Complete Guide to the Linux Shell Script read Command - Practical Tips from User Input to Reading Files Line by Line

Wed, 07 Oct 2026 14:34:22 +0900

Overview

This guide covers core practical use cases for the read command, which is essential for handling interactive user input and parsing text data in Linux Bash shell scripts. You will master everything from basic input handling to password masking (-s), timeout handling (-t), delimiter splitting (IFS), and the widely used line-by-line file processing pattern based on while loops.

1. Basics of the read Command, Prompt (-p), and Setting Default Values

Run the mkdir -p ~/read-demo && cd ~/read-demo command to create and navigate to a dedicated directory for practicing the read command.

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Complete Guide to the Linux Shell Script read Command - Practical Tips from User Input to Reading Files Line by Line

Overview

1. Basics of the read Command, Prompt (-p), and Setting Default Values