How can I enter a command that is over 256 Characters Long in IRIX

Question

I connect to different types of computers every day. When I Telnet in, the first thing I do is run a command line script that is about 1150 characters long. I have no problem with Linux based systems, but if it is Unix based (ie IRIX), then my command is truncated at ~256 Chars.

The Final result of the Command will be a data dump (the results of the commands) to the Telnet window. This data will then be copied and pasted into a tool for analysis. Also the Command string that is being entered is a series of Commands (mostly egreps) separated by semi-colons, but when combined together it gets very long.

I need to be able to enter all 1150 Chars on the command line. The systems I access are not mine, So I need to be as Benign as possible when interacting with them.

Your Help is appreciated.

Are we talking about one commmand, or multiple commands separated by semi-colons? — jmstoker, Oct 02 '13 at 22:45
So the follow up question is, do you have a single command with arguments that is longer than 256 characters? — jmstoker, Oct 02 '13 at 23:10
what about multiple calls to telnet, each with 256 char cmds, redirected to 1 output file, ie `echo "cmdgrp1" | telnet > output ; echo "cmdgrp2" | telnet >> output ; ..... `. Good luck. — shellter, Oct 03 '13 at 15:16

score 0 · Answer 1 · answered Oct 02 '13 at 23:03

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If its a parameter list thats making the command that long then xargs is your friend

answered Oct 02 '13 at 23:03

ennuikiller

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score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Oct 02 '13 at 23:21

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I'm not sure if this is the answer you're looking for, but as you stated in your comment, all of the commands are less than 256 characters. So, you can break the commands up into 5-6 groups being sure to only separate at the semi-colon (not at pipes). Then execute each group in sequence. It's more work if your use to just copying and pasting, but not much if you already have the groups created in a text file.

answered Oct 02 '13 at 23:21

jmstoker

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Thank you, that's what I'm doing now. It's pretty messy, because the results from the commands have to copied from Telnet and then Pasted into a tool for analysis. I do appreciate your time however. – user2221845 Oct 02 '13 at 23:26
No problem. I would suggest you update your question, stating what you said in your comment above and include what results you'd like to end up with. You'll get a more specific answer that way. – jmstoker Oct 02 '13 at 23:33

How can I enter a command that is over 256 Characters Long in IRIX

2 Answers2