1 # GetOpt::Long.pm -- Universal options parsing
5 # RCS Status : $Id: GetoptLong.pl,v 2.18 1998-06-14 15:02:19+02 jv Exp $
6 # Author : Johan Vromans
7 # Created On : Tue Sep 11 15:00:12 1990
8 # Last Modified By: Johan Vromans
9 # Last Modified On: Fri Jan 8 14:48:43 1999
13 ################ Copyright ################
15 # This program is Copyright 1990,1999 by Johan Vromans.
16 # This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
17 # modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
18 # as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2
19 # of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
21 # This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
22 # but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
23 # MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
24 # GNU General Public License for more details.
26 # If you do not have a copy of the GNU General Public License write to
27 # the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge,
30 ################ Module Preamble ################
37 use vars qw($VERSION @ISA @EXPORT @EXPORT_OK %EXPORT_TAGS);
41 @EXPORT = qw(&GetOptions $REQUIRE_ORDER $PERMUTE $RETURN_IN_ORDER);
44 use AutoLoader qw(AUTOLOAD);
47 # User visible variables.
48 use vars @EXPORT, @EXPORT_OK;
49 use vars qw($error $debug $major_version $minor_version);
50 # Deprecated visible variables.
51 use vars qw($autoabbrev $getopt_compat $ignorecase $bundling $order
53 # Official invisible variables.
54 use vars qw($genprefix);
58 sub config (@); # deprecated name
61 # Private subroutines.
62 sub ConfigDefaults ();
63 sub FindOption ($$$$$$$);
64 sub Croak (@); # demand loading the real Croak
66 ################ Local Variables ################
68 ################ Resident subroutines ################
70 sub ConfigDefaults () {
71 # Handle POSIX compliancy.
72 if ( defined $ENV{"POSIXLY_CORRECT"} ) {
73 $genprefix = "(--|-)";
74 $autoabbrev = 0; # no automatic abbrev of options
75 $bundling = 0; # no bundling of single letter switches
76 $getopt_compat = 0; # disallow '+' to start options
77 $order = $REQUIRE_ORDER;
80 $genprefix = "(--|-|\\+)";
81 $autoabbrev = 1; # automatic abbrev of options
82 $bundling = 0; # bundling off by default
83 $getopt_compat = 1; # allow '+' to start options
86 # Other configurable settings.
87 $debug = 0; # for debugging
88 $error = 0; # error tally
89 $ignorecase = 1; # ignore case when matching options
90 $passthrough = 0; # leave unrecognized options alone
93 ################ Initialization ################
95 # Values for $order. See GNU getopt.c for details.
96 ($REQUIRE_ORDER, $PERMUTE, $RETURN_IN_ORDER) = (0..2);
97 # Version major/minor numbers.
98 ($major_version, $minor_version) = $VERSION =~ /^(\d+)\.(\d+)/;
103 ################ Package return ################
109 ################ AutoLoading subroutines ################
111 # RCS Status : $Id: GetoptLongAl.pl,v 2.20 1998-06-14 15:02:19+02 jv Exp $
112 # Author : Johan Vromans
113 # Created On : Fri Mar 27 11:50:30 1998
114 # Last Modified By: Johan Vromans
115 # Last Modified On: Sun Jun 14 13:54:35 1998
121 my @optionlist = @_; # local copy of the option descriptions
122 my $argend = '--'; # option list terminator
123 my %opctl = (); # table of arg.specs (long and abbrevs)
124 my %bopctl = (); # table of arg.specs (bundles)
125 my $pkg = (caller)[0]; # current context
126 # Needed if linkage is omitted.
127 my %aliases= (); # alias table
128 my @ret = (); # accum for non-options
129 my %linkage; # linkage
130 my $userlinkage; # user supplied HASH
131 my $opt; # current option
132 my $genprefix = $genprefix; # so we can call the same module many times
133 my @opctl; # the possible long option names
137 print STDERR ("GetOpt::Long $Getopt::Long::VERSION ",
138 "called from package \"$pkg\".",
140 'GetOptionsAl $Revision: 2.20 $ ',
144 "autoabbrev=$autoabbrev,".
145 "bundling=$bundling,",
146 "getopt_compat=$getopt_compat,",
149 "ignorecase=$ignorecase,",
150 "passthrough=$passthrough,",
151 "genprefix=\"$genprefix\".",
155 # Check for ref HASH as first argument.
156 # First argument may be an object. It's OK to use this as long
157 # as it is really a hash underneath.
158 $userlinkage = undef;
159 if ( ref($optionlist[0]) and
160 "$optionlist[0]" =~ /^(?:.*\=)?HASH\([^\(]*\)$/ ) {
161 $userlinkage = shift (@optionlist);
162 print STDERR ("=> user linkage: $userlinkage\n") if $debug;
165 # See if the first element of the optionlist contains option
166 # starter characters.
167 if ( $optionlist[0] =~ /^\W+$/ ) {
168 $genprefix = shift (@optionlist);
169 # Turn into regexp. Needs to be parenthesized!
170 $genprefix =~ s/(\W)/\\$1/g;
171 $genprefix = "([" . $genprefix . "])";
174 # Verify correctness of optionlist.
177 while ( @optionlist > 0 ) {
178 my $opt = shift (@optionlist);
180 # Strip leading prefix so people can specify "--foo=i" if they like.
181 $opt = $+ if $opt =~ /^$genprefix+(.*)$/s;
183 if ( $opt eq '<>' ) {
184 if ( (defined $userlinkage)
185 && !(@optionlist > 0 && ref($optionlist[0]))
186 && (exists $userlinkage->{$opt})
187 && ref($userlinkage->{$opt}) ) {
188 unshift (@optionlist, $userlinkage->{$opt});
190 unless ( @optionlist > 0
191 && ref($optionlist[0]) && ref($optionlist[0]) eq 'CODE' ) {
192 $error .= "Option spec <> requires a reference to a subroutine\n";
195 $linkage{'<>'} = shift (@optionlist);
199 # Match option spec. Allow '?' as an alias.
200 if ( $opt !~ /^((\w+[-\w]*)(\|(\?|\w[-\w]*)?)*)?([!~+]|[=:][infse][@%]?)?$/ ) {
201 $error .= "Error in option spec: \"$opt\"\n";
204 my ($o, $c, $a) = ($1, $5);
205 $c = '' unless defined $c;
207 if ( ! defined $o ) {
208 # empty -> '-' option
209 $opctl{$o = ''} = $c;
213 my @o = split (/\|/, $o);
214 my $linko = $o = $o[0];
215 # Force an alias if the option name is not locase.
216 $a = $o unless $o eq lc($o);
220 && ($bundling ? length($o) > 1 : 1));
223 if ( $bundling && length($_) == 1 ) {
224 $_ = lc ($_) if $ignorecase > 1;
227 warn ("Ignoring '!' modifier for short option $_\n");
230 $opctl{$_} = $bopctl{$_} = $c;
233 $_ = lc ($_) if $ignorecase;
252 # If no linkage is supplied in the @optionlist, copy it from
253 # the userlinkage if available.
254 if ( defined $userlinkage ) {
255 unless ( @optionlist > 0 && ref($optionlist[0]) ) {
256 if ( exists $userlinkage->{$o} && ref($userlinkage->{$o}) ) {
257 print STDERR ("=> found userlinkage for \"$o\": ",
258 "$userlinkage->{$o}\n")
260 unshift (@optionlist, $userlinkage->{$o});
263 # Do nothing. Being undefined will be handled later.
269 # Copy the linkage. If omitted, link to global variable.
270 if ( @optionlist > 0 && ref($optionlist[0]) ) {
271 print STDERR ("=> link \"$o\" to $optionlist[0]\n")
273 if ( ref($optionlist[0]) =~ /^(SCALAR|CODE)$/ ) {
274 $linkage{$o} = shift (@optionlist);
276 elsif ( ref($optionlist[0]) =~ /^(ARRAY)$/ ) {
277 $linkage{$o} = shift (@optionlist);
279 if $opctl{$o} ne '' and $opctl{$o} !~ /\@$/;
281 if $bundling and defined $bopctl{$o} and
282 $bopctl{$o} ne '' and $bopctl{$o} !~ /\@$/;
284 elsif ( ref($optionlist[0]) =~ /^(HASH)$/ ) {
285 $linkage{$o} = shift (@optionlist);
287 if $opctl{$o} ne '' and $opctl{$o} !~ /\%$/;
289 if $bundling and defined $bopctl{$o} and
290 $bopctl{$o} ne '' and $bopctl{$o} !~ /\%$/;
293 $error .= "Invalid option linkage for \"$opt\"\n";
297 # Link to global $opt_XXX variable.
298 # Make sure a valid perl identifier results.
302 print STDERR ("=> link \"$o\" to \@$pkg","::opt_$ov\n")
304 eval ("\$linkage{\$o} = \\\@".$pkg."::opt_$ov;");
306 elsif ( $c =~ /%/ ) {
307 print STDERR ("=> link \"$o\" to \%$pkg","::opt_$ov\n")
309 eval ("\$linkage{\$o} = \\\%".$pkg."::opt_$ov;");
312 print STDERR ("=> link \"$o\" to \$$pkg","::opt_$ov\n")
314 eval ("\$linkage{\$o} = \\\$".$pkg."::opt_$ov;");
319 # Bail out if errors found.
320 die ($error) if $error;
323 # Sort the possible long option names.
324 @opctl = sort(keys (%opctl)) if $autoabbrev;
326 # Show the options tables if debugging.
330 while ( ($k,$v) = each(%opctl) ) {
331 print STDERR ($arrow, "\$opctl{\"$k\"} = \"$v\"\n");
335 while ( ($k,$v) = each(%bopctl) ) {
336 print STDERR ($arrow, "\$bopctl{\"$k\"} = \"$v\"\n");
341 # Process argument list
342 while ( @ARGV > 0 ) {
344 #### Get next argument ####
346 $opt = shift (@ARGV);
347 print STDERR ("=> option \"", $opt, "\"\n") if $debug;
349 #### Determine what we have ####
351 # Double dash is option list terminator.
352 if ( $opt eq $argend ) {
353 # Finish. Push back accumulated arguments and return.
354 unshift (@ARGV, @ret)
355 if $order == $PERMUTE;
356 return ($error == 0);
360 my $found; # success status
361 my $dsttype; # destination type ('@' or '%')
362 my $incr; # destination increment
363 my $key; # key (if hash type)
364 my $arg; # option argument
366 ($found, $opt, $arg, $dsttype, $incr, $key) =
367 FindOption ($genprefix, $argend, $opt,
368 \%opctl, \%bopctl, \@opctl, \%aliases);
372 # FindOption undefines $opt in case of errors.
373 next unless defined $opt;
375 if ( defined $arg ) {
376 $opt = $aliases{$opt} if defined $aliases{$opt};
378 if ( defined $linkage{$opt} ) {
379 print STDERR ("=> ref(\$L{$opt}) -> ",
380 ref($linkage{$opt}), "\n") if $debug;
382 if ( ref($linkage{$opt}) eq 'SCALAR' ) {
384 print STDERR ("=> \$\$L{$opt} += \"$arg\"\n")
386 if ( defined ${$linkage{$opt}} ) {
387 ${$linkage{$opt}} += $arg;
390 ${$linkage{$opt}} = $arg;
394 print STDERR ("=> \$\$L{$opt} = \"$arg\"\n")
396 ${$linkage{$opt}} = $arg;
399 elsif ( ref($linkage{$opt}) eq 'ARRAY' ) {
400 print STDERR ("=> push(\@{\$L{$opt}, \"$arg\")\n")
402 push (@{$linkage{$opt}}, $arg);
404 elsif ( ref($linkage{$opt}) eq 'HASH' ) {
405 print STDERR ("=> \$\$L{$opt}->{$key} = \"$arg\"\n")
407 $linkage{$opt}->{$key} = $arg;
409 elsif ( ref($linkage{$opt}) eq 'CODE' ) {
410 print STDERR ("=> &L{$opt}(\"$opt\", \"$arg\")\n")
412 &{$linkage{$opt}}($opt, $arg);
415 print STDERR ("Invalid REF type \"", ref($linkage{$opt}),
417 Croak ("Getopt::Long -- internal error!\n");
420 # No entry in linkage means entry in userlinkage.
421 elsif ( $dsttype eq '@' ) {
422 if ( defined $userlinkage->{$opt} ) {
423 print STDERR ("=> push(\@{\$L{$opt}}, \"$arg\")\n")
425 push (@{$userlinkage->{$opt}}, $arg);
428 print STDERR ("=>\$L{$opt} = [\"$arg\"]\n")
430 $userlinkage->{$opt} = [$arg];
433 elsif ( $dsttype eq '%' ) {
434 if ( defined $userlinkage->{$opt} ) {
435 print STDERR ("=> \$L{$opt}->{$key} = \"$arg\"\n")
437 $userlinkage->{$opt}->{$key} = $arg;
440 print STDERR ("=>\$L{$opt} = {$key => \"$arg\"}\n")
442 $userlinkage->{$opt} = {$key => $arg};
447 print STDERR ("=> \$L{$opt} += \"$arg\"\n")
449 if ( defined $userlinkage->{$opt} ) {
450 $userlinkage->{$opt} += $arg;
453 $userlinkage->{$opt} = $arg;
457 print STDERR ("=>\$L{$opt} = \"$arg\"\n") if $debug;
458 $userlinkage->{$opt} = $arg;
464 # Not an option. Save it if we $PERMUTE and don't have a <>.
465 elsif ( $order == $PERMUTE ) {
466 # Try non-options call-back.
468 if ( (defined ($cb = $linkage{'<>'})) ) {
472 print STDERR ("=> saving \"$tryopt\" ",
473 "(not an option, may permute)\n") if $debug;
474 push (@ret, $tryopt);
479 # ...otherwise, terminate.
481 # Push this one back and exit.
482 unshift (@ARGV, $tryopt);
483 return ($error == 0);
489 if ( $order == $PERMUTE ) {
490 # Push back accumulated arguments
491 print STDERR ("=> restoring \"", join('" "', @ret), "\"\n")
492 if $debug && @ret > 0;
493 unshift (@ARGV, @ret) if @ret > 0;
496 return ($error == 0);
500 sub FindOption ($$$$$$$) {
502 # returns (1, $opt, $arg, $dsttype, $incr, $key) if okay,
503 # returns (0) otherwise.
505 my ($prefix, $argend, $opt, $opctl, $bopctl, $names, $aliases) = @_;
506 my $key; # hash key for a hash option
509 print STDERR ("=> find \"$opt\", prefix=\"$prefix\"\n") if $debug;
511 return (0) unless $opt =~ /^$prefix(.*)$/s;
516 print STDERR ("=> split \"$starter\"+\"$opt\"\n") if $debug;
518 my $optarg = undef; # value supplied with --opt=value
519 my $rest = undef; # remainder from unbundling
521 # If it is a long option, it may include the value.
522 if (($starter eq "--" || ($getopt_compat && !$bundling))
523 && $opt =~ /^([^=]+)=(.*)$/s ) {
526 print STDERR ("=> option \"", $opt,
527 "\", optarg = \"$optarg\"\n") if $debug;
532 my $tryopt = $opt; # option to try
533 my $optbl = $opctl; # table to look it up (long names)
538 if ( $bundling && $starter eq '-' ) {
539 # Unbundle single letter option.
540 $rest = substr ($tryopt, 1);
541 $tryopt = substr ($tryopt, 0, 1);
542 $tryopt = lc ($tryopt) if $ignorecase > 1;
543 print STDERR ("=> $starter$tryopt unbundled from ",
544 "$starter$tryopt$rest\n") if $debug;
545 $rest = undef unless $rest ne '';
546 $optbl = $bopctl; # look it up in the short names table
548 # If bundling == 2, long options can override bundles.
549 if ( $bundling == 2 and
551 defined ($type = $opctl->{$tryopt.$rest}) ) {
552 print STDERR ("=> $starter$tryopt rebundled to ",
553 "$starter$tryopt$rest\n") if $debug;
559 # Try auto-abbreviation.
560 elsif ( $autoabbrev ) {
561 # Downcase if allowed.
562 $tryopt = $opt = lc ($opt) if $ignorecase;
563 # Turn option name into pattern.
564 my $pat = quotemeta ($opt);
565 # Look up in option names.
566 my @hits = grep (/^$pat/, @{$names});
567 print STDERR ("=> ", scalar(@hits), " hits (@hits) with \"$pat\" ",
568 "out of ", scalar(@{$names}), "\n") if $debug;
570 # Check for ambiguous results.
571 unless ( (@hits <= 1) || (grep ($_ eq $opt, @hits) == 1) ) {
572 # See if all matches are for the same option.
575 $_ = $aliases->{$_} if defined $aliases->{$_};
578 # Now see if it really is ambiguous.
579 unless ( keys(%hit) == 1 ) {
580 return (0) if $passthrough;
581 warn ("Option ", $opt, " is ambiguous (",
582 join(", ", @hits), ")\n");
585 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key);
590 # Complete the option name, if appropriate.
591 if ( @hits == 1 && $hits[0] ne $opt ) {
593 $tryopt = lc ($tryopt) if $ignorecase;
594 print STDERR ("=> option \"$opt\" -> \"$tryopt\"\n")
599 # Map to all lowercase if ignoring case.
600 elsif ( $ignorecase ) {
604 # Check validity by fetching the info.
605 $type = $optbl->{$tryopt} unless defined $type;
606 unless ( defined $type ) {
607 return (0) if $passthrough;
608 warn ("Unknown option: ", $opt, "\n");
610 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key);
614 print STDERR ("=> found \"$type\" for ", $opt, "\n") if $debug;
616 #### Determine argument status ####
618 # If it is an option w/o argument, we're almost finished with it.
619 if ( $type eq '' || $type eq '!' || $type eq '+' ) {
620 if ( defined $optarg ) {
621 return (0) if $passthrough;
622 warn ("Option ", $opt, " does not take an argument\n");
626 elsif ( $type eq '' || $type eq '+' ) {
627 $arg = 1; # supply explicit value
628 $incr = $type eq '+';
631 substr ($opt, 0, 2) = ''; # strip NO prefix
632 $arg = 0; # supply explicit value
634 unshift (@ARGV, $starter.$rest) if defined $rest;
635 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key);
638 # Get mandatory status and type info.
640 ($mand, $type, $dsttype, $key) = $type =~ /^(.)(.)([@%]?)$/;
642 # Check if there is an option argument available.
643 if ( defined $optarg ? ($optarg eq '')
644 : !(defined $rest || @ARGV > 0) ) {
645 # Complain if this option needs an argument.
646 if ( $mand eq "=" ) {
647 return (0) if $passthrough;
648 warn ("Option ", $opt, " requires an argument\n");
652 if ( $mand eq ":" ) {
653 $arg = $type eq "s" ? '' : 0;
655 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key);
658 # Get (possibly optional) argument.
659 $arg = (defined $rest ? $rest
660 : (defined $optarg ? $optarg : shift (@ARGV)));
662 # Get key if this is a "name=value" pair for a hash option.
664 if ($dsttype eq '%' && defined $arg) {
665 ($key, $arg) = ($arg =~ /^(.*)=(.*)$/s) ? ($1, $2) : ($arg, 1);
668 #### Check if the argument is valid for this option ####
670 if ( $type eq "s" ) { # string
671 # A mandatory string takes anything.
672 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key) if $mand eq "=";
674 # An optional string takes almost anything.
675 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key)
676 if defined $optarg || defined $rest;
677 return (1, $opt,$arg,$dsttype,$incr,$key) if $arg eq "-"; # ??
679 # Check for option or option list terminator.
680 if ($arg eq $argend ||
681 $arg =~ /^$prefix.+/) {
683 unshift (@ARGV, $arg);
684 # Supply empty value.
689 elsif ( $type eq "n" || $type eq "i" ) { # numeric/integer
690 if ( $bundling && defined $rest && $rest =~ /^(-?[0-9]+)(.*)$/s ) {
693 unshift (@ARGV, $starter.$rest) if defined $rest && $rest ne '';
695 elsif ( $arg !~ /^-?[0-9]+$/ ) {
696 if ( defined $optarg || $mand eq "=" ) {
697 if ( $passthrough ) {
698 unshift (@ARGV, defined $rest ? $starter.$rest : $arg)
699 unless defined $optarg;
702 warn ("Value \"", $arg, "\" invalid for option ",
703 $opt, " (number expected)\n");
707 unshift (@ARGV, $starter.$rest) if defined $rest;
711 unshift (@ARGV, defined $rest ? $starter.$rest : $arg);
712 # Supply default value.
718 elsif ( $type eq "f" ) { # real number, int is also ok
719 # We require at least one digit before a point or 'e',
720 # and at least one digit following the point and 'e'.
722 if ( $bundling && defined $rest &&
723 $rest =~ /^(-?[0-9]+(\.[0-9]+)?([eE]-?[0-9]+)?)(.*)$/s ) {
726 unshift (@ARGV, $starter.$rest) if defined $rest && $rest ne '';
728 elsif ( $arg !~ /^-?[0-9.]+(\.[0-9]+)?([eE]-?[0-9]+)?$/ ) {
729 if ( defined $optarg || $mand eq "=" ) {
730 if ( $passthrough ) {
731 unshift (@ARGV, defined $rest ? $starter.$rest : $arg)
732 unless defined $optarg;
735 warn ("Value \"", $arg, "\" invalid for option ",
736 $opt, " (real number expected)\n");
740 unshift (@ARGV, $starter.$rest) if defined $rest;
744 unshift (@ARGV, defined $rest ? $starter.$rest : $arg);
745 # Supply default value.
751 Croak ("GetOpt::Long internal error (Can't happen)\n");
753 return (1, $opt, $arg, $dsttype, $incr, $key);
756 # Getopt::Long Configuration.
760 foreach $opt ( @options ) {
763 if ( $try =~ /^no_?(.*)$/s ) {
767 if ( $try eq 'default' or $try eq 'defaults' ) {
768 ConfigDefaults () if $action;
770 elsif ( $try eq 'auto_abbrev' or $try eq 'autoabbrev' ) {
771 $autoabbrev = $action;
773 elsif ( $try eq 'getopt_compat' ) {
774 $getopt_compat = $action;
776 elsif ( $try eq 'ignorecase' or $try eq 'ignore_case' ) {
777 $ignorecase = $action;
779 elsif ( $try eq 'ignore_case_always' ) {
780 $ignorecase = $action ? 2 : 0;
782 elsif ( $try eq 'bundling' ) {
785 elsif ( $try eq 'bundling_override' ) {
786 $bundling = $action ? 2 : 0;
788 elsif ( $try eq 'require_order' ) {
789 $order = $action ? $REQUIRE_ORDER : $PERMUTE;
791 elsif ( $try eq 'permute' ) {
792 $order = $action ? $PERMUTE : $REQUIRE_ORDER;
794 elsif ( $try eq 'pass_through' or $try eq 'passthrough' ) {
795 $passthrough = $action;
797 elsif ( $try =~ /^prefix=(.+)$/ ) {
799 # Turn into regexp. Needs to be parenthesized!
800 $genprefix = "(" . quotemeta($genprefix) . ")";
801 eval { '' =~ /$genprefix/; };
802 Croak ("Getopt::Long: invalid pattern \"$genprefix\"") if $@;
804 elsif ( $try =~ /^prefix_pattern=(.+)$/ ) {
806 # Parenthesize if needed.
807 $genprefix = "(" . $genprefix . ")"
808 unless $genprefix =~ /^\(.*\)$/;
809 eval { '' =~ /$genprefix/; };
810 Croak ("Getopt::Long: invalid pattern \"$genprefix\"") if $@;
812 elsif ( $try eq 'debug' ) {
816 Croak ("Getopt::Long: unknown config parameter \"$opt\"")
826 # To prevent Carp from being loaded unnecessarily.
829 $Carp::CarpLevel = 1;
833 ################ Documentation ################
837 GetOptions - extended processing of command line options
842 $result = GetOptions (...option-descriptions...);
846 The Getopt::Long module implements an extended getopt function called
847 GetOptions(). This function adheres to the POSIX syntax for command
848 line options, with GNU extensions. In general, this means that options
849 have long names instead of single letters, and are introduced with a
850 double dash "--". Support for bundling of command line options, as was
851 the case with the more traditional single-letter approach, is provided
852 but not enabled by default. For example, the UNIX "ps" command can be
853 given the command line "option"
857 which means the combination of B<-v>, B<-a> and B<-x>. With the new
858 syntax B<--vax> would be a single option, probably indicating a
859 computer architecture.
861 Command line options can be used to set values. These values can be
862 specified in one of two ways:
867 GetOptions is called with a list of option-descriptions, each of which
868 consists of two elements: the option specifier and the option linkage.
869 The option specifier defines the name of the option and, optionally,
870 the value it can take. The option linkage is usually a reference to a
871 variable that will be set when the option is used. For example, the
872 following call to GetOptions:
874 GetOptions("size=i" => \$offset);
876 will accept a command line option "size" that must have an integer
877 value. With a command line of "--size 24" this will cause the variable
878 $offset to get the value 24.
880 Alternatively, the first argument to GetOptions may be a reference to
881 a HASH describing the linkage for the options, or an object whose
882 class is based on a HASH. The following call is equivalent to the
885 %optctl = ("size" => \$offset);
886 GetOptions(\%optctl, "size=i");
888 Linkage may be specified using either of the above methods, or both.
889 Linkage specified in the argument list takes precedence over the
890 linkage specified in the HASH.
892 The command line options are taken from array @ARGV. Upon completion
893 of GetOptions, @ARGV will contain the rest (i.e. the non-options) of
896 Each option specifier designates the name of the option, optionally
897 followed by an argument specifier.
899 Options that do not take arguments will have no argument specifier.
900 The option variable will be set to 1 if the option is used.
902 For the other options, the values for argument specifiers are:
908 Option does not take an argument and may be negated, i.e. prefixed by
909 "no". E.g. "foo!" will allow B<--foo> (with value 1) and B<-nofoo>
911 The option variable will be set to 1, or 0 if negated.
915 Option does not take an argument and will be incremented by 1 every
916 time it appears on the command line. E.g. "more+", when used with
917 B<--more --more --more>, will set the option variable to 3 (provided
918 it was 0 or undefined at first).
920 The B<+> specifier is ignored if the option destination is not a SCALAR.
924 Option takes a mandatory string argument.
925 This string will be assigned to the option variable.
926 Note that even if the string argument starts with B<-> or B<-->, it
927 will not be considered an option on itself.
931 Option takes an optional string argument.
932 This string will be assigned to the option variable.
933 If omitted, it will be assigned "" (an empty string).
934 If the string argument starts with B<-> or B<-->, it
935 will be considered an option on itself.
939 Option takes a mandatory integer argument.
940 This value will be assigned to the option variable.
941 Note that the value may start with B<-> to indicate a negative
946 Option takes an optional integer argument.
947 This value will be assigned to the option variable.
948 If omitted, the value 0 will be assigned.
949 Note that the value may start with B<-> to indicate a negative
954 Option takes a mandatory real number argument.
955 This value will be assigned to the option variable.
956 Note that the value may start with B<-> to indicate a negative
961 Option takes an optional real number argument.
962 This value will be assigned to the option variable.
963 If omitted, the value 0 will be assigned.
967 A lone dash B<-> is considered an option, the corresponding option
968 name is the empty string.
970 A double dash on itself B<--> signals end of the options list.
972 =head2 Linkage specification
974 The linkage specifier is optional. If no linkage is explicitly
975 specified but a ref HASH is passed, GetOptions will place the value in
976 the HASH. For example:
979 GetOptions (\%optctl, "size=i");
981 will perform the equivalent of the assignment
983 $optctl{"size"} = 24;
985 For array options, a reference to an array is used, e.g.:
988 GetOptions (\%optctl, "sizes=i@");
990 with command line "-sizes 24 -sizes 48" will perform the equivalent of
993 $optctl{"sizes"} = [24, 48];
995 For hash options (an option whose argument looks like "name=value"),
996 a reference to a hash is used, e.g.:
999 GetOptions (\%optctl, "define=s%");
1001 with command line "--define foo=hello --define bar=world" will perform the
1002 equivalent of the assignment
1004 $optctl{"define"} = {foo=>'hello', bar=>'world')
1006 If no linkage is explicitly specified and no ref HASH is passed,
1007 GetOptions will put the value in a global variable named after the
1008 option, prefixed by "opt_". To yield a usable Perl variable,
1009 characters that are not part of the syntax for variables are
1010 translated to underscores. For example, "--fpp-struct-return" will set
1011 the variable $opt_fpp_struct_return. Note that this variable resides
1012 in the namespace of the calling program, not necessarily B<main>.
1015 GetOptions ("size=i", "sizes=i@");
1017 with command line "-size 10 -sizes 24 -sizes 48" will perform the
1018 equivalent of the assignments
1021 @opt_sizes = (24, 48);
1023 A lone dash B<-> is considered an option, the corresponding Perl
1024 identifier is $opt_ .
1026 The linkage specifier can be a reference to a scalar, a reference to
1027 an array, a reference to a hash or a reference to a subroutine.
1029 Note that, if your code is running under the recommended C<use strict
1030 'vars'> pragma, it may be helpful to declare these package variables
1031 via C<use vars> perhaps something like this:
1033 use vars qw/ $opt_size @opt_sizes $opt_bar /;
1035 If a REF SCALAR is supplied, the new value is stored in the referenced
1036 variable. If the option occurs more than once, the previous value is
1039 If a REF ARRAY is supplied, the new value is appended (pushed) to the
1042 If a REF HASH is supplied, the option value should look like "key" or
1043 "key=value" (if the "=value" is omitted then a value of 1 is implied).
1044 In this case, the element of the referenced hash with the key "key"
1045 is assigned "value".
1047 If a REF CODE is supplied, the referenced subroutine is called with
1048 two arguments: the option name and the option value.
1049 The option name is always the true name, not an abbreviation or alias.
1051 =head2 Aliases and abbreviations
1053 The option name may actually be a list of option names, separated by
1054 "|"s, e.g. "foo|bar|blech=s". In this example, "foo" is the true name
1055 of this option. If no linkage is specified, options "foo", "bar" and
1056 "blech" all will set $opt_foo. For convenience, the single character
1057 "?" is allowed as an alias, e.g. "help|?".
1059 Option names may be abbreviated to uniqueness, depending on
1060 configuration option B<auto_abbrev>.
1062 =head2 Non-option call-back routine
1064 A special option specifier, E<lt>E<gt>, can be used to designate a subroutine
1065 to handle non-option arguments. GetOptions will immediately call this
1066 subroutine for every non-option it encounters in the options list.
1067 This subroutine gets the name of the non-option passed.
1068 This feature requires configuration option B<permute>, see section
1069 CONFIGURATION OPTIONS.
1071 See also the examples.
1073 =head2 Option starters
1075 On the command line, options can start with B<-> (traditional), B<-->
1076 (POSIX) and B<+> (GNU, now being phased out). The latter is not
1077 allowed if the environment variable B<POSIXLY_CORRECT> has been
1080 Options that start with "--" may have an argument appended, separated
1081 with an "=", e.g. "--foo=bar".
1083 =head2 Return values and Errors
1085 Configuration errors and errors in the option definitions are
1086 signalled using C<die()> and will terminate the calling
1087 program unless the call to C<Getopt::Long::GetOptions()> was embedded
1088 in C<eval { ... }> or C<die()> was trapped using C<$SIG{__DIE__}>.
1090 A return value of 1 (true) indicates success.
1092 A return status of 0 (false) indicates that the function detected one
1093 or more errors during option parsing. These errors are signalled using
1094 C<warn()> and can be trapped with C<$SIG{__WARN__}>.
1096 Errors that can't happen are signalled using C<Carp::croak()>.
1098 =head1 COMPATIBILITY
1100 Getopt::Long::GetOptions() is the successor of
1101 B<newgetopt.pl> that came with Perl 4. It is fully upward compatible.
1102 In fact, the Perl 5 version of newgetopt.pl is just a wrapper around
1105 If an "@" sign is appended to the argument specifier, the option is
1106 treated as an array. Value(s) are not set, but pushed into array
1107 @opt_name. If explicit linkage is supplied, this must be a reference
1110 If an "%" sign is appended to the argument specifier, the option is
1111 treated as a hash. Value(s) of the form "name=value" are set by
1112 setting the element of the hash %opt_name with key "name" to "value"
1113 (if the "=value" portion is omitted it defaults to 1). If explicit
1114 linkage is supplied, this must be a reference to a HASH.
1116 If configuration option B<getopt_compat> is set (see section
1117 CONFIGURATION OPTIONS), options that start with "+" or "-" may also
1118 include their arguments, e.g. "+foo=bar". This is for compatiblity
1119 with older implementations of the GNU "getopt" routine.
1121 If the first argument to GetOptions is a string consisting of only
1122 non-alphanumeric characters, it is taken to specify the option starter
1123 characters. Everything starting with one of these characters from the
1124 starter will be considered an option. B<Using a starter argument is
1125 strongly deprecated.>
1127 For convenience, option specifiers may have a leading B<-> or B<-->,
1128 so it is possible to write:
1130 GetOptions qw(-foo=s --bar=i --ar=s);
1134 If the option specifier is "one:i" (i.e. takes an optional integer
1135 argument), then the following situations are handled:
1137 -one -two -> $opt_one = '', -two is next option
1138 -one -2 -> $opt_one = -2
1140 Also, assume specifiers "foo=s" and "bar:s" :
1142 -bar -xxx -> $opt_bar = '', '-xxx' is next option
1143 -foo -bar -> $opt_foo = '-bar'
1144 -foo -- -> $opt_foo = '--'
1146 In GNU or POSIX format, option names and values can be combined:
1148 +foo=blech -> $opt_foo = 'blech'
1149 --bar= -> $opt_bar = ''
1150 --bar=-- -> $opt_bar = '--'
1152 Example of using variable references:
1154 $ret = GetOptions ('foo=s', \$foo, 'bar=i', 'ar=s', \@ar);
1156 With command line options "-foo blech -bar 24 -ar xx -ar yy"
1157 this will result in:
1163 Example of using the E<lt>E<gt> option specifier:
1165 @ARGV = qw(-foo 1 bar -foo 2 blech);
1166 GetOptions("foo=i", \$myfoo, "<>", \&mysub);
1170 mysub("bar") will be called (with $myfoo being 1)
1171 mysub("blech") will be called (with $myfoo being 2)
1175 @ARGV = qw(-foo 1 bar -foo 2 blech);
1176 GetOptions("foo=i", \$myfoo);
1178 This will leave the non-options in @ARGV:
1181 @ARGV -> qw(bar blech)
1183 =head1 CONFIGURATION OPTIONS
1185 B<GetOptions> can be configured by calling subroutine
1186 B<Getopt::Long::Configure>. This subroutine takes a list of quoted
1187 strings, each specifying a configuration option to be set, e.g.
1188 B<ignore_case>. Options can be reset by prefixing with B<no_>, e.g.
1189 B<no_ignore_case>. Case does not matter. Multiple calls to B<config>
1192 Previous versions of Getopt::Long used variables for the purpose of
1193 configuring. Although manipulating these variables still work, it
1194 is strongly encouraged to use the new B<config> routine. Besides, it
1197 The following options are available:
1203 This option causes all configuration options to be reset to their
1208 Allow option names to be abbreviated to uniqueness.
1209 Default is set unless environment variable
1210 POSIXLY_CORRECT has been set, in which case B<auto_abbrev> is reset.
1214 Allow '+' to start options.
1215 Default is set unless environment variable
1216 POSIXLY_CORRECT has been set, in which case B<getopt_compat> is reset.
1220 Whether non-options are allowed to be mixed with
1222 Default is set unless environment variable
1223 POSIXLY_CORRECT has been set, in which case b<require_order> is reset.
1225 See also B<permute>, which is the opposite of B<require_order>.
1229 Whether non-options are allowed to be mixed with
1231 Default is set unless environment variable
1232 POSIXLY_CORRECT has been set, in which case B<permute> is reset.
1233 Note that B<permute> is the opposite of B<require_order>.
1235 If B<permute> is set, this means that
1237 -foo arg1 -bar arg2 arg3
1241 -foo -bar arg1 arg2 arg3
1243 If a non-option call-back routine is specified, @ARGV will always be
1244 empty upon succesful return of GetOptions since all options have been
1245 processed, except when B<--> is used:
1247 -foo arg1 -bar arg2 -- arg3
1249 will call the call-back routine for arg1 and arg2, and terminate
1250 leaving arg2 in @ARGV.
1252 If B<require_order> is set, options processing
1253 terminates when the first non-option is encountered.
1255 -foo arg1 -bar arg2 arg3
1259 -foo -- arg1 -bar arg2 arg3
1261 =item bundling (default: reset)
1263 Setting this variable to a non-zero value will allow single-character
1264 options to be bundled. To distinguish bundles from long option names,
1265 long options must be introduced with B<--> and single-character
1266 options (and bundles) with B<->. For example,
1270 would be equivalent to
1274 provided "vax", "v", "a" and "x" have been defined to be valid
1277 Bundled options can also include a value in the bundle; for strings
1278 this value is the rest of the bundle, but integer and floating values
1279 may be combined in the bundle, e.g.
1287 Note: resetting B<bundling> also resets B<bundling_override>.
1289 =item bundling_override (default: reset)
1291 If B<bundling_override> is set, bundling is enabled as with
1292 B<bundling> but now long option names override option bundles. In the
1293 above example, B<-vax> would be interpreted as the option "vax", not
1294 the bundle "v", "a", "x".
1296 Note: resetting B<bundling_override> also resets B<bundling>.
1298 B<Note:> Using option bundling can easily lead to unexpected results,
1299 especially when mixing long options and bundles. Caveat emptor.
1301 =item ignore_case (default: set)
1303 If set, case is ignored when matching options.
1305 Note: resetting B<ignore_case> also resets B<ignore_case_always>.
1307 =item ignore_case_always (default: reset)
1309 When bundling is in effect, case is ignored on single-character
1312 Note: resetting B<ignore_case_always> also resets B<ignore_case>.
1314 =item pass_through (default: reset)
1316 Unknown options are passed through in @ARGV instead of being flagged
1317 as errors. This makes it possible to write wrapper scripts that
1318 process only part of the user supplied options, and passes the
1319 remaining options to some other program.
1321 This can be very confusing, especially when B<permute> is also set.
1325 The string that starts options. See also B<prefix_pattern>.
1327 =item prefix_pattern
1329 A Perl pattern that identifies the strings that introduce options.
1330 Default is C<(--|-|\+)> unless environment variable
1331 POSIXLY_CORRECT has been set, in which case it is C<(--|-)>.
1333 =item debug (default: reset)
1335 Enable copious debugging output.
1339 =head1 OTHER USEFUL VARIABLES
1343 =item $Getopt::Long::VERSION
1345 The version number of this Getopt::Long implementation in the format
1346 C<major>.C<minor>. This can be used to have Exporter check the
1349 use Getopt::Long 3.00;
1351 You can inspect $Getopt::Long::major_version and
1352 $Getopt::Long::minor_version for the individual components.
1354 =item $Getopt::Long::error
1356 Internal error flag. May be incremented from a call-back routine to
1357 cause options parsing to fail.
1363 Johan Vromans E<lt>jvromans@squirrel.nlE<gt>
1365 =head1 COPYRIGHT AND DISCLAIMER
1367 This program is Copyright 1990,1999 by Johan Vromans.
1368 This program is free software; you can redistribute it and/or
1369 modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License
1370 as published by the Free Software Foundation; either version 2
1371 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
1373 This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful,
1374 but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of
1375 MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the
1376 GNU General Public License for more details.
1378 If you do not have a copy of the GNU General Public License write to
1379 the Free Software Foundation, Inc., 675 Mass Ave, Cambridge,