The numbered arguments a script receives from a command line.

Shell positional arguments are a numbered list

A shell script receives an ordered argument list, not a single command-line string that it must split again. Positional parameters expose that list as $1, $2, and subsequent entries; $# reports its size. A small fixed interface can use these positions directly. Optional settings and flags benefit from explicit parsing, but either design still needs to define the permitted count, empty values, and failure behavior. ...

November 29, 2027 · 5 min · XB Field Notes