Introduction to Bash Scripting Basics

Introduction

On Day 2 of my DevOps journey, I took my first steps into Bash scripting. Since automation is at the heart of DevOps, learning how to write scripts that execute tasks efficiently is a crucial skill. I explored the fundamentals of Bash scripting, including variables, loops, and basic scripting commands.

Why Learn Bash Scripting?

Bash scripting is essential in DevOps because it enables:
✅ Task automation – Reduce manual work by scripting repetitive tasks.
✅ System administration – Manage files, users, and processes efficiently.
✅ Pipeline integration – Automate deployments and CI/CD workflows.

My Key Learnings Today

1️⃣ Writing My First Bash Script

I started by creating a simple script and learning how to execute it.

Used nano and vim to write scripts.
Learned about the shebang (#!/bin/bash) to define the script interpreter.
Made the script executable using chmod +x script.sh.

2️⃣ Working with Variables & User Input

Declared and used variables:

  name="Prathamesh"
  echo "Hello, $name!"

Read user input using read:

  echo "Enter your name:"
  read username
  echo "Welcome, $username!"

3️⃣ Using Conditional Statements

I explored how to use if-else to create decision-making scripts:

echo "Enter a number:"
read num
if [ $num -gt 10 ]; then
    echo "The number is greater than 10."
else
    echo "The number is 10 or less."
fi

4️⃣ Loops in Bash

Loops make automation powerful. I learned:

For loop:

  for i in {1..5}
  do
      echo "Iteration $i"
  done

While loop:

  count=1
  while [ $count -le 5 ]
  do
      echo "Count: $count"
      ((count++))
  done

Challenges I Faced

🔴 Remembering syntax, especially for conditions and loops.
🔴 Understanding how variables work without explicit data types.
🔴 Handling script execution errors.

What’s Next? (Day 3 Plan)

📌 Learn functions in Bash scripting.
📌 Automate simple system tasks like file backups and log monitoring.
📌 Explore cron jobs for scheduling scripts.

Bash scripting is proving to be a game-changer for automation. Excited to dive deeper tomorrow! 🚀

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#DevOps #BashScripting #Automation #100DaysOfDevOps

Getting Started with Bash Scripting