gendiff - utility to aid in error-free diff file genera
tion
SYNOPSIS
gendiff <directory> <diff-extension>
DESCRIPTION
gendiff is a rather simple script which aids in generating
a diff file from a single directory. It takes a directory
name and a "diff-extension" as its only arguments. The
diff extension should be a unique sequence of characters
added to the end of all original, unmodified files. The
output of the program is a diff file which may be applied
with the patch program to recreate the changes.
The usual sequence of events for creating a diff is to
create two identical directories, make changes in one
directory, and then use the diff utility to create a list
of differences between the two. Using gendiff eliminates
the need for the extra, original and unmodified directory
copy. Instead, only the individual files that are modi
fied need to be saved.
Before editing a file, copy the file, appending the exten
sion you have chosen to the filename. I.e. if you were
going to edit somefile.cpp and have chosen the extension
"fix", copy it to somefile.cpp.fix before editing it.
Then edit the first copy (somefile.cpp).
After editing all the files you need to edit in this fash
ion, enter the directory one level above where your source
code resides, and then type
$ gendiff somedirectory .fix > mydiff-fix.patch
You should redirect the output to a file (as illustrated)
unless you want to see the results on stdout.
SEE ALSO
diff(1), patch(1)
AUTHOR
Marc Ewing <marc@redhat.com>
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