15 Apr
2016
15 Apr
'16
1:23 p.m.
On Fri, Apr 15, 2016 at 12:47:49PM -0400, D. Hugh Redelmeier wrote:
About "rm -rf", the article says:
The code usually deleted specific parts of a server or computer, but because this code didn't have a specified target, it deleted everything.
This isn't true of the rm(1) command. No operand means delete nothing.
The story does not ring true for other reasons. But it could be.
It is written wrong. Elsewhere it explained that it was rm -rf ${foo}/${bar} with both environment variables empty which hence means rm -rf / So yes, far from empty arguments to rm. Empty environment variables. -- Len Sorensen