Wildcard characters
You can use the operating system wildcard characters in file specifications with the backup-archive client. These characters let you select groups of files that have similar names.
In a command, wildcard characters can only be used in the file
name or extension. They cannot be used to specify destination files,
file systems, or directories. When using wildcard characters in non-loop
mode, as in dsmc sel "/home/ledger.*", enclose the
parameter containing the asterisk in quotation marks to ensure the
system does not interpret the wildcard character and produce unexpected
results. Wildcard character information is covered in the following
table.
This table shows some wildcard patterns and how to specify them.
| * (Asterisk) | Zero or more characters that match all files: |
|---|---|
| *.cpp | With a cpp extension |
| hm*.* | Starting with hm, regardless of extension, but must have the '.' character |
| hm* | Starting with hm, whether an extension exists or not |
| *h*.* | With an h somewhere in the file name, regardless of extension, but must have . |
| ? (Question mark) | One character that matches all files with: |
|---|---|
| ?.cpp | The extension cpp with one, and only one, character in the file name |
| hm?.cpp | Three-character names beginning with hm and that have the cpp extension |
| * ? (Asterisk and question mark) | Asterisk and question mark combinations matching: |
|---|---|
| ??hm.* | All four-character file names ending in hm., no matter what extension they have |
In a path name for a file specification, you cannot specify a directory whose name contains an asterisk (*) or a question mark (?). The client recognizes those characters only as wildcard characters.