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STRINGS(1)							    STRINGS(1)

NAME
       strings - find the printable strings in a object, or other binary, file

SYNOPSIS
       strings	[  -  ]	 [ -a ] [ -o ] [ -t format ] [ -number ] [ -n number ]
       [--] [file ...]

DESCRIPTION
       Strings looks for ASCII strings in a binary  file  or  standard	input.
       Strings	is  useful  for identifying random object files and many other
       things.	A string is any sequence of 4 (the default) or	more  printing
       characters  ending  with	 a  newline  or	 a null.  Unless the - flag is
       given, strings looks in all sections of the  object  files  except  the
       (__TEXT,__text)	section.   If no files are specified standard input is
       read.

       The file arguments may be of the form libx.a(foo.o), to request	infor‐
       mation about only that object file and not the entire library.	(Typi‐
       cally this argument must be quoted, ``libx.a(foo.o)'', to get  it  past
       the shell.)

       The options to strings(1) are:

       -a     This  option  causes strings to look for strings in all sections
	      of the object file (including the (__TEXT,__text) section.

       -      This option causes strings to look for strings in all  bytes  of
	      the files (the default for non-object files).

       --     This  option causes strings to treat all the following arguments
	      as files.

       -o     Preceded each string by its offset in the file (in decimal).

       -t format
	      Write each string preceded by its byte offset from the start  of
	      the file.	 The format shall be dependent on the single character
	      used as the format option-argument:

       d      The offset shall be written in decimal.

       o      The offset shall be written in octal.

       x      The offset shall be written in hexadecimal.

       -number
	      The decimal number is used as the minimum string	length	rather
	      than the default of 4.

       -n number
	      Specify  the minimum string length, where the number argument is
	      a positive decimal integer. The default shall be 4.

       -arch arch_type
	      Specifies	 the  architecture,  arch_type,	 of   the   file   for
	      strings(1)  to  operate  on  when	 the file is a universal file.
	      (See arch(3) for the currently know arch_types.)	The  arch_type
	      can be "all" to operate on all architectures in the file.

SEE ALSO
       od(1)

BUGS
       The algorithm for identifying strings is extremely primitive.

Apple Computer, Inc.	      September 11, 2006		    STRINGS(1)

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