GNU Find Flashcards: Expressions, Output & Pruning

Question 1

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

atlas/
atlas/draft/
atlas/draft/seed.txt
atlas/seed.txt

find atlas -name 'draft/seed.txt'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

None. -name tests the final name component, so a pattern containing / cannot match these names.

Question 2

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

bay/
bay/card.md/
bay/card.md/inner
bay/page.md
bay/readme.txt

find bay -type f -name '*.md'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

bay/page.md. Adjacent tests mean AND: the entry must be a regular file and have a name ending in .md.

Question 3

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

cedar/
cedar/one.log
cedar/two.log
cedar/raw/
cedar/raw/three.log

find cedar -name '*.log'

Why keep the quotes around the pattern?

Accepted Answer

They pass the literal pattern *.log to find instead of letting the shell expand it. All three .log files print, including cedar/raw/three.log.

Question 4

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

dune/
dune/keep.txt
dune/skip.txt
dune/skip.txt.box/

find dune -type f ! -name 'skip.txt'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

dune/keep.txt. ! negates the following name test; the regular-file guard still applies.

Question 5

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

ember/
ember/first.c
ember/second.h
ember/cache.h/
ember/cache.h/chunk

find ember -type f -name '*.c' -o -name '*.h'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

ember/first.c, ember/second.h, and directory ember/cache.h. AND binds more tightly than OR, so the .h branch has no regular-file guard.

Question 6

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

fern/
fern/.note.md
fern/plain.md
fern/deep/
fern/deep/.other.md

find fern -name '*.md'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

All three .md files. GNU find's -name pattern can match a leading dot; the shell receives the quoted pattern unchanged.

Question 7

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

grove/
grove/pkg/
grove/pkg/part.txt
grove/part.txt

find ./grove -path './grove/pkg/part.txt'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

./grove/pkg/part.txt. -path matches the encountered path, including the starting point's ./ prefix.

Question 8

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

harbor/
harbor/red.txt
harbor/blue.txt
harbor/green.txt

find harbor $ -name 'red.txt' -o -name 'blue.txt' $

Why are the parentheses escaped?

Accepted Answer

So the shell passes ( and ) as arguments to find for grouping. The printed set is harbor/red.txt and harbor/blue.txt.

Question 9

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

iris/
iris/a.csv
iris/b.tsv
iris/c.txt

find iris -name '*.csv' -o -name '*.tsv' -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

iris/b.tsv only. A true .csv branch short-circuits OR before -print; the explicit action also disables default printing for the command.

Question 10

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

juniper/
juniper/a.dat
juniper/b.txt
juniper/folder.dat/

find juniper -type f -a -name '*.dat' -print

If only -a is removed, does the printed set change?

Accepted Answer

No. Both forms print only juniper/a.dat; an omitted operator between primaries means AND.

Question 11

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

kestrel/
kestrel/a.py
kestrel/b.pyi
kestrel/stub.pyi/

find kestrel -type f -name '*.py' -o -name '*.pyi'

Add only grouping parentheses so both name alternatives require a regular file. Give the repaired command.

Accepted Answer

find kestrel -type f $ -name '*.py' -o -name '*.pyi' $

This prints kestrel/a.py and kestrel/b.pyi. The type guard now applies to the whole name choice.

Question 12

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

lagoon/
lagoon/start.txt
lagoon/end.txt
lagoon/other.txt

find lagoon -name 'start.txt' -print -o -name 'end.txt'

Does lagoon/end.txt print?

Accepted Answer

No. The second branch is true for it, but that branch has no print action. An explicit -print anywhere in the expression disables default printing for the whole command.

Question 13

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

maple/
maple/red.txt
maple/blue.txt
maple/gray.txt

find maple -type f ! $ -name 'red.txt' -o -name 'blue.txt' $

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

maple/gray.txt. Negating the grouped OR excludes both named files.

Question 14

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

nectar/
nectar/a.json
nectar/b.yaml
nectar/c.ini

find nectar -name '*.json' -o -name '*.yaml' -print

Add only parentheses so either filename branch reaches the final print. Give the repaired command.

Accepted Answer

find nectar $ -name '*.json' -o -name '*.yaml' $ -print

Both nectar/a.json and nectar/b.yaml print; the action is now after the grouped choice.

Question 15

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

opal/
opal/release notes.txt
opal/release.txt
opal/notes.txt

find opal -type f -name 'release notes.txt' -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

opal/release notes.txt. The quotes make the space-bearing pattern one shell argument; the space is part of the filename.

Question 16

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

pine/
pine/real.txt

find pine -name 'absent.txt' -print

With readable entries and no I/O errors, what are the output and exit status?

Accepted Answer

No paths; exit status 0. A false selection expression is not a process error.

Question 17

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

quartz/
quartz/hot.txt
quartz/cold.txt
quartz/mild.txt

find quartz -type f $ ! -name 'hot.txt' -o ! -name 'cold.txt' $

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

All three regular files. Every name differs from at least one of the two distinct names; OR of these negatives excludes neither.

Question 18

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

reed/
reed/pass.txt
reed/fail.bin

find reed -print -name '*.txt'

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

reed, reed/pass.txt, and reed/fail.bin. -print runs before the name test; a later false result cannot undo output.

Question 19

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

sable/
sable/r.c
sable/s.h
sable/box.h/

find sable $ -name '*.c' -o -name '*.h' $ -type f -print

Which paths print, and does putting the type test after the group break the guard?

Accepted Answer

sable/r.c and sable/s.h. It still works: the grouped name choice and the type test are joined by AND before printing.

Question 20

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

tamarind/
tamarind/cache/
tamarind/cache/old.txt
tamarind/fresh.txt

find tamarind -type d -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Which paths print, and is cache/old.txt visited?

Accepted Answer

Only tamarind/fresh.txt prints. The cache directory is encountered and pruned; its child is not visited. The true pruning branch skips the right side of OR.

Question 21

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

umber/
umber/yes.txt
umber/no.txt

find umber -name 'yes.txt' -o -name 'no.txt' -print

For umber/yes.txt, is the full expression true, and does it print?

Accepted Answer

The expression is true, but it does not print. The left branch succeeds and OR skips the branch containing the only output action.

Question 22

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

violet/
violet/cache/
violet/cache/hidden.txt
violet/live.txt

find violet -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

violet/cache and violet/live.txt. -prune alone does not disable default printing, and the full expression is true for the pruned directory. Its child is not visited.

Question 23

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

willow/
willow/build/
willow/build/a.txt
willow/vendor/
willow/vendor/b.txt
willow/src/
willow/src/c.txt

find willow -type d $ -name 'build' -o -name 'vendor' $ -prune -o -type f -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

willow/src/c.txt only. Both directory names are inside the pruning branch, so neither excluded directory's descendants are visited.

Question 24

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

xenia/
xenia/cache/
xenia/cache/a.txt
xenia/b.txt

find xenia -type f ! -path 'xenia/cache/*' -print

Does this prevent traversal into xenia/cache?

Accepted Answer

No. It prints only xenia/b.txt, but still visits xenia/cache/a.txt. A path test filters output; it does not stop directory descent.

Question 25

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

yarrow/
yarrow/cache/
yarrow/cache/a.txt
yarrow/src/
yarrow/src/cache/
yarrow/src/cache/b.txt
yarrow/c.txt

find yarrow -path 'yarrow/cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Which regular files print?

Accepted Answer

yarrow/src/cache/b.txt and yarrow/c.txt. Only the exact encountered path yarrow/cache is pruned; the nested cache is a different path.

Question 26

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

zinnia/
zinnia/cache/
zinnia/cache/a
zinnia/b

find zinnia -type d -name 'cache' -prune -print

Does the pruned directory print, and are its children visited?

Accepted Answer

zinnia/cache prints; its child is not visited. -prune returns true, so AND continues to the explicit -print for that directory.

Question 27

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

acorn/
acorn/cache
acorn/src/
acorn/src/cache/
acorn/src/cache/a
acorn/src/live

find acorn -type d -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

acorn/cache and acorn/src/live. The type guard keeps the regular file named cache out of the pruning branch; the nested cache directory is pruned.

Question 28

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

birch/
birch/build/
birch/build/a.txt
birch/vendor/
birch/vendor/b.txt
birch/c.txt

find birch -name 'build' -o -name 'vendor' -prune -o -type f -print

Which excluded directory still has its child visited and printed?

Accepted Answer

birch/build: its a.txt child prints, along with birch/c.txt. Matching the first OR branch skips -prune; only the vendor branch reaches it.

Question 29

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

cobalt/
cobalt/cache/
cobalt/cache/a.txt
cobalt/b.txt

find cobalt -depth -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Does pruning prevent the cache child's visit or output?

Accepted Answer

No. Both cobalt/cache/a.txt and cobalt/b.txt print. -depth processes children before their directory, so pruning that directory comes too late.

Question 30

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

drift/
drift/cache/
drift/cache/a.txt
drift/lib/
drift/lib/cache/
drift/lib/cache/b.txt
drift/c.txt

find drift -type d -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Which regular files print?

Accepted Answer

drift/c.txt only. A directory-name test catches both the top-level cache and the nested one.

Question 31

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

easel/
easel/a.txt
easel/sub/
easel/sub/b.txt

find easel -name 'easel' -prune -o -type f -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

None. The starting directory itself matches and is pruned, so none of its descendants are visited.

Question 32

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

flint/
flint/cache/
flint/cache/a.txt
flint/b.txt

find flint -type d -name 'cache' -prune -type f -print

Why does even flint/b.txt fail to print?

Accepted Answer

Every primary is joined by AND. Regular files fail -type d; the pruned cache directory fails -type f. No entry reaches -print.

Question 33

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

garnet/
garnet/cache/
garnet/cache/a
garnet/b

find garnet $ -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f $ -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

garnet/cache and garnet/b. The final print applies to either successful branch, including the true pruning branch.

Question 34

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

heath/
heath/cache/
heath/cache/a
heath/lib/
heath/lib/cache/
heath/lib/cache/b
heath/c

find heath -path 'heath/cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Replace only -path 'heath/cache' so every directory named cache is pruned, wherever nested. Give the replacement.

Accepted Answer

-type d -name 'cache'. The repaired command prints only heath/c; it prunes both cache directories.

Question 35

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

indigo/
indigo/.stash/
indigo/.stash/a.txt
indigo/.memo.txt
indigo/b.txt

find indigo -type d -name '.stash' -prune -o -type f -name '*.txt' -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

indigo/.memo.txt and indigo/b.txt. The hidden directory is pruned, while the quoted name pattern still matches the hidden regular file.

Question 36

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

jasper/
jasper/build/
jasper/build/a
jasper/vendor/
jasper/vendor/b
jasper/c

find jasper -name 'build' -o -name 'vendor' -prune -o -type f -print

Add only parentheses so both named directories reach -prune. Give the repaired command.

Accepted Answer

find jasper $ -name 'build' -o -name 'vendor' $ -prune -o -type f -print

Only jasper/c prints. Grouping makes either name lead to the pruning action.

Question 37

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

kelp/
kelp/cache/
kelp/cache/a.txt
kelp/b.txt

find kelp -type f ! -path 'kelp/cache/*' -print

Compare with:

find kelp -path 'kelp/cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Both commands print kelp/b.txt. Which command still visits kelp/cache/a.txt?

Accepted Answer

The first command. Its negated path test hides the descendant from output but does not prevent visiting it; the second command prunes the directory.

Question 38

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

linen/
linen/cache/
linen/cache/a.md
linen/report.md/
linen/report.md/note.txt
linen/b.md

find linen -type d -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f -name '*.md' -print

Does directory linen/report.md or its child print?

Accepted Answer

Neither. The directory fails the regular-file guard, and its child fails the .md name test. Only linen/b.md prints; report.md is still traversed.

Question 39

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

moss/
moss/cache/
moss/cache/a
moss/b

find ./moss -path 'moss/cache' -prune -o -type f -print

Replace only the path pattern so the cache directory is actually pruned. Give the replacement.

Accepted Answer

'./moss/cache'. Encountered paths retain the starting point's ./; the repaired command prints only ./moss/b.

Question 40

GNU find; run from this complete tree's parent. Trailing / marks directories; other entries are regular files. Ignore output order.

north/
north/cache/
north/cache/a.c
north/src/
north/src/b.c
north/src/c.h
north/src/folder.h/
north/src/folder.h/d.txt
north/release notes.h

find north -type d -name 'cache' -prune -o -type f $ -name '*.c' -o -name '*.h' $ -print

Which paths print?

Accepted Answer

north/src/b.c, north/src/c.h, and north/release notes.h. Pruning excludes the cache subtree; grouping shares the regular-file guard across both suffixes, so folder.h does not print.

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GNU Find Flashcards: Expressions, Output & Pruning