NAME    [Toc]    [Back]

     chown - change file owner and group

SYNOPSIS    [Toc]    [Back]

     chown [-R [-H | -L | -P]] [-f] [-h] owner[:group] file [...]
     chown [-R [-H | -L | -P]] [-f] [-h] :group file [...]

DESCRIPTION    [Toc]    [Back]

     chown  sets the user ID and/or the group ID of the specified
files.

     The options are as follows:

     -H      If the -R option is specified, symbolic links on the
command line
             are  followed.   (Symbolic  links encountered in the
tree traversal
             are not followed.)

     -L      If the -R option is specified,  all  symbolic  links
are followed.

     -P      If the -R option is specified, no symbolic links are
followed.

     -R      Change the user ID and/or the group ID for the  file
hierarchies
             rooted  in the files instead of just the files themselves.

     -f      Don't report any failure to  change  file  owner  or
group, nor modify
 the exit status to reflect such failures.

     -h       Change  the user ID and/or the group ID on symbolic
links.  The -R
             and -h options are mutually exclusive.

     The -H, -L, and -P options are ignored unless the -R  option
is specified.
     In  addition, these options override each other and the command's actions
     are determined by the last one specified.

     The owner and group operands are both optional; however, one
must be
     specified.   If  the  group operand is specified, it must be
preceded by a
     colon (`:') character.

     The owner may be either a numeric user ID or  a  user  name.
If a user name
     is  also  a  numeric  user ID, the operand is used as a user
name.  The group
     may be either a numeric group ID or  a  group  name.   If  a
group name is also
  a numeric group ID, the operand is used as a group name.

     Only the superuser is permitted to change  the  owner  of  a
file.

     The  chown  utility exits 0 on success or >0 if an error occurred.

SEE ALSO    [Toc]    [Back]

     chgrp(1), find(1), chown(2), fts(3), symlink(7)

STANDARDS    [Toc]    [Back]

     Previous versions of the chown utility used  the  dot  (`.')
character to
     distinguish  the  group name.  This has been changed to be a
colon (`:')
     character so that user and group names may contain  the  dot
character.

     The  chown  command  is  expected  to  be  IEEE  Std  1003.2
(``POSIX.2'') compliant.


OpenBSD     3.6                        January      25,      1997