[NTLUG:Discuss] searching text in all files for match

[Steve Baker]

Fred James wrote:
> 
> Warning: In UNIX everything is a file.  Time aside (and I admit that
> time can be a problem), the only serious issue I have with any of these
> solutions is what happens when they run into "different" files - stuff
> that ain't just text.  They can get locked, error out, or if the output
> is redirected to a file, they can even fill all available space.  This
> from actual testing this afternoon.  That means you will need some means
> of protecting the processes from "different" files, such as searching
> only directories that contain "safe" files.  Don't just turn it lose on
> your whole file structure.

> >> Recap:
> >> find . -type f | xargs file | grep -i text | cut -f1 -d: | xargs grep
> >> "search for this"

Well, the 'find . -type f' part will only allow "regular" files through -
so you only have to worry about grepping binary files.  The simple way
to fix *that* is to pipe the file through 'strings' before you grep it.
'strings' is a filter that only passes ASCII strings of longer than
a certain limit.

That won't stop it finding matches in binary files - but it will stop
the results of a spurious 'grep' from sending bizarre escape sequences
to your xterm.

Still - it might be better to give 'find' a list of valid file extensions
to match.

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