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File Descriptor of stderr

Question Text

Which file descriptor is associated by default to stderr?

Question Answers

  • it varies from process to process

  • it varies from one Linux distribution to another

  • stderr has no associated file descriptor

  • 2
  • 0

  • 1

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You would type ls 2> /dev/null to ignore ls's errors. This equates to redirecting stderr to /dev/null. The number 2 in 2> hints that stderr is by default associated with file descriptor 2.