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3  <title>pcretest specification</title>  <title>pcretest specification</title>
4  </head>  </head>
5  <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#00005A" link="#0066FF" alink="#3399FF" vlink="#2222BB">  <body bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#00005A" link="#0066FF" alink="#3399FF" vlink="#2222BB">
6  This HTML document has been generated automatically from the original man page.  <h1>pcretest man page</h1>
7  If there is any nonsense in it, please consult the man page, in case the  <p>
8  conversion went wrong.<br>  Return to the <a href="index.html">PCRE index page</a>.
9    </p>
10    <p>
11    This page is part of the PCRE HTML documentation. It was generated automatically
12    from the original man page. If there is any nonsense in it, please consult the
13    man page, in case the conversion went wrong.
14    <br>
15  <ul>  <ul>
16  <li><a name="TOC1" href="#SEC1">SYNOPSIS</a>  <li><a name="TOC1" href="#SEC1">SYNOPSIS</a>
17  <li><a name="TOC2" href="#SEC2">OPTIONS</a>  <li><a name="TOC2" href="#SEC2">PCRE's 8-BIT and 16-BIT LIBRARIES</a>
18  <li><a name="TOC3" href="#SEC3">DESCRIPTION</a>  <li><a name="TOC3" href="#SEC3">COMMAND LINE OPTIONS</a>
19  <li><a name="TOC4" href="#SEC4">PATTERN MODIFIERS</a>  <li><a name="TOC4" href="#SEC4">DESCRIPTION</a>
20  <li><a name="TOC5" href="#SEC5">CALLOUTS</a>  <li><a name="TOC5" href="#SEC5">PATTERN MODIFIERS</a>
21  <li><a name="TOC6" href="#SEC6">DATA LINES</a>  <li><a name="TOC6" href="#SEC6">DATA LINES</a>
22  <li><a name="TOC7" href="#SEC7">OUTPUT FROM PCRETEST</a>  <li><a name="TOC7" href="#SEC7">THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION</a>
23  <li><a name="TOC8" href="#SEC8">AUTHOR</a>  <li><a name="TOC8" href="#SEC8">DEFAULT OUTPUT FROM PCRETEST</a>
24    <li><a name="TOC9" href="#SEC9">OUTPUT FROM THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION</a>
25    <li><a name="TOC10" href="#SEC10">RESTARTING AFTER A PARTIAL MATCH</a>
26    <li><a name="TOC11" href="#SEC11">CALLOUTS</a>
27    <li><a name="TOC12" href="#SEC12">NON-PRINTING CHARACTERS</a>
28    <li><a name="TOC13" href="#SEC13">SAVING AND RELOADING COMPILED PATTERNS</a>
29    <li><a name="TOC14" href="#SEC14">SEE ALSO</a>
30    <li><a name="TOC15" href="#SEC15">AUTHOR</a>
31    <li><a name="TOC16" href="#SEC16">REVISION</a>
32  </ul>  </ul>
33  <br><a name="SEC1" href="#TOC1">SYNOPSIS</a><br>  <br><a name="SEC1" href="#TOC1">SYNOPSIS</a><br>
34  <P>  <P>
35  <b>pcretest [-d] [-i] [-m] [-o osize] [-p] [-t] [source] [destination]</b>  <b>pcretest [options] [input file [output file]]</b>
36  </P>  <br>
37  <P>  <br>
38  <b>pcretest</b> was written as a test program for the PCRE regular expression  <b>pcretest</b> was written as a test program for the PCRE regular expression
39  library itself, but it can also be used for experimenting with regular  library itself, but it can also be used for experimenting with regular
40  expressions. This document describes the features of the test program; for  expressions. This document describes the features of the test program; for
41  details of the regular expressions themselves, see the  details of the regular expressions themselves, see the
42  <a href="pcrepattern.html"><b>pcrepattern</b></a>  <a href="pcrepattern.html"><b>pcrepattern</b></a>
43  documentation. For details of PCRE and its options, see the  documentation. For details of the PCRE library function calls and their
44    options, see the
45  <a href="pcreapi.html"><b>pcreapi</b></a>  <a href="pcreapi.html"><b>pcreapi</b></a>
46  documentation.  and
47    <a href="pcre16.html"><b>pcre16</b></a>
48    documentation. The input for <b>pcretest</b> is a sequence of regular expression
49    patterns and strings to be matched, as described below. The output shows the
50    result of each match. Options on the command line and the patterns control PCRE
51    options and exactly what is output.
52    </P>
53    <br><a name="SEC2" href="#TOC1">PCRE's 8-BIT and 16-BIT LIBRARIES</a><br>
54    <P>
55    From release 8.30, two separate PCRE libraries can be built. The original one
56    supports 8-bit character strings, whereas the newer 16-bit library supports
57    character strings encoded in 16-bit units. The <b>pcretest</b> program can be
58    used to test both libraries. However, it is itself still an 8-bit program,
59    reading 8-bit input and writing 8-bit output. When testing the 16-bit library,
60    the patterns and data strings are converted to 16-bit format before being
61    passed to the PCRE library functions. Results are converted to 8-bit for
62    output.
63    </P>
64    <P>
65    References to functions and structures of the form <b>pcre[16]_xx</b> below
66    mean "<b>pcre_xx</b> when using the 8-bit library or <b>pcre16_xx</b> when using
67    the 16-bit library".
68    </P>
69    <br><a name="SEC3" href="#TOC1">COMMAND LINE OPTIONS</a><br>
70    <P>
71    <b>-16</b>
72    If both the 8-bit and the 16-bit libraries have been built, this option causes
73    the 16-bit library to be used. If only the 16-bit library has been built, this
74    is the default (so has no effect). If only the 8-bit library has been built,
75    this option causes an error.
76    </P>
77    <P>
78    <b>-b</b>
79    Behave as if each pattern has the <b>/B</b> (show byte code) modifier; the
80    internal form is output after compilation.
81  </P>  </P>
 <br><a name="SEC2" href="#TOC1">OPTIONS</a><br>  
82  <P>  <P>
83  <b>-C</b>  <b>-C</b>
84  Output the version number of the PCRE library, and all available information  Output the version number of the PCRE library, and all available information
85  about the optional features that are included, and then exit.  about the optional features that are included, and then exit. All other options
86    are ignored.
87    </P>
88    <P>
89    <b>-C</b> <i>option</i>
90    Output information about a specific build-time option, then exit. This
91    functionality is intended for use in scripts such as <b>RunTest</b>. The
92    following options output the value indicated:
93    <pre>
94      linksize   the internal link size (2, 3, or 4)
95      newline    the default newline setting:
96                   CR, LF, CRLF, ANYCRLF, or ANY
97    </pre>
98    The following options output 1 for true or zero for false:
99    <pre>
100      jit        just-in-time support is available
101      pcre16     the 16-bit library was built
102      pcre8      the 8-bit library was built
103      ucp        Unicode property support is available
104      utf        UTF-8 and/or UTF-16 support is available
105    </PRE>
106  </P>  </P>
107  <P>  <P>
108  <b>-d</b>  <b>-d</b>
109  Behave as if each regex had the <b>/D</b> modifier (see below); the internal  Behave as if each pattern has the <b>/D</b> (debug) modifier; the internal
110  form is output after compilation.  form and information about the compiled pattern is output after compilation;
111    <b>-d</b> is equivalent to <b>-b -i</b>.
112    </P>
113    <P>
114    <b>-dfa</b>
115    Behave as if each data line contains the \D escape sequence; this causes the
116    alternative matching function, <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>, to be used instead of
117    the standard <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> function (more detail is given below).
118    </P>
119    <P>
120    <b>-help</b>
121    Output a brief summary these options and then exit.
122  </P>  </P>
123  <P>  <P>
124  <b>-i</b>  <b>-i</b>
125  Behave as if each regex had the <b>/I</b> modifier; information about the  Behave as if each pattern has the <b>/I</b> modifier; information about the
126  compiled pattern is given after compilation.  compiled pattern is given after compilation.
127  </P>  </P>
128  <P>  <P>
129    <b>-M</b>
130    Behave as if each data line contains the \M escape sequence; this causes
131    PCRE to discover the minimum MATCH_LIMIT and MATCH_LIMIT_RECURSION settings by
132    calling <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> repeatedly with different limits.
133    </P>
134    <P>
135  <b>-m</b>  <b>-m</b>
136  Output the size of each compiled pattern after it has been compiled. This is  Output the size of each compiled pattern after it has been compiled. This is
137  equivalent to adding /M to each regular expression. For compatibility with  equivalent to adding <b>/M</b> to each regular expression. The size is given in
138  earlier versions of pcretest, <b>-s</b> is a synonym for <b>-m</b>.  bytes for both libraries.
139  </P>  </P>
140  <P>  <P>
141  <b>-o</b> <i>osize</i>  <b>-o</b> <i>osize</i>
142  Set the number of elements in the output vector that is used when calling PCRE  Set the number of elements in the output vector that is used when calling
143  to be <i>osize</i>. The default value is 45, which is enough for 14 capturing  <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b> to be <i>osize</i>. The
144  subexpressions. The vector size can be changed for individual matching calls by  default value is 45, which is enough for 14 capturing subexpressions for
145  including \O in the data line (see below).  <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or 22 different matches for <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>.
146    The vector size can be changed for individual matching calls by including \O
147    in the data line (see below).
148  </P>  </P>
149  <P>  <P>
150  <b>-p</b>  <b>-p</b>
151  Behave as if each regex has <b>/P</b> modifier; the POSIX wrapper API is used  Behave as if each pattern has the <b>/P</b> modifier; the POSIX wrapper API is
152  to call PCRE. None of the other options has any effect when <b>-p</b> is set.  used to call PCRE. None of the other options has any effect when <b>-p</b> is
153    set. This option can be used only with the 8-bit library.
154    </P>
155    <P>
156    <b>-q</b>
157    Do not output the version number of <b>pcretest</b> at the start of execution.
158    </P>
159    <P>
160    <b>-S</b> <i>size</i>
161    On Unix-like systems, set the size of the run-time stack to <i>size</i>
162    megabytes.
163    </P>
164    <P>
165    <b>-s</b> or <b>-s+</b>
166    Behave as if each pattern has the <b>/S</b> modifier; in other words, force each
167    pattern to be studied. If <b>-s+</b> is used, the PCRE_STUDY_JIT_COMPILE flag is
168    passed to <b>pcre[16]_study()</b>, causing just-in-time optimization to be set
169    up if it is available. If the <b>/I</b> or <b>/D</b> option is present on a
170    pattern (requesting output about the compiled pattern), information about the
171    result of studying is not included when studying is caused only by <b>-s</b> and
172    neither <b>-i</b> nor <b>-d</b> is present on the command line. This behaviour
173    means that the output from tests that are run with and without <b>-s</b> should
174    be identical, except when options that output information about the actual
175    running of a match are set.
176    <br>
177    <br>
178    The <b>-M</b>, <b>-t</b>, and <b>-tm</b> options, which give information about
179    resources used, are likely to produce different output with and without
180    <b>-s</b>. Output may also differ if the <b>/C</b> option is present on an
181    individual pattern. This uses callouts to trace the the matching process, and
182    this may be different between studied and non-studied patterns. If the pattern
183    contains (*MARK) items there may also be differences, for the same reason. The
184    <b>-s</b> command line option can be overridden for specific patterns that
185    should never be studied (see the <b>/S</b> pattern modifier below).
186  </P>  </P>
187  <P>  <P>
188  <b>-t</b>  <b>-t</b>
189  Run each compile, study, and match many times with a timer, and output  Run each compile, study, and match many times with a timer, and output
190  resulting time per compile or match (in milliseconds). Do not set <b>-t</b> with  resulting time per compile or match (in milliseconds). Do not set <b>-m</b> with
191  <b>-m</b>, because you will then get the size output 20000 times and the timing  <b>-t</b>, because you will then get the size output a zillion times, and the
192  will be distorted.  timing will be distorted. You can control the number of iterations that are
193    used for timing by following <b>-t</b> with a number (as a separate item on the
194    command line). For example, "-t 1000" would iterate 1000 times. The default is
195    to iterate 500000 times.
196  </P>  </P>
197  <br><a name="SEC3" href="#TOC1">DESCRIPTION</a><br>  <P>
198    <b>-tm</b>
199    This is like <b>-t</b> except that it times only the matching phase, not the
200    compile or study phases.
201    </P>
202    <br><a name="SEC4" href="#TOC1">DESCRIPTION</a><br>
203  <P>  <P>
204  If <b>pcretest</b> is given two filename arguments, it reads from the first and  If <b>pcretest</b> is given two filename arguments, it reads from the first and
205  writes to the second. If it is given only one filename argument, it reads from  writes to the second. If it is given only one filename argument, it reads from
# Line 80  stdout, and prompts for each line of inp Line 208  stdout, and prompts for each line of inp
208  expressions, and "data&#62;" to prompt for data lines.  expressions, and "data&#62;" to prompt for data lines.
209  </P>  </P>
210  <P>  <P>
211    When <b>pcretest</b> is built, a configuration option can specify that it should
212    be linked with the <b>libreadline</b> library. When this is done, if the input
213    is from a terminal, it is read using the <b>readline()</b> function. This
214    provides line-editing and history facilities. The output from the <b>-help</b>
215    option states whether or not <b>readline()</b> will be used.
216    </P>
217    <P>
218  The program handles any number of sets of input on a single input file. Each  The program handles any number of sets of input on a single input file. Each
219  set starts with a regular expression, and continues with any number of data  set starts with a regular expression, and continues with any number of data
220  lines to be matched against the pattern.  lines to be matched against the pattern.
221  </P>  </P>
222  <P>  <P>
223  Each line is matched separately and independently. If you want to do  Each data line is matched separately and independently. If you want to do
224  multiple-line matches, you have to use the \n escape sequence in a single line  multi-line matches, you have to use the \n escape sequence (or \r or \r\n,
225  of input to encode the newline characters. The maximum length of data line is  etc., depending on the newline setting) in a single line of input to encode the
226  30,000 characters.  newline sequences. There is no limit on the length of data lines; the input
227    buffer is automatically extended if it is too small.
228  </P>  </P>
229  <P>  <P>
230  An empty line signals the end of the data lines, at which point a new regular  An empty line signals the end of the data lines, at which point a new regular
231  expression is read. The regular expressions are given enclosed in any  expression is read. The regular expressions are given enclosed in any
232  non-alphameric delimiters other than backslash, for example  non-alphanumeric delimiters other than backslash, for example:
 </P>  
 <P>  
233  <pre>  <pre>
234    /(a|bc)x+yz/    /(a|bc)x+yz/
235  </PRE>  </pre>
 </P>  
 <P>  
236  White space before the initial delimiter is ignored. A regular expression may  White space before the initial delimiter is ignored. A regular expression may
237  be continued over several input lines, in which case the newline characters are  be continued over several input lines, in which case the newline characters are
238  included within it. It is possible to include the delimiter within the pattern  included within it. It is possible to include the delimiter within the pattern
239  by escaping it, for example  by escaping it, for example
 </P>  
 <P>  
240  <pre>  <pre>
241    /abc\/def/    /abc\/def/
242  </PRE>  </pre>
 </P>  
 <P>  
243  If you do so, the escape and the delimiter form part of the pattern, but since  If you do so, the escape and the delimiter form part of the pattern, but since
244  delimiters are always non-alphameric, this does not affect its interpretation.  delimiters are always non-alphanumeric, this does not affect its interpretation.
245  If the terminating delimiter is immediately followed by a backslash, for  If the terminating delimiter is immediately followed by a backslash, for
246  example,  example,
 </P>  
 <P>  
247  <pre>  <pre>
248    /abc/\    /abc/\
249  </PRE>  </pre>
 </P>  
 <P>  
250  then a backslash is added to the end of the pattern. This is done to provide a  then a backslash is added to the end of the pattern. This is done to provide a
251  way of testing the error condition that arises if a pattern finishes with a  way of testing the error condition that arises if a pattern finishes with a
252  backslash, because  backslash, because
 </P>  
 <P>  
253  <pre>  <pre>
254    /abc\/    /abc\/
255  </PRE>  </pre>
 </P>  
 <P>  
256  is interpreted as the first line of a pattern that starts with "abc/", causing  is interpreted as the first line of a pattern that starts with "abc/", causing
257  pcretest to read the next line as a continuation of the regular expression.  pcretest to read the next line as a continuation of the regular expression.
258  </P>  </P>
259  <br><a name="SEC4" href="#TOC1">PATTERN MODIFIERS</a><br>  <br><a name="SEC5" href="#TOC1">PATTERN MODIFIERS</a><br>
260  <P>  <P>
261  The pattern may be followed by <b>i</b>, <b>m</b>, <b>s</b>, or <b>x</b> to set the  A pattern may be followed by any number of modifiers, which are mostly single
262  PCRE_CASELESS, PCRE_MULTILINE, PCRE_DOTALL, or PCRE_EXTENDED options,  characters. Following Perl usage, these are referred to below as, for example,
263  respectively. For example:  "the <b>/i</b> modifier", even though the delimiter of the pattern need not
264    always be a slash, and no slash is used when writing modifiers. White space may
265    appear between the final pattern delimiter and the first modifier, and between
266    the modifiers themselves.
267  </P>  </P>
268  <P>  <P>
269    The <b>/i</b>, <b>/m</b>, <b>/s</b>, and <b>/x</b> modifiers set the PCRE_CASELESS,
270    PCRE_MULTILINE, PCRE_DOTALL, or PCRE_EXTENDED options, respectively, when
271    <b>pcre[16]_compile()</b> is called. These four modifier letters have the same
272    effect as they do in Perl. For example:
273  <pre>  <pre>
274    /caseless/i    /caseless/i
275  </PRE>  </pre>
276    The following table shows additional modifiers for setting PCRE compile-time
277    options that do not correspond to anything in Perl:
278    <pre>
279      <b>/8</b>              PCRE_UTF8           ) when using the 8-bit
280      <b>/?</b>              PCRE_NO_UTF8_CHECK  )   library
281    
282      <b>/8</b>              PCRE_UTF16          ) when using the 16-bit
283      <b>/?</b>              PCRE_NO_UTF16_CHECK )   library
284    
285      <b>/A</b>              PCRE_ANCHORED
286      <b>/C</b>              PCRE_AUTO_CALLOUT
287      <b>/E</b>              PCRE_DOLLAR_ENDONLY
288      <b>/f</b>              PCRE_FIRSTLINE
289      <b>/J</b>              PCRE_DUPNAMES
290      <b>/N</b>              PCRE_NO_AUTO_CAPTURE
291      <b>/U</b>              PCRE_UNGREEDY
292      <b>/W</b>              PCRE_UCP
293      <b>/X</b>              PCRE_EXTRA
294      <b>/Y</b>              PCRE_NO_START_OPTIMIZE
295      <b>/&#60;JS&#62;</b>           PCRE_JAVASCRIPT_COMPAT
296      <b>/&#60;cr&#62;</b>           PCRE_NEWLINE_CR
297      <b>/&#60;lf&#62;</b>           PCRE_NEWLINE_LF
298      <b>/&#60;crlf&#62;</b>         PCRE_NEWLINE_CRLF
299      <b>/&#60;anycrlf&#62;</b>      PCRE_NEWLINE_ANYCRLF
300      <b>/&#60;any&#62;</b>          PCRE_NEWLINE_ANY
301      <b>/&#60;bsr_anycrlf&#62;</b>  PCRE_BSR_ANYCRLF
302      <b>/&#60;bsr_unicode&#62;</b>  PCRE_BSR_UNICODE
303    </pre>
304    The modifiers that are enclosed in angle brackets are literal strings as shown,
305    including the angle brackets, but the letters within can be in either case.
306    This example sets multiline matching with CRLF as the line ending sequence:
307    <pre>
308      /^abc/m&#60;CRLF&#62;
309    </pre>
310    As well as turning on the PCRE_UTF8/16 option, the <b>/8</b> modifier causes
311    all non-printing characters in output strings to be printed using the
312    \x{hh...} notation. Otherwise, those less than 0x100 are output in hex without
313    the curly brackets.
314  </P>  </P>
315  <P>  <P>
316  These modifier letters have the same effect as they do in Perl. There are  Full details of the PCRE options are given in the
317  others that set PCRE options that do not correspond to anything in Perl:  <a href="pcreapi.html"><b>pcreapi</b></a>
318  <b>/A</b>, <b>/E</b>, <b>/N</b>, <b>/U</b>, and <b>/X</b> set PCRE_ANCHORED,  documentation.
 PCRE_DOLLAR_ENDONLY, PCRE_NO_AUTO_CAPTURE, PCRE_UNGREEDY, and PCRE_EXTRA  
 respectively.  
319  </P>  </P>
320    <br><b>
321    Finding all matches in a string
322    </b><br>
323  <P>  <P>
324  Searching for all possible matches within each subject string can be requested  Searching for all possible matches within each subject string can be requested
325  by the <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> modifier. After finding a match, PCRE is called  by the <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> modifier. After finding a match, PCRE is called
326  again to search the remainder of the subject string. The difference between  again to search the remainder of the subject string. The difference between
327  <b>/g</b> and <b>/G</b> is that the former uses the <i>startoffset</i> argument to  <b>/g</b> and <b>/G</b> is that the former uses the <i>startoffset</i> argument to
328  <b>pcre_exec()</b> to start searching at a new point within the entire string  <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> to start searching at a new point within the entire
329  (which is in effect what Perl does), whereas the latter passes over a shortened  string (which is in effect what Perl does), whereas the latter passes over a
330  substring. This makes a difference to the matching process if the pattern  shortened substring. This makes a difference to the matching process if the
331  begins with a lookbehind assertion (including \b or \B).  pattern begins with a lookbehind assertion (including \b or \B).
332  </P>  </P>
333  <P>  <P>
334  If any call to <b>pcre_exec()</b> in a <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> sequence matches an  If any call to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> in a <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> sequence matches
335  empty string, the next call is done with the PCRE_NOTEMPTY and PCRE_ANCHORED  an empty string, the next call is done with the PCRE_NOTEMPTY_ATSTART and
336  flags set in order to search for another, non-empty, match at the same point.  PCRE_ANCHORED flags set in order to search for another, non-empty, match at the
337  If this second match fails, the start offset is advanced by one, and the normal  same point. If this second match fails, the start offset is advanced, and the
338  match is retried. This imitates the way Perl handles such cases when using the  normal match is retried. This imitates the way Perl handles such cases when
339  <b>/g</b> modifier or the <b>split()</b> function.  using the <b>/g</b> modifier or the <b>split()</b> function. Normally, the start
340  </P>  offset is advanced by one character, but if the newline convention recognizes
341    CRLF as a newline, and the current character is CR followed by LF, an advance
342    of two is used.
343    </P>
344    <br><b>
345    Other modifiers
346    </b><br>
347  <P>  <P>
348  There are a number of other modifiers for controlling the way <b>pcretest</b>  There are yet more modifiers for controlling the way <b>pcretest</b>
349  operates.  operates.
350  </P>  </P>
351  <P>  <P>
352  The <b>/+</b> modifier requests that as well as outputting the substring that  The <b>/+</b> modifier requests that as well as outputting the substring that
353  matched the entire pattern, pcretest should in addition output the remainder of  matched the entire pattern, <b>pcretest</b> should in addition output the
354  the subject string. This is useful for tests where the subject contains  remainder of the subject string. This is useful for tests where the subject
355  multiple copies of the same substring.  contains multiple copies of the same substring. If the <b>+</b> modifier appears
356  </P>  twice, the same action is taken for captured substrings. In each case the
357  <P>  remainder is output on the following line with a plus character following the
358  The <b>/L</b> modifier must be followed directly by the name of a locale, for  capture number. Note that this modifier must not immediately follow the /S
359  example,  modifier because /S+ has another meaning.
360  </P>  </P>
361  <P>  <P>
362  <pre>  The <b>/=</b> modifier requests that the values of all potential captured
363    /pattern/Lfr  parentheses be output after a match. By default, only those up to the highest
364  </PRE>  one actually used in the match are output (corresponding to the return code
365  </P>  from <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b>). Values in the offsets vector corresponding to
366  <P>  higher numbers should be set to -1, and these are output as "&#60;unset&#62;". This
367  For this reason, it must be the last modifier letter. The given locale is set,  modifier gives a way of checking that this is happening.
368  <b>pcre_maketables()</b> is called to build a set of character tables for the  </P>
369  locale, and this is then passed to <b>pcre_compile()</b> when compiling the  <P>
370  regular expression. Without an <b>/L</b> modifier, NULL is passed as the tables  The <b>/B</b> modifier is a debugging feature. It requests that <b>pcretest</b>
371  pointer; that is, <b>/L</b> applies only to the expression on which it appears.  output a representation of the compiled code after compilation. Normally this
372    information contains length and offset values; however, if <b>/Z</b> is also
373    present, this data is replaced by spaces. This is a special feature for use in
374    the automatic test scripts; it ensures that the same output is generated for
375    different internal link sizes.
376    </P>
377    <P>
378    The <b>/D</b> modifier is a PCRE debugging feature, and is equivalent to
379    <b>/BI</b>, that is, both the <b>/B</b> and the <b>/I</b> modifiers.
380    </P>
381    <P>
382    The <b>/F</b> modifier causes <b>pcretest</b> to flip the byte order of the
383    2-byte and 4-byte fields in the compiled pattern. This facility is for testing
384    the feature in PCRE that allows it to execute patterns that were compiled on a
385    host with a different endianness. This feature is not available when the POSIX
386    interface to PCRE is being used, that is, when the <b>/P</b> pattern modifier is
387    specified. See also the section about saving and reloading compiled patterns
388    below.
389  </P>  </P>
390  <P>  <P>
391  The <b>/I</b> modifier requests that <b>pcretest</b> output information about the  The <b>/I</b> modifier requests that <b>pcretest</b> output information about the
392  compiled expression (whether it is anchored, has a fixed first character, and  compiled pattern (whether it is anchored, has a fixed first character, and
393  so on). It does this by calling <b>pcre_fullinfo()</b> after compiling an  so on). It does this by calling <b>pcre[16]_fullinfo()</b> after compiling a
394  expression, and outputting the information it gets back. If the pattern is  pattern. If the pattern is studied, the results of that are also output.
 studied, the results of that are also output.  
395  </P>  </P>
396  <P>  <P>
397  The <b>/D</b> modifier is a PCRE debugging feature, which also assumes <b>/I</b>.  The <b>/K</b> modifier requests <b>pcretest</b> to show names from backtracking
398  It causes the internal form of compiled regular expressions to be output after  control verbs that are returned from calls to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b>. It causes
399  compilation. If the pattern was studied, the information returned is also  <b>pcretest</b> to create a <b>pcre[16]_extra</b> block if one has not already
400  output.  been created by a call to <b>pcre[16]_study()</b>, and to set the
401  </P>  PCRE_EXTRA_MARK flag and the <b>mark</b> field within it, every time that
402  <P>  <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> is called. If the variable that the <b>mark</b> field
403  The <b>/S</b> modifier causes <b>pcre_study()</b> to be called after the  points to is non-NULL for a match, non-match, or partial match, <b>pcretest</b>
404  expression has been compiled, and the results used when the expression is  prints the string to which it points. For a match, this is shown on a line by
405  matched.  itself, tagged with "MK:". For a non-match it is added to the message.
 </P>  
 <P>  
 The <b>/M</b> modifier causes the size of memory block used to hold the compiled  
 pattern to be output.  
 </P>  
 <P>  
 The <b>/P</b> modifier causes <b>pcretest</b> to call PCRE via the POSIX wrapper  
 API rather than its native API. When this is done, all other modifiers except  
 <b>/i</b>, <b>/m</b>, and <b>/+</b> are ignored. REG_ICASE is set if <b>/i</b> is  
 present, and REG_NEWLINE is set if <b>/m</b> is present. The wrapper functions  
 force PCRE_DOLLAR_ENDONLY always, and PCRE_DOTALL unless REG_NEWLINE is set.  
 </P>  
 <P>  
 The <b>/8</b> modifier causes <b>pcretest</b> to call PCRE with the PCRE_UTF8  
 option set. This turns on support for UTF-8 character handling in PCRE,  
 provided that it was compiled with this support enabled. This modifier also  
 causes any non-printing characters in output strings to be printed using the  
 \x{hh...} notation if they are valid UTF-8 sequences.  
 </P>  
 <P>  
 If the <b>/?</b> modifier is used with <b>/8</b>, it causes <b>pcretest</b> to  
 call <b>pcre_compile()</b> with the PCRE_NO_UTF8_CHECK option, to suppress the  
 checking of the string for UTF-8 validity.  
 </P>  
 <br><a name="SEC5" href="#TOC1">CALLOUTS</a><br>  
 <P>  
 If the pattern contains any callout requests, <b>pcretest</b>'s callout function  
 will be called. By default, it displays the callout number, and the start and  
 current positions in the text at the callout time. For example, the output  
406  </P>  </P>
407  <P>  <P>
408    The <b>/L</b> modifier must be followed directly by the name of a locale, for
409    example,
410  <pre>  <pre>
411    ---&#62;pqrabcdef    /pattern/Lfr_FR
412      0    ^  ^  </pre>
413  </PRE>  For this reason, it must be the last modifier. The given locale is set,
414  </P>  <b>pcre[16]_maketables()</b> is called to build a set of character tables for
415    the locale, and this is then passed to <b>pcre[16]_compile()</b> when compiling
416    the regular expression. Without an <b>/L</b> (or <b>/T</b>) modifier, NULL is
417    passed as the tables pointer; that is, <b>/L</b> applies only to the expression
418    on which it appears.
419    </P>
420    <P>
421    The <b>/M</b> modifier causes the size in bytes of the memory block used to hold
422    the compiled pattern to be output. This does not include the size of the
423    <b>pcre[16]</b> block; it is just the actual compiled data. If the pattern is
424    successfully studied with the PCRE_STUDY_JIT_COMPILE option, the size of the
425    JIT compiled code is also output.
426    </P>
427    <P>
428    If the <b>/S</b> modifier appears once, it causes <b>pcre[16]_study()</b> to be
429    called after the expression has been compiled, and the results used when the
430    expression is matched. If <b>/S</b> appears twice, it suppresses studying, even
431    if it was requested externally by the <b>-s</b> command line option. This makes
432    it possible to specify that certain patterns are always studied, and others are
433    never studied, independently of <b>-s</b>. This feature is used in the test
434    files in a few cases where the output is different when the pattern is studied.
435    </P>
436    <P>
437    If the <b>/S</b> modifier is immediately followed by a + character, the call to
438    <b>pcre[16]_study()</b> is made with the PCRE_STUDY_JIT_COMPILE option,
439    requesting just-in-time optimization support if it is available. Note that
440    there is also a <b>/+</b> modifier; it must not be given immediately after
441    <b>/S</b> because this will be misinterpreted. If JIT studying is successful, it
442    will automatically be used when <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> is run, except when
443    incompatible run-time options are specified. These include the partial matching
444    options; a complete list is given in the
445    <a href="pcrejit.html"><b>pcrejit</b></a>
446    documentation. See also the <b>\J</b> escape sequence below for a way of
447    setting the size of the JIT stack.
448    </P>
449    <P>
450    The <b>/T</b> modifier must be followed by a single digit. It causes a specific
451    set of built-in character tables to be passed to <b>pcre[16]_compile()</b>. It
452    is used in the standard PCRE tests to check behaviour with different character
453    tables. The digit specifies the tables as follows:
454    <pre>
455      0   the default ASCII tables, as distributed in
456            pcre_chartables.c.dist
457      1   a set of tables defining ISO 8859 characters
458    </pre>
459    In table 1, some characters whose codes are greater than 128 are identified as
460    letters, digits, spaces, etc.
461    </P>
462    <br><b>
463    Using the POSIX wrapper API
464    </b><br>
465  <P>  <P>
466  indicates that callout number 0 occurred for a match attempt starting at the  The <b>/P</b> modifier causes <b>pcretest</b> to call PCRE via the POSIX wrapper
467  fourth character of the subject string, when the pointer was at the seventh  API rather than its native API. This supports only the 8-bit library. When
468  character. The callout function returns zero (carry on matching) by default.  <b>/P</b> is set, the following modifiers set options for the <b>regcomp()</b>
469  </P>  function:
470  <P>  <pre>
471  Inserting callouts may be helpful when using <b>pcretest</b> to check    /i    REG_ICASE
472  complicated regular expressions. For further information about callouts, see    /m    REG_NEWLINE
473  the    /N    REG_NOSUB
474  <a href="pcrecallout.html"><b>pcrecallout</b></a>    /s    REG_DOTALL     )
475  documentation.    /U    REG_UNGREEDY   ) These options are not part of
476  </P>    /W    REG_UCP        )   the POSIX standard
477  <P>    /8    REG_UTF8       )
478  For testing the PCRE library, additional control of callout behaviour is  </pre>
479  available via escape sequences in the data, as described in the following  The <b>/+</b> modifier works as described above. All other modifiers are
480  section. In particular, it is possible to pass in a number as callout data (the  ignored.
 default is zero). If the callout function receives a non-zero number, it  
 returns that value instead of zero.  
481  </P>  </P>
482  <br><a name="SEC6" href="#TOC1">DATA LINES</a><br>  <br><a name="SEC6" href="#TOC1">DATA LINES</a><br>
483  <P>  <P>
484  Before each data line is passed to <b>pcre_exec()</b>, leading and trailing  Before each data line is passed to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b>, leading and trailing
485  whitespace is removed, and it is then scanned for \ escapes. Some of these are  white space is removed, and it is then scanned for \ escapes. Some of these
486  pretty esoteric features, intended for checking out some of the more  are pretty esoteric features, intended for checking out some of the more
487  complicated features of PCRE. If you are just testing "ordinary" regular  complicated features of PCRE. If you are just testing "ordinary" regular
488  expressions, you probably don't need any of these. The following escapes are  expressions, you probably don't need any of these. The following escapes are
489  recognized:  recognized:
 </P>  
 <P>  
490  <pre>  <pre>
491    \a         alarm (= BEL)    \a         alarm (BEL, \x07)
492    \b         backspace    \b         backspace (\x08)
493    \e         escape    \e         escape (\x27)
494    \f         formfeed    \f         form feed (\x0c)
495    \n         newline    \n         newline (\x0a)
496    \r         carriage return    \qdd       set the PCRE_MATCH_LIMIT limit to dd (any number of digits)
497    \t         tab    \r         carriage return (\x0d)
498    \v         vertical tab    \t         tab (\x09)
499    \nnn       octal character (up to 3 octal digits)    \v         vertical tab (\x0b)
500    \xhh       hexadecimal character (up to 2 hex digits)    \nnn       octal character (up to 3 octal digits); always
501    \x{hh...}  hexadecimal character, any number of digits                 a byte unless &#62; 255 in UTF-8 or 16-bit mode
502                 in UTF-8 mode    \xhh       hexadecimal byte (up to 2 hex digits)
503    \A         pass the PCRE_ANCHORED option to <b>pcre_exec()</b>    \x{hh...}  hexadecimal character (any number of hex digits)
504    \B         pass the PCRE_NOTBOL option to <b>pcre_exec()</b>    \A         pass the PCRE_ANCHORED option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
505    \Cdd       call pcre_copy_substring() for substring dd    \B         pass the PCRE_NOTBOL option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
506                 after a successful match (any decimal number    \Cdd       call pcre[16]_copy_substring() for substring dd after a successful match (number less than 32)
507                 less than 32)    \Cname     call pcre[16]_copy_named_substring() for substring "name" after a successful match (name termin-
   \Cname     call pcre_copy_named_substring() for substring  
                "name" after a successful match (name termin-  
508                 ated by next non alphanumeric character)                 ated by next non alphanumeric character)
509    \C+        show the current captured substrings at callout    \C+        show the current captured substrings at callout time
                time  
510    \C-        do not supply a callout function    \C-        do not supply a callout function
511    \C!n       return 1 instead of 0 when callout number n is    \C!n       return 1 instead of 0 when callout number n is reached
512                 reached    \C!n!m     return 1 instead of 0 when callout number n is reached for the nth time
513    \C!n!m     return 1 instead of 0 when callout number n is    \C*n       pass the number n (may be negative) as callout data; this is used as the callout return value
514                 reached for the nth time    \D         use the <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b> match function
515    \C*n       pass the number n (may be negative) as callout    \F         only shortest match for <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
516                 data    \Gdd       call pcre[16]_get_substring() for substring dd after a successful match (number less than 32)
517    \Gdd       call pcre_get_substring() for substring dd    \Gname     call pcre[16]_get_named_substring() for substring "name" after a successful match (name termin-
                after a successful match (any decimal number  
                less than 32)  
   \Gname     call pcre_get_named_substring() for substring  
                "name" after a successful match (name termin-  
518                 ated by next non-alphanumeric character)                 ated by next non-alphanumeric character)
519    \L         call pcre_get_substringlist() after a    \Jdd       set up a JIT stack of dd kilobytes maximum (any number of digits)
520                 successful match    \L         call pcre[16]_get_substringlist() after a successful match
521    \M         discover the minimum MATCH_LIMIT setting    \M         discover the minimum MATCH_LIMIT and MATCH_LIMIT_RECURSION settings
522    \N         pass the PCRE_NOTEMPTY option to <b>pcre_exec()</b>    \N         pass the PCRE_NOTEMPTY option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>; if used twice, pass the
523    \Odd       set the size of the output vector passed to                 PCRE_NOTEMPTY_ATSTART option
524                 <b>pcre_exec()</b> to dd (any number of decimal    \Odd       set the size of the output vector passed to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> to dd (any number of digits)
525                 digits)    \P         pass the PCRE_PARTIAL_SOFT option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>; if used twice, pass the
526    \Z         pass the PCRE_NOTEOL option to <b>pcre_exec()</b>                 PCRE_PARTIAL_HARD option
527    \?         pass the PCRE_NO_UTF8_CHECK option to    \Qdd       set the PCRE_MATCH_LIMIT_RECURSION limit to dd (any number of digits)
528                 <b>pcre_exec()</b>    \R         pass the PCRE_DFA_RESTART option to <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
529  </PRE>    \S         output details of memory get/free calls during matching
530  </P>    \Y         pass the PCRE_NO_START_OPTIMIZE option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
531  <P>    \Z         pass the PCRE_NOTEOL option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
532  If \M is present, <b>pcretest</b> calls <b>pcre_exec()</b> several times, with    \?         pass the PCRE_NO_UTF[8|16]_CHECK option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
533  different values in the <i>match_limit</i> field of the <b>pcre_extra</b> data    \&#62;dd       start the match at offset dd (optional "-"; then any number of digits); this sets the <i>startoffset</i>
534  structure, until it finds the minimum number that is needed for                 argument for <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
535  <b>pcre_exec()</b> to complete. This number is a measure of the amount of    \&#60;cr&#62;      pass the PCRE_NEWLINE_CR option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
536  recursion and backtracking that takes place, and checking it out can be    \&#60;lf&#62;      pass the PCRE_NEWLINE_LF option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
537  instructive. For most simple matches, the number is quite small, but for    \&#60;crlf&#62;    pass the PCRE_NEWLINE_CRLF option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
538  patterns with very large numbers of matching possibilities, it can become large    \&#60;anycrlf&#62; pass the PCRE_NEWLINE_ANYCRLF option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
539  very quickly with increasing length of subject string.    \&#60;any&#62;     pass the PCRE_NEWLINE_ANY option to <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> or <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>
540  </P>  </pre>
541  <P>  The use of \x{hh...} is not dependent on the use of the <b>/8</b> modifier on
542  When \O is used, it may be higher or lower than the size set by the <b>-O</b>  the pattern. It is recognized always. There may be any number of hexadecimal
543  option (or defaulted to 45); \O applies only to the call of <b>pcre_exec()</b>  digits inside the braces; invalid values provoke error messages.
544  for the line in which it appears.  </P>
545  </P>  <P>
546  <P>  Note that \xhh specifies one byte in UTF-8 mode; this makes it possible to
547  A backslash followed by anything else just escapes the anything else. If the  construct invalid UTF-8 sequences for testing purposes. On the other hand,
548  very last character is a backslash, it is ignored. This gives a way of passing  \x{hh} is interpreted as a UTF-8 character in UTF-8 mode, generating more than
549  an empty line as data, since a real empty line terminates the data input.  one byte if the value is greater than 127. When testing the 8-bit library not
550  </P>  in UTF-8 mode, \x{hh} generates one byte for values less than 256, and causes
551  <P>  an error for greater values.
552  If <b>/P</b> was present on the regex, causing the POSIX wrapper API to be used,  </P>
553  only <b>\B</b>, and <b>\Z</b> have any effect, causing REG_NOTBOL and REG_NOTEOL  <P>
554  to be passed to <b>regexec()</b> respectively.  In UTF-16 mode, all 4-digit \x{hhhh} values are accepted. This makes it
555  </P>  possible to construct invalid UTF-16 sequences for testing purposes.
556  <P>  </P>
557  The use of \x{hh...} to represent UTF-8 characters is not dependent on the use  <P>
558  of the <b>/8</b> modifier on the pattern. It is recognized always. There may be  The escapes that specify line ending sequences are literal strings, exactly as
559  any number of hexadecimal digits inside the braces. The result is from one to  shown. No more than one newline setting should be present in any data line.
560  six bytes, encoded according to the UTF-8 rules.  </P>
561  </P>  <P>
562  <br><a name="SEC7" href="#TOC1">OUTPUT FROM PCRETEST</a><br>  A backslash followed by anything else just escapes the anything else. If
563  <P>  the very last character is a backslash, it is ignored. This gives a way of
564  When a match succeeds, pcretest outputs the list of captured substrings that  passing an empty line as data, since a real empty line terminates the data
565  <b>pcre_exec()</b> returns, starting with number 0 for the string that matched  input.
566  the whole pattern. Here is an example of an interactive pcretest run.  </P>
567    <P>
568    The <b>\J</b> escape provides a way of setting the maximum stack size that is
569    used by the just-in-time optimization code. It is ignored if JIT optimization
570    is not being used. Providing a stack that is larger than the default 32K is
571    necessary only for very complicated patterns.
572    </P>
573    <P>
574    If \M is present, <b>pcretest</b> calls <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> several times,
575    with different values in the <i>match_limit</i> and <i>match_limit_recursion</i>
576    fields of the <b>pcre[16]_extra</b> data structure, until it finds the minimum
577    numbers for each parameter that allow <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> to complete without
578    error. Because this is testing a specific feature of the normal interpretive
579    <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> execution, the use of any JIT optimization that might
580    have been set up by the <b>/S+</b> qualifier of <b>-s+</b> option is disabled.
581    </P>
582    <P>
583    The <i>match_limit</i> number is a measure of the amount of backtracking
584    that takes place, and checking it out can be instructive. For most simple
585    matches, the number is quite small, but for patterns with very large numbers of
586    matching possibilities, it can become large very quickly with increasing length
587    of subject string. The <i>match_limit_recursion</i> number is a measure of how
588    much stack (or, if PCRE is compiled with NO_RECURSE, how much heap) memory is
589    needed to complete the match attempt.
590    </P>
591    <P>
592    When \O is used, the value specified may be higher or lower than the size set
593    by the <b>-O</b> command line option (or defaulted to 45); \O applies only to
594    the call of <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> for the line in which it appears.
595    </P>
596    <P>
597    If the <b>/P</b> modifier was present on the pattern, causing the POSIX wrapper
598    API to be used, the only option-setting sequences that have any effect are \B,
599    \N, and \Z, causing REG_NOTBOL, REG_NOTEMPTY, and REG_NOTEOL, respectively,
600    to be passed to <b>regexec()</b>.
601    </P>
602    <br><a name="SEC7" href="#TOC1">THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION</a><br>
603    <P>
604    By default, <b>pcretest</b> uses the standard PCRE matching function,
605    <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> to match each data line. PCRE also supports an
606    alternative matching function, <b>pcre[16]_dfa_test()</b>, which operates in a
607    different way, and has some restrictions. The differences between the two
608    functions are described in the
609    <a href="pcrematching.html"><b>pcrematching</b></a>
610    documentation.
611  </P>  </P>
612  <P>  <P>
613    If a data line contains the \D escape sequence, or if the command line
614    contains the <b>-dfa</b> option, the alternative matching function is used.
615    This function finds all possible matches at a given point. If, however, the \F
616    escape sequence is present in the data line, it stops after the first match is
617    found. This is always the shortest possible match.
618    </P>
619    <br><a name="SEC8" href="#TOC1">DEFAULT OUTPUT FROM PCRETEST</a><br>
620    <P>
621    This section describes the output when the normal matching function,
622    <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b>, is being used.
623    </P>
624    <P>
625    When a match succeeds, <b>pcretest</b> outputs the list of captured substrings
626    that <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> returns, starting with number 0 for the string that
627    matched the whole pattern. Otherwise, it outputs "No match" when the return is
628    PCRE_ERROR_NOMATCH, and "Partial match:" followed by the partially matching
629    substring when <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b> returns PCRE_ERROR_PARTIAL. (Note that
630    this is the entire substring that was inspected during the partial match; it
631    may include characters before the actual match start if a lookbehind assertion,
632    \K, \b, or \B was involved.) For any other return, <b>pcretest</b> outputs
633    the PCRE negative error number and a short descriptive phrase. If the error is
634    a failed UTF string check, the offset of the start of the failing character and
635    the reason code are also output, provided that the size of the output vector is
636    at least two. Here is an example of an interactive <b>pcretest</b> run.
637  <pre>  <pre>
638    $ pcretest    $ pcretest
639    PCRE version 4.00 08-Jan-2003    PCRE version 8.13 2011-04-30
640  </PRE>  
 </P>  
 <P>  
 <pre>  
641      re&#62; /^abc(\d+)/      re&#62; /^abc(\d+)/
642    data&#62; abc123    data&#62; abc123
643     0: abc123     0: abc123
644     1: 123     1: 123
645    data&#62; xyz    data&#62; xyz
646    No match    No match
647  </PRE>  </pre>
648  </P>  Unset capturing substrings that are not followed by one that is set are not
649  <P>  returned by <b>pcre[16]_exec()</b>, and are not shown by <b>pcretest</b>. In the
650  If the strings contain any non-printing characters, they are output as \0x  following example, there are two capturing substrings, but when the first data
651  escapes, or as \x{...} escapes if the <b>/8</b> modifier was present on the  line is matched, the second, unset substring is not shown. An "internal" unset
652  pattern. If the pattern has the <b>/+</b> modifier, then the output for  substring is shown as "&#60;unset&#62;", as for the second data line.
653  substring 0 is followed by the the rest of the subject string, identified by  <pre>
654  "0+" like this:      re&#62; /(a)|(b)/
655  </P>    data&#62; a
656  <P>     0: a
657       1: a
658      data&#62; b
659       0: b
660       1: &#60;unset&#62;
661       2: b
662    </pre>
663    If the strings contain any non-printing characters, they are output as \xhh
664    escapes if the value is less than 256 and UTF mode is not set. Otherwise they
665    are output as \x{hh...} escapes. See below for the definition of non-printing
666    characters. If the pattern has the <b>/+</b> modifier, the output for substring
667    0 is followed by the the rest of the subject string, identified by "0+" like
668    this:
669  <pre>  <pre>
670      re&#62; /cat/+      re&#62; /cat/+
671    data&#62; cataract    data&#62; cataract
672     0: cat     0: cat
673     0+ aract     0+ aract
674  </PRE>  </pre>
 </P>  
 <P>  
675  If the pattern has the <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> modifier, the results of successive  If the pattern has the <b>/g</b> or <b>/G</b> modifier, the results of successive
676  matching attempts are output in sequence, like this:  matching attempts are output in sequence, like this:
 </P>  
 <P>  
677  <pre>  <pre>
678      re&#62; /\Bi(\w\w)/g      re&#62; /\Bi(\w\w)/g
679    data&#62; Mississippi    data&#62; Mississippi
# Line 410  matching attempts are output in sequence Line 683  matching attempts are output in sequence
683     1: ss     1: ss
684     0: ipp     0: ipp
685     1: pp     1: pp
686    </pre>
687    "No match" is output only if the first match attempt fails. Here is an example
688    of a failure message (the offset 4 that is specified by \&#62;4 is past the end of
689    the subject string):
690    <pre>
691        re&#62; /xyz/
692      data&#62; xyz\&#62;4
693      Error -24 (bad offset value)
694  </PRE>  </PRE>
695  </P>  </P>
696  <P>  <P>
 "No match" is output only if the first match attempt fails.  
 </P>  
 <P>  
697  If any of the sequences <b>\C</b>, <b>\G</b>, or <b>\L</b> are present in a  If any of the sequences <b>\C</b>, <b>\G</b>, or <b>\L</b> are present in a
698  data line that is successfully matched, the substrings extracted by the  data line that is successfully matched, the substrings extracted by the
699  convenience functions are output with C, G, or L after the string number  convenience functions are output with C, G, or L after the string number
# Line 424  length (that is, the return from the ext Line 702  length (that is, the return from the ext
702  parentheses after each string for <b>\C</b> and <b>\G</b>.  parentheses after each string for <b>\C</b> and <b>\G</b>.
703  </P>  </P>
704  <P>  <P>
705  Note that while patterns can be continued over several lines (a plain "&#62;"  Note that whereas patterns can be continued over several lines (a plain "&#62;"
706  prompt is used for continuations), data lines may not. However newlines can be  prompt is used for continuations), data lines may not. However newlines can be
707  included in data by means of the \n escape.  included in data by means of the \n escape (or \r, \r\n, etc., depending on
708    the newline sequence setting).
709    </P>
710    <br><a name="SEC9" href="#TOC1">OUTPUT FROM THE ALTERNATIVE MATCHING FUNCTION</a><br>
711    <P>
712    When the alternative matching function, <b>pcre[16]_dfa_exec()</b>, is used (by
713    means of the \D escape sequence or the <b>-dfa</b> command line option), the
714    output consists of a list of all the matches that start at the first point in
715    the subject where there is at least one match. For example:
716    <pre>
717        re&#62; /(tang|tangerine|tan)/
718      data&#62; yellow tangerine\D
719       0: tangerine
720       1: tang
721       2: tan
722    </pre>
723    (Using the normal matching function on this data finds only "tang".) The
724    longest matching string is always given first (and numbered zero). After a
725    PCRE_ERROR_PARTIAL return, the output is "Partial match:", followed by the
726    partially matching substring. (Note that this is the entire substring that was
727    inspected during the partial match; it may include characters before the actual
728    match start if a lookbehind assertion, \K, \b, or \B was involved.)
729    </P>
730    <P>
731    If <b>/g</b> is present on the pattern, the search for further matches resumes
732    at the end of the longest match. For example:
733    <pre>
734        re&#62; /(tang|tangerine|tan)/g
735      data&#62; yellow tangerine and tangy sultana\D
736       0: tangerine
737       1: tang
738       2: tan
739       0: tang
740       1: tan
741       0: tan
742    </pre>
743    Since the matching function does not support substring capture, the escape
744    sequences that are concerned with captured substrings are not relevant.
745    </P>
746    <br><a name="SEC10" href="#TOC1">RESTARTING AFTER A PARTIAL MATCH</a><br>
747    <P>
748    When the alternative matching function has given the PCRE_ERROR_PARTIAL return,
749    indicating that the subject partially matched the pattern, you can restart the
750    match with additional subject data by means of the \R escape sequence. For
751    example:
752    <pre>
753        re&#62; /^\d?\d(jan|feb|mar|apr|may|jun|jul|aug|sep|oct|nov|dec)\d\d$/
754      data&#62; 23ja\P\D
755      Partial match: 23ja
756      data&#62; n05\R\D
757       0: n05
758    </pre>
759    For further information about partial matching, see the
760    <a href="pcrepartial.html"><b>pcrepartial</b></a>
761    documentation.
762    </P>
763    <br><a name="SEC11" href="#TOC1">CALLOUTS</a><br>
764    <P>
765    If the pattern contains any callout requests, <b>pcretest</b>'s callout function
766    is called during matching. This works with both matching functions. By default,
767    the called function displays the callout number, the start and current
768    positions in the text at the callout time, and the next pattern item to be
769    tested. For example:
770    <pre>
771      ---&#62;pqrabcdef
772        0    ^  ^     \d
773    </pre>
774    This output indicates that callout number 0 occurred for a match attempt
775    starting at the fourth character of the subject string, when the pointer was at
776    the seventh character of the data, and when the next pattern item was \d. Just
777    one circumflex is output if the start and current positions are the same.
778    </P>
779    <P>
780    Callouts numbered 255 are assumed to be automatic callouts, inserted as a
781    result of the <b>/C</b> pattern modifier. In this case, instead of showing the
782    callout number, the offset in the pattern, preceded by a plus, is output. For
783    example:
784    <pre>
785        re&#62; /\d?[A-E]\*/C
786      data&#62; E*
787      ---&#62;E*
788       +0 ^      \d?
789       +3 ^      [A-E]
790       +8 ^^     \*
791      +10 ^ ^
792       0: E*
793    </pre>
794    If a pattern contains (*MARK) items, an additional line is output whenever
795    a change of latest mark is passed to the callout function. For example:
796    <pre>
797        re&#62; /a(*MARK:X)bc/C
798      data&#62; abc
799      ---&#62;abc
800       +0 ^       a
801       +1 ^^      (*MARK:X)
802      +10 ^^      b
803      Latest Mark: X
804      +11 ^ ^     c
805      +12 ^  ^
806       0: abc
807    </pre>
808    The mark changes between matching "a" and "b", but stays the same for the rest
809    of the match, so nothing more is output. If, as a result of backtracking, the
810    mark reverts to being unset, the text "&#60;unset&#62;" is output.
811    </P>
812    <P>
813    The callout function in <b>pcretest</b> returns zero (carry on matching) by
814    default, but you can use a \C item in a data line (as described above) to
815    change this and other parameters of the callout.
816    </P>
817    <P>
818    Inserting callouts can be helpful when using <b>pcretest</b> to check
819    complicated regular expressions. For further information about callouts, see
820    the
821    <a href="pcrecallout.html"><b>pcrecallout</b></a>
822    documentation.
823    </P>
824    <br><a name="SEC12" href="#TOC1">NON-PRINTING CHARACTERS</a><br>
825    <P>
826    When <b>pcretest</b> is outputting text in the compiled version of a pattern,
827    bytes other than 32-126 are always treated as non-printing characters are are
828    therefore shown as hex escapes.
829    </P>
830    <P>
831    When <b>pcretest</b> is outputting text that is a matched part of a subject
832    string, it behaves in the same way, unless a different locale has been set for
833    the pattern (using the <b>/L</b> modifier). In this case, the <b>isprint()</b>
834    function to distinguish printing and non-printing characters.
835    </P>
836    <br><a name="SEC13" href="#TOC1">SAVING AND RELOADING COMPILED PATTERNS</a><br>
837    <P>
838    The facilities described in this section are not available when the POSIX
839    interface to PCRE is being used, that is, when the <b>/P</b> pattern modifier is
840    specified.
841    </P>
842    <P>
843    When the POSIX interface is not in use, you can cause <b>pcretest</b> to write a
844    compiled pattern to a file, by following the modifiers with &#62; and a file name.
845    For example:
846    <pre>
847      /pattern/im &#62;/some/file
848    </pre>
849    See the
850    <a href="pcreprecompile.html"><b>pcreprecompile</b></a>
851    documentation for a discussion about saving and re-using compiled patterns.
852    Note that if the pattern was successfully studied with JIT optimization, the
853    JIT data cannot be saved.
854    </P>
855    <P>
856    The data that is written is binary. The first eight bytes are the length of the
857    compiled pattern data followed by the length of the optional study data, each
858    written as four bytes in big-endian order (most significant byte first). If
859    there is no study data (either the pattern was not studied, or studying did not
860    return any data), the second length is zero. The lengths are followed by an
861    exact copy of the compiled pattern. If there is additional study data, this
862    (excluding any JIT data) follows immediately after the compiled pattern. After
863    writing the file, <b>pcretest</b> expects to read a new pattern.
864    </P>
865    <P>
866    A saved pattern can be reloaded into <b>pcretest</b> by specifying &#60; and a file
867    name instead of a pattern. The name of the file must not contain a &#60; character,
868    as otherwise <b>pcretest</b> will interpret the line as a pattern delimited by &#60;
869    characters.
870    For example:
871    <pre>
872       re&#62; &#60;/some/file
873      Compiled pattern loaded from /some/file
874      No study data
875    </pre>
876    If the pattern was previously studied with the JIT optimization, the JIT
877    information cannot be saved and restored, and so is lost. When the pattern has
878    been loaded, <b>pcretest</b> proceeds to read data lines in the usual way.
879    </P>
880    <P>
881    You can copy a file written by <b>pcretest</b> to a different host and reload it
882    there, even if the new host has opposite endianness to the one on which the
883    pattern was compiled. For example, you can compile on an i86 machine and run on
884    a SPARC machine. When a pattern is reloaded on a host with different
885    endianness, the confirmation message is changed to:
886    <pre>
887      Compiled pattern (byte-inverted) loaded from /some/file
888    </pre>
889    The test suite contains some saved pre-compiled patterns with different
890    endianness. These are reloaded using "&#60;!" instead of just "&#60;". This suppresses
891    the "(byte-inverted)" text so that the output is the same on all hosts. It also
892    forces debugging output once the pattern has been reloaded.
893    </P>
894    <P>
895    File names for saving and reloading can be absolute or relative, but note that
896    the shell facility of expanding a file name that starts with a tilde (~) is not
897    available.
898    </P>
899    <P>
900    The ability to save and reload files in <b>pcretest</b> is intended for testing
901    and experimentation. It is not intended for production use because only a
902    single pattern can be written to a file. Furthermore, there is no facility for
903    supplying custom character tables for use with a reloaded pattern. If the
904    original pattern was compiled with custom tables, an attempt to match a subject
905    string using a reloaded pattern is likely to cause <b>pcretest</b> to crash.
906    Finally, if you attempt to load a file that is not in the correct format, the
907    result is undefined.
908    </P>
909    <br><a name="SEC14" href="#TOC1">SEE ALSO</a><br>
910    <P>
911    <b>pcre</b>(3), <b>pcre16</b>(3), <b>pcreapi</b>(3), <b>pcrecallout</b>(3),
912    <b>pcrejit</b>, <b>pcrematching</b>(3), <b>pcrepartial</b>(d),
913    <b>pcrepattern</b>(3), <b>pcreprecompile</b>(3).
914  </P>  </P>
915  <br><a name="SEC8" href="#TOC1">AUTHOR</a><br>  <br><a name="SEC15" href="#TOC1">AUTHOR</a><br>
916  <P>  <P>
917  Philip Hazel &#60;ph10@cam.ac.uk&#62;  Philip Hazel
918  <br>  <br>
919  University Computing Service,  University Computing Service
920    <br>
921    Cambridge CB2 3QH, England.
922  <br>  <br>
 Cambridge CB2 3QG, England.  
923  </P>  </P>
924    <br><a name="SEC16" href="#TOC1">REVISION</a><br>
925  <P>  <P>
926  Last updated: 20 August 2003  Last updated: 13 January 2012
927    <br>
928    Copyright &copy; 1997-2012 University of Cambridge.
929  <br>  <br>
930  Copyright &copy; 1997-2003 University of Cambridge.  <p>
931    Return to the <a href="index.html">PCRE index page</a>.
932    </p>
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