Re: Do `>& -` and `<& -` also work?

[Chet Ramey]

On 5/10/21 10:12 AM, Peng Yu wrote:
> Hi,
>
> The manual only mentions `>&-` and `<&-`. Do `>& -` and `<& -` also work?

The first sentence is not true. That misunderstanding colors the question.

The manual (and POSIX) talks about [N]>&WORD and [N]<&WORD. WORD is a
separate token that is subject to expansion, and a token can be
separated from the previous token by one or more spaces. `-' is one
of the values for an expanded WORD for which the behavior is defined.

> I tried the following and I don't see errors. But I can not be sure
> whether `>& -` and `<& -` are exactly the same as `>&-` and `<&-`.

They are.

> If they both work, is this made by design? 

Yes. It's required.

--
``The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne.'' - Chaucer
                 ``Ars longa, vita brevis'' - Hippocrates
Chet Ramey, UTech, CWRU    chet@case.edu    http://tiswww.cwru.edu/~chet/