updatedb(8)

1updatedb(8)                 System Manager's Manual                updatedb(8)
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NAME

6       updatedb - update a database for plocate
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SYNOPSIS

10       updatedb [OPTION]...
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DESCRIPTION

14       updatedb creates or updates a database used by locate(1).  If the data‐
15       base already exists, its data is reused to avoid rereading  directories
16       that have not changed.
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18       updatedb is usually run daily from a systemd.timer(8) to update the de‐
19       fault database.
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EXIT STATUS

23       updatedb returns with exit status 0 on success, 1 on error.
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OPTIONS

27       The PRUNE_BIND_MOUNTS, PRUNEFS, PRUNENAMES  and  PRUNEPATHS  variables,
28       which  are modified by some of the options, are documented in detail in
29       updatedb.conf(5).
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32       -f, --add-prunefs FS
33              Add entries in white-space-separated list FS to PRUNEFS.
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36       -n, --add-prunenames NAMES
37              Add entries in white-space-separated list NAMES to PRUNENAMES.
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40       -e, --add-prunepaths PATHS
41              Add entries in white-space-separated list PATHS to PRUNEPATHS.
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44       -U, --database-root PATH
45              Store only results of scanning the file system subtree rooted at
46              PATH  to  the  generated  database.   The  whole  file system is
47              scanned by default.
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49              locate(1) outputs entries as absolute  path  names  which  don't
50              contain symbolic links, regardless of the form of PATH.
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53       --debug-pruning
54              Write  debugging information about pruning decisions to standard
55              error output.
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58       -h, --help
59              Write a summary of the available options to standard output  and
60              exit successfully.
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63       -o, --output FILE
64              Write  the  database  to FILE instead of using the default data‐
65              base.
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68       --prune-bind-mounts FLAG
69              Set PRUNE_BIND_MOUNTS  to  FLAG,  overriding  the  configuration
70              file.
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73       --prunefs FS
74              Set PRUNEFS to FS, overriding the configuration file.
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77       --prunenames NAMES
78              Set PRUNENAMES to NAMES, overriding the configuration file.
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82              Set PRUNEPATHS to PATHS, overriding the configuration file.
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85       -l, --require-visibility FLAG
86              Set  the  “require  file visibility before reporting it” flag in
87              the generated database to FLAG.
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89              If FLAG is 0 or no, or if the database file is readable by "oth‐
90              ers"  or it is not owned by plocate, locate(1) outputs the data‐
91              base entries even if the user running locate(1) could  not  have
92              read  the  directory necessary to find out the file described by
93              the database entry.
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95              If FLAG is 1 or yes (the default), locate(1) checks the  permis‐
96              sions of parent directories of each entry before reporting it to
97              the invoking user.  To make the file existence truly hidden from
98              other  users, the database group is set to plocate and the data‐
99              base permissions prohibit reading the database  by  users  using
100              other means than locate(1), which is set-gid plocate.
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102              Note that the visibility flag is checked only if the database is
103              owned by plocate and it is not readable by "others".
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106       -v, --verbose
107              Output path names of files to standard output, as soon  as  they
108              are found.
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111       -V, --version
112              Write  information  about  the  version and license of locate on
113              standard output and exit successfully.
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EXAMPLES

117       To create a private plocate database as a user other than root, run
118              updatedb -l 0 -o db_file -U source_directory
119       Note that all users that can read db_file can get the complete list  of
120       files in the subtree of source_directory.
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FILES

124       /etc/updatedb.conf
125              A configuration file.  See updatedb.conf(5).
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128       /var/lib/plocate/plocate.db
129              The database updated by default. Uses exactly the same format as
130              the one used by mlocate(1)'s updatedb, so they can be shared.
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SECURITY

134       Databases built with --require-visibility no allow users to find  names
135       of files and directories of other users, which they would not otherwise
136       be able to do.
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AUTHOR

140       Miloslav Trmac <mitr@redhat.com>
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142       Steinar H. Gunderson <steinar+plocate@gunderson.no>
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