jprichardson / node-kexec

Node.js exec function to replace running process; like Ruby's exec.
MIT License
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Node.js - kexec

npm Package build status JavaScript Style Guide

This module causes your current Node.js process to be replaced by the process invoked by the parameter of this function. It's like the Ruby exec function. It currently does not work on Windows.

Fully compatible with Node.js version v0.10 and v0.11.

Usage

var kexec = require('kexec')

kexec('top') //your process now becomes top, can also accept parameters in one string
var kexec = require('kexec')

kexec('du', [ '-sh', '/etc/fstab' ]) //your process now becomes du, with the arguments indicated

Details

kexec can be called in either of two ways, as indicated by the examples, above.

With one argument arg, that argument must be a string. The resulting system call is:

execvp("/bin/sh", [ "/bin/sh", "-c", arg, 0 ]);

With two arguments, the first (cmd) must be a string, and the second (args) an array of strings. The resulting system call is:

execvp(cmd, [ cmd, args[0], args[1], ..., 0 ]);

In the first case, the command is subject to shell parsing, and shell meta characters retain their special meanings. In the second case, the arguments are passed directly to execvp, without an intervening shell.

License

(The MIT License)

Copyright (c) 2011-2015 JP Richardson