to the child
process output. Due to buffering, the resulting output file
might be larger than the specified value.
-q, --quiet
Be quiet (do not write start and done messages to standard out-
put).
-t[file], --timing[=file]
Output timing data to standard error, or to file when given.
This option is deprecated in favour of --log-timing where the
file argument is not optional.
-V, --version
Display version information and exit.
-h, --help
Display help text and exit.
NOTES
The script ends when the forked shell exits (a control-D for the Bourne
shell (sh(1p)), and exit, logout or control-d (if ignoreeof is not set)
for the C-shell, csh(1)).
Certain interactive commands, such as vi(1), create garbage in the
typescript file. script works best with commands that do not manipu-
late the screen, the results are meant to emulate a hardcopy terminal.
It is not recommended to run script in non-interactive shells. The in-
ner shell of script is always interactive, and this could lead to unex-
pected results. If you use script in the shell initialization file,
you have to avoid entering an infinite loop. You can use for example
the .profile file, which is read by login shells only:
if test -t 0 ; then
script
exit
fi
You should also avoid use of script in command pipes, as script can
read more input than you would expect.
SIGNALS
Upon receiving SIGUSR1, script immediately flushes the output files.
ENVIRONMENT
The following environment variable is utilized by script:
SHELL If the variable SHELL exists, the shell forked by script will be
that shell. If SHELL is not set, the Bourne shell is assumed.
(Most shells set this variable automatically).
SEE ALSO
csh(1) (for the history mechanism), scriptreplay(1), scriptlive(1),
HISTORY
The script command appeared in 3.0BSD.
BUGS
script places everything in the log file, including linefeeds and
backspaces. This is not what the naive user expects.
script is primarily designed for interactive terminal sessions. When
stdin is not a terminal (for example: echo foo | script), then the ses-
sion can hang, because the interactive shell within the script session
misses EOF and script has no clue when to close the session. See the
NOTES section for more information.
AVAILABILITY
The script command is part of the util-linux package and is available
from Linux Kernel Archive <https://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/utils/util-
linux/>.
util-linux October 2019 SCRIPT(1)