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pax(1)									pax(1)

NAME
       pax - Extracts, writes, and lists archive files

SYNOPSIS
   Listing Member Files of Archived Files
       pax [-cdnv] [-f archive] [-s replacement_string]... [pattern...]

   Extracting Archive Files
       pax   -r	   [-cdiknuvyz]	 [-f  archive]	[-p  string]...	 [-s  replace‐
       ment_string]... [pattern...]

   Writing Archive Files
       pax  -w	 [-adituvVXy]  [-b  blocksize]	[-f  archive]	[-s   replace‐
       ment_string]... [-x format] [file...]

   Copying Files
       pax  -r	 -w   [-diklntuvVXy] [-p string]... [-s replacement_string]...
       [file...] directory

       The pax command extracts, writes, and lists members of  archive	files.
       It also copies files and directory hierarchies.

STANDARDS
       Interfaces  documented on this reference page conform to industry stan‐
       dards as follows:

       pax:  XCU5.0

       Refer to the standards(5) reference page	 for  more  information	 about
       industry standards and associated tags.

OPTIONS
       Appends	files  to  the	end of the archive.  Certain devices might not
       support appending.  Specifies the block size for output to be the posi‐
       tive  decimal integer of bytes specified by the blocksize argument. The
       block size value cannot exceed  32,256,	the  maximum  size  for	 POSIX
       portability.   Blocking	is automatically determined on input.  Matches
       all file or archive members except those specified by  the  pattern  or
       file  arguments.	  Causes  directories  being  copied  or  archived, or
       archived directories being extracted, to match only  the	 directory  or
       archived	 directory  itself  and	 not  the contents of the directory or
       archived directory.  Specifies the path of an archive file to  be  used
       instead	of standard input (when the -w option is not specified) or the
       standard output (when the -w option is specified but the -r  option  is
       not).  When  specified with the -a option, any files written to the ar‐
       chive are appended to the end of the  archive.	Interactively  renames
       files  or  archives interactively. For each archive member that matches
       the pattern argument or file that matches a file argument, a prompt  is
       written	to the terminal (/dev/tty) that contains the name of a file or
       archive member. A line is then read from the terminal. If this line  is
       empty, the file or archive member is skipped.  If this line consists of
       a dot, the file or archive member is processed with no modification  to
       its  name.  Otherwise,  its  name  is replaced with the contents of the
       line.  The pax command immediately exits with a nonzero exit status  if
       an  End-of-File	is encountered when reading a response or if it cannot
       read or write to the terminal.  Prevents the pax command	 from  writing
       over existing files.  Links files when copying files.  When both -r and
       -w are specified, hard links are established  between  the  source  and
       destination  file hierarchies whenever possible.	 Selects the first ar‐
       chive member that matches each pattern argument.	 No more than one  ar‐
       chive  member  is  matched  for	each pattern (although members of type
       directory will still match the file hierarchy  rooted  at  that	file).
       Specifies  one or more file characteristics to be retained or discarded
       on extraction. The string argument consists of the characters a, e,  m,
       o,  and p. Multiple characteristics can be concatenated within the same
       string and multiple -p options can  be  specified.   The	 specification
       flags  have  the following meanings: Does not retain file-access times.
       Retains the user ID, group ID, access permission, access time, and mod‐
       ification  time.	 Does not retain file-modification times.  Retains the
       user ID and the group ID.  Retains the access permission.

	      Retain means that an attribute stored in the archive is given to
	      the  extracted  file, subject to the permissions of the invoking
	      process; otherwise, the attribute is determined as part  of  the
	      normal file creation action.

	      If neither the e nor the o flag is specified, or the user ID and
	      group ID are not retained, the pax  command  does	 not  set  the
	      S_ISUID and S_ISGID bits of the access permission. If the reten‐
	      tion of any of these items fails, the pax command writes a diag‐
	      nostic  message  to standard error. Failure to retain any of the
	      items affects the exit status, but does not cause the  extracted
	      file  to	be  deleted.  If specification flags are duplicated or
	      conflict with each other, the ones given last  take  precedence.
	      For example, if -p eme is specified, file-modification times are
	      retained.	 Reads an archive file	and  any  associated  extended
	      attributes from the standard input.  Modifies file-member or ar‐
	      chive-member names specified by the pattern  or  file  arguments
	      according	 to  the  substitution	expression replacement_string,
	      using the syntax of the ed command. The substitution  expression
	      has the following format: -s /old/new/ [gp]

	      In the ed command, old is a basic regular expression and new can
	      contain an & (ampersand), \n (n is a digit) back references,  or
	      subexpression  matching. The old string can also contain newline
	      characters.

	      Any nonnull character can be used as a delimiter. The slash  (/)
	      character	 is the delimiter in the previous format). Multiple -s
	      option expressions can be specified; the expressions are applied
	      in  the  order  specified, terminating with the first successful
	      substitution.  The optional trailing g character performs as  in
	      the  ed  command.	 The optional trailing p character causes suc‐
	      cessful substitutions to be written to the standard error. File-
	      member  or  archive-member  names	 that  substitute to the empty
	      string are ignored when reading and  writing  archives.	Causes
	      the  access  times  of the archived files to be the same as they
	      were before being read by the pax command.  Ignores  files  that
	      are  older  (having a less recent file modification time) than a
	      preexisting file or archive member with the same name.

	      When extracting files (-r option), an archive  member  with  the
	      same  name  as a file in the file system is extracted if the ar‐
	      chive member is newer than the file.

	      When writing files to an archive file (-w	 option),  an  archive
	      member with the same name as a file in the file system is super‐
	      seded if the file is newer than the archive member.

	      When copying files to a destination directory (-rw options), the
	      file in the destination hierarchy is replaced by the file in the
	      source hierarchy or by a link to the file in the source  hierar‐
	      chy if the file in the source hierarchy is newer.	 Writes infor‐
	      mation about the process. If neither the -r or  -w  options  are
	      specified,  the  -v  option produces a verbose table of contents
	      that resembles the output of ls  -l;  otherwise,	archive-member
	      pathnames are written to standard error.	[Tru64 UNIX]  Prevents
	      any extended attributes  from  being  archived  with  associated
	      files.   This  option is particularly useful for archiving files
	      that are to be restored with previous versions of tar and	 cpio.
	      [Tru64  UNIX]  Writes  files  and any extended attributes to the
	      standard output in the specified archive format.	Specifies  the
	      output  archive format. The pax command recognizes the following
	      formats: Extended cpio interchange format. The default  blocking
	      value  for  this	format	for character special archive files is
	      5120. Blocking values from 512 to 32,256 in  increments  of  512
	      are  supported.	Extended  tar interchange format.  The default
	      blocking value for this format  for  character  special  archive
	      files  is	 10240.	  Blocking values from 512 to 32,256 in incre‐
	      ments of 512 are supported.  This option lets the	 user  archive
	      long  file  names	 and  extended	UID/GID	 values.  Extended tar
	      interchange format.  This is the default output archive  format.
	      The default blocking value for this format for character special
	      archive files is 10240. Blocking values from 512	to  32,256  in
	      increments of 512 are supported.

	      Any  attempt  to append to an archive file in a format different
	      from the existing archive format causes the pax command to  exit
	      immediately  with	 a  nonzero  exit status.  When traversing the
	      file hierarchy specified by a pathname, the pax command does not
	      descend  into  directories  that	have  a	 different  device ID.
	      [Tru64 UNIX]  Prompts interactively for the disposition of  each
	      file.  Substitutions  specified  by  the -s option are performed
	      before you are prompted for disposition.	An EOF	marker	or  an
	      input  line  starting with the character “q” causes the pax com‐
	      mand to exit. Otherwise, an input line  starting	with  anything
	      other  than  the	character  “y”	causes the file to be ignored.
	      [Tru64 UNIX]  Positions the tape after the EOF marker on extrac‐
	      tion  or	listing.   The	z option lets the user extract or list
	      tapes that have multiple archives on them one  after  the	 other
	      without  error as a result of the tape not being positioned cor‐
	      rectly for the next extraction or listing.

   Option Interaction and Processing Order
       The options that operate on the names of files or archive members  (-c,
       -i, -n, -s, -u, and -v) interact as follows.

       When  extracting files (-r option), archive members are selected, using
       the modified names, according to the user-specified  pattern  arguments
       as modified by the -c, -n, and -u options.  Then, any -s and -i options
       modify, in that order, the names of the selected files. The  -v	option
       writes the names resulting from these modifications.

       When  writing  files  to	 an  archive file (-w option), or when copying
       files, the files are selected according to the user-specified pathnames
       as modified by the -n and -u options.  Then, any -s and -i options mod‐
       ify, in that order, the names resulting from these modifications.   The
       -v option writes the names resulting from these modifications.

       If  both	 the -u and -n options are specified, the pax command does not
       consider a file selected unless it is newer than the file to  which  it
       is compared.

OPERANDS
       The destination directory pathname for copy mode.  A pathname of a file
       to be copied or archived.  A pattern matching one or more pathnames  of
       archive	members.  A pattern must be given in name-generating notation.
       The default, if no pattern is specified, is to select  all  members  in
       the archive.

DESCRIPTION
       The  pax	 command  extracts and writes member files and any associated,
       extended attributes of archive files; writes lists of the member	 files
       of  archives;  and  copies directory hierarchies. The -r and -w options
       specify the archive operation performed by the pax command.

       The pattern argument specifies a pattern that matches one or more paths
       of  archive members. A \ (backslash) character is not recognized in the
       pattern argument and it prevents the subsequent character  from	having
       any  special  meaning. If no pattern argument is specified, all members
       are selected in the archive.

       If a pattern argument is specified, but no archive  members  are	 found
       that  match  the	 pattern specified, the pax command detects the error,
       exits with a nonzero exit status, and writes a diagnostic message.

       The pax command can read both tar and cpio archives.  In	 the  case  of
       cpio,  this  means  that pax can read ASCII archives (which are created
       with cpio -c) and binary archives (which are  created  without  the  -c
       option).	  The  supported archive formats are automatically detected on
       input.

       The pax command can also write archives that tar and cpio can read;  by
       default, pax writes archives in the ustar extended tar interchange for‐
       mat.  The pax command also writes ASCII cpio archives; use the -x  cpio
       option to specify this extended cpio output format.

   Listing Member Files of Archived Files
       When  neither  the -r nor the -w options are specified, the pax command
       writes the names of the members of the archive file read from the stan‐
       dard  input,  with  pathnames  matching	the specified patterns, to the
       standard output. If a named file is a  directory,  the  file  hierarchy
       contained  in  the  directory is also written.  You can specify the pax
       command without the -r or -w options with the -c, -d, -f, -n,  -s,  and
       -v options, and with the pattern argument.

       If neither the -r or -w options are included, pax lists the contents of
       the specified archive, one file per line.  The pax command  lists  hard
       link pathnames as follows:

       pathname == linkname

       The pax command lists symbolic link pathnames as follows:

       pathname -> linkname

       In  both	 of the preceding cases, pathname is the name of the file that
       is being extracted, and linkname is the name of a  file	that  appeared
       earlier in the archive.

       If  the	-v  option is specified, the listing of hard link pathnames is
       output in the ls -l command format.

   Extracting Archive Files
       When the -r option is specified, but the -w option is not, the pax com‐
       mand  extracts  the  members  of	 an  archive  file  and	 any  extended
       attributes read from the standard input, and  with  pathnames  matching
       the  pattern  argument  if  one is specified. If an extracted file is a
       directory, the file  hierarchy  contained  in  the  directory  is  also
       extracted. The extracted files are created relative to the current file
       hierarchy.  The -r option can be specified with the -c, -d, -f, -n, -s,
       and -v options, and a pattern argument.

       The  access  and modification times of the extracted files are the same
       as the archived files. The access permissions of	 the  extracted	 files
       remain  as archived unless affected by the user's default file creation
       mode. The S_ISUID and S_ISGID bits of the extracted files are cleared.

       If intermediate directories are necessary to extract an archive member,
       the  pax command creates the directories with access permissions set as
       the bitwise inclusive OR of the values of  the  S_IRWXU,	 S_IRWXG,  and
       S_IRWXO options.

       If  the	selected  archive  format supports the specification of linked
       files (both the tar and cpio formats do), it is an error if these files
       cannot  be  linked  when	 the  archive  is  extracted.  The pax command
       informs you of the error and continues processing.

   Writing Archive Files
       When the -w option is specified and the -r option is not, the pax  com‐
       mand writes the contents of the files and any extended attributes spec‐
       ified by the file arguments to the standard output in an	 archive  for‐
       mat.  If	 no file arguments are specified, a list of files to copy, one
       per line, is read from the standard input. When the file argument spec‐
       ifies  a	 directory,  all of the files and any extended attributes con‐
       tained in the directory are written. The -w  option  can	 be  specified
       with  the  -b,  -d, -f, -i, -s, -t, -u, -v, -x, and -X options and with
       file arguments.

       If -w is specified, but no files are specified, standard input is used.
       If  neither  -f	or -w are specified, standard input must be an archive
       file.

   Copying Files
       When both the -r and -w options are specified, the pax  command	copies
       the  files  and any extended attributes specified by the file arguments
       to the destination directory specified by the directory argument. If no
       file arguments are specified, a list of files to copy, one per line, is
       read from the standard input. If a specified file is a  directory,  the
       file hierarchy contained in the directory is also copied. The -r and -w
       options can be specified with the -d, -i, -k, -l, -p, -n, -s,  -t,  -u,
       -v,  and	 -X  options and with the file arguments. A directory argument
       must be specified.

       Copied files are the same as if they were written to  an	 archive  file
       and subsequently extracted.

NOTES
       [Tru64  UNIX]  When you use the -i option (interactively renames files)
       on files to which there are hard links, pax does not create hard	 links
       to  the renamed files.  [Tru64 UNIX]  Archives created with the new pax
       utility and having cpio format can be restored using only the  new  pax
       or  cpio	 commands  even	 if  none  of the archived files have extended
       attributes.   [Tru64  UNIX]  To	achieve	 backward   compatibility   of
       archived	 files,	 invoke	 the  -V  option  to  disable the archiving of
       extended attributes altogether.	[Tru64 UNIX]  Socket files are ignored
       while archiving through the pax command.

EXIT STATUS
       The  following  exit  values  are  returned: Successful completion.  An
       error occurred.

EXAMPLES
       To copy the contents of the current directory to the tape drive, enter:
       pax  -w	-f  /dev/tape0_d0 .  To copy the olddir directory hierarchy to
       newdir, enter: mkdir newdir (cd ./olddir ; pax -p e -rw . ../newdir) To
       read  the archive a.pax, with all files rooted in the directory /usr in
       the archive extracted relative to the current directory, enter: pax  -r
       -s ',^//*usr//*,,' -f a.pax

	      All of the preceding examples create archives in tar format.

	      The  following  pairs  of	 commands demonstrate conversions from
	      cpio and tar to pax.  In all cases, the examples show comparable
	      command-line usage rather than identical output formats.	The -x
	      option can be specified to the pax commands shown here,  produc‐
	      ing archives to select specific output formats: ls * | cpio -ocv
	      pax -wdv *

	      find /mydir -type f -print | cpio -oc find /mydir -type f -print
	      | pax -w

	      cpio -icdum < archive pax -r < archive

	      (find fromdir -print) | cpio -pdlum todir pax -rwl fromdir todir

	      tar cf archive * pax -w -f archive *

	      tar xfv - < archive pax -rv < archive

	      (cd  fromdir;  tar cf - . ) | (cd todir; tar xpf -) pax -rw -p e
	      fromdir todir

ENVIRONMENT VARIABLES
       The following environment variables affect the execution of  pax:  Pro‐
       vides  a	 default value for the internationalization variables that are
       unset or null. If LANG is unset or null, the corresponding  value  from
       the  default  locale  is used. If any of the internationalization vari‐
       ables contain an invalid setting, the utility behaves as if none of the
       variables  had been defined.  If set to a non-empty string value, over‐
       rides the values	 of  all  the  other  internationalization  variables.
       Determines  the	locale for the interpretation of sequences of bytes of
       text data as characters (for example, single-byte as opposed to	multi‐
       byte  characters in arguments and input files), the behavior of charac‐
       ter classes used in the extended regular expressions  defined  for  the
       yesexpr	locale keyword in the LC_MESSAGES category, and pattern match‐
       ing.  Determines the locale for the format and contents	of  diagnostic
       messages written to standard error.  Determines the location of message
       catalogues for the processing of LC_MESSAGES.

SEE ALSO
       Commands:  cpio(1), ed(1), tar(1)

       Files:  tar(4)

       Standards:  standards(5)

									pax(1)
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