P
PerlFAQ Server
This is an excerpt from the latest version perlfaq5.pod, which
comes with the standard Perl distribution. These postings aim to
reduce the number of repeated questions as well as allow the community
to review and update the answers. The latest version of the complete
perlfaq is at http://faq.perl.org .
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5.17: Why do I sometimes get an "Argument list too long" when I use <*>?
The "<>" operator performs a globbing operation (see above). In Perl
versions earlier than v5.6.0, the internal glob() operator forks csh(1)
to do the actual glob expansion, but csh can't handle more than 127
items and so gives the error message "Argument list too long". People
who installed tcsh as csh won't have this problem, but their users may
be surprised by it.
To get around this, either upgrade to Perl v5.6.0 or later, do the glob
yourself with readdir() and patterns, or use a module like File::KGlob,
one that doesn't use the shell to do globbing.
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The perlfaq-workers, a group of volunteers, maintain the perlfaq. They
are not necessarily experts in every domain where Perl might show up,
so please include as much information as possible and relevant in any
corrections. The perlfaq-workers also don't have access to every
operating system or platform, so please include relevant details for
corrections to examples that do not work on particular platforms.
Working code is greatly appreciated.
If you'd like to help maintain the perlfaq, see the details in
perlfaq.pod.
comes with the standard Perl distribution. These postings aim to
reduce the number of repeated questions as well as allow the community
to review and update the answers. The latest version of the complete
perlfaq is at http://faq.perl.org .
--------------------------------------------------------------------
5.17: Why do I sometimes get an "Argument list too long" when I use <*>?
The "<>" operator performs a globbing operation (see above). In Perl
versions earlier than v5.6.0, the internal glob() operator forks csh(1)
to do the actual glob expansion, but csh can't handle more than 127
items and so gives the error message "Argument list too long". People
who installed tcsh as csh won't have this problem, but their users may
be surprised by it.
To get around this, either upgrade to Perl v5.6.0 or later, do the glob
yourself with readdir() and patterns, or use a module like File::KGlob,
one that doesn't use the shell to do globbing.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
The perlfaq-workers, a group of volunteers, maintain the perlfaq. They
are not necessarily experts in every domain where Perl might show up,
so please include as much information as possible and relevant in any
corrections. The perlfaq-workers also don't have access to every
operating system or platform, so please include relevant details for
corrections to examples that do not work on particular platforms.
Working code is greatly appreciated.
If you'd like to help maintain the perlfaq, see the details in
perlfaq.pod.