[GROOVY-427] Can't execute a command line where arguments have spaces in them

• Type: Bug
• Status: Closed
• Priority: Major
• Resolution: Fixed
• Fix Version/s: 1.0-JSR-1
• Component/s: groovy-jdk
• Environment: latest CVS head, mac os X 10.3.2, java 1.4.2
• Assignee: Jochen Theodorou
• Reporter: John Stump
• Created: 22/Apr/04 18:42
• Updated: 30/Nov/07 06:26
• Resolved: 22/Mar/05 07:37

Description

I need to execute a process with arguments that have spaces in them. I have tried every variation I could think of to escape the space, to no avail. Here are the variations I tried:

cmd = ["ls /Users/john/Library/Application Support",
"ls /Users/john/Library/Application\ Support",
"ls /Users/john/Library/Application
Support",
"ls '/Users/john/Library/Application Support'",
'ls "/Users/john/Library/Application Support"']

cmd.each {
print "${it}: "
p = it.execute()
p.waitFor()
println "returned: ${p.exitValue()} output: ${p.text} stderr: ${p.err}"
}

Here is the output I got from this:

ls /Users/john/Library/Application Support: returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: /Users/john/Library/Application: No such file or directory
ls: Support: No such file or directory

ls /Users/john/Library/Application Support: returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: /Users/john/Library/Application: No such file or directory
ls: Support: No such file or directory

ls /Users/john/Library/Application\ Support: returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: /Users/john/Library/Application\: No such file or directory
ls: Support: No such file or directory

ls /Users/john/Library/Application\ Support: returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: /Users/john/Library/Application\: No such file or directory
ls: Support: No such file or directory

ls '/Users/john/Library/Application Support': returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: '/Users/john/Library/Application: No such file or directory
ls: Support': No such file or directory

ls "/Users/john/Library/Application Support": returned: 0 output: stderr: ls: "/Users/john/Library/Application: No such file or directory
ls: Support": No such file or directory

I would suggest we add an execute() method to Object[] and use the exec() version of Runtime that takes an array of arguments. My current workaround is to use the Runtime.exec() method directly and not use the execute() on String.