The login shell is the command interpreter that runs when you are logged in. The Solaris 7 operating environment offers three shells:
Bourne shell, the default shell (/bin/sh)
C shell (/bin/csh)
Korn shell (/bin/ksh)
If you use the shell often, you may prefer to use the C shell or the Korn shell because of their interactive capabilities. Table 6-1 lists the features of all three shells.
Table 6-1 Basic Features of the Bourne, C, and Korn Shells
Feature |
Bourne |
C |
Korn |
---|---|---|---|
Syntax compatible with sh |
Yes |
No |
Yes |
Job control |
Yes |
Yes |
Yes |
History list |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Command-line editing |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Aliases |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Single-character abbreviation for login directory |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Protect files from overwriting (noclobber) |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Ignore Control-D (ignoreeof) |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Enhanced cd |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Initialization file separate from .profile |
No |
Yes |
Yes |
Logout file |
No |
Yes |
No |
To change from one shell to another, use one of the following methods:
Method 1 - Edit the information in the last field of the line in the /etc/passwd file that begins with your login name. If this entry is blank or sh, the login shell is the Bourne shell. If the entry is csh, the login shell is the C shell. If the entry is ksh, the login shell is the Korn shell.
Method 2 - In a windows environment, use Admintool. See OpenWindows Advanced User's Guide for information.
After you change to a new shell, log out and log in again to activate the shell.