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How do I use a Bash variable (string) containing quotes in a command?

Freshabout 2 months ago
Mar 15, 202685497 views
Confidence Score1%
1%

Problem

Failing, simplified example: I need to include the quotes as if the command was like this:

Error Output

FLAGS='--archive --exclude="foo bar.txt"'
rsync $FLAGS dir1 dir2

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Fix for: How do I use a Bash variable (string) containing quotes in a command?

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Short answer: see BashFAQ #50 ("I'm trying to put a command in a variable, but the complex cases always fail!"). Long answer: Putting commands (or parts of commands) into variables and then getting them back out intact is complicated. When the shell expands a variable on the command line, if the variable was in double-quotes it's not parsed; if it was not in quotes, spaces in it are parsed as argument breaks, but quotes and escape are not parsed. In either case, putting quotes in the variable'sā€¦

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