fv : extracts and sorts software release numbers

Point separated, multi-point separated or semantic versioned and versioned suffixed

Use as full standalone, or compact embedded (~98 lines)

# full version using pipes (show latest)
curl -sf https://github.com/qemu/qemu/tags | grep 's/tag' | fv -M
9.2.3

# full version using pipes (show latest rc and beta)
curl -sf https://github.com/qemu/qemu/tags | grep 's/tag' | fv -M --full
10.0.0-rc2

# embedded version (show latest 3)
floatversion -M 3 "$(curl -sf https://github.com/qemu/qemu/tags | grep 's/tag')"
9.2.3  9.2.2  9.2.1

• Multiple Filters: include, exclude, starts with, reverse ...

  floatversion --options  "quoted-input-source-or-data"
  OR  data | floatversion --options "optional-additional"

  Extracts point separated numbers, or semantic version numbers with optional suffixes,
  and other common variations upon, from a given string or text-file

  -h | --help         show help
  -V | --version      show version
  -c | --col          show list as column instead of string  (-qc quieter errors)
  -s | --space        use single spaced string for machine reading (-qs quieter errors)
  -r | --rev          show list in reverse order
  -a | --all          show all extracted values, not just unique
  -n | --num          sort by standard numbering, not versioning
  -f | --full         check for additional sem. ver. suffixes,  eg. -beta
  -F | --filter       contains given items -F  "string  string  string"
  -S | --starts       starting with -S  "string  string  string"
  -D | --delete       doesn't contain: -D  "string  string  string"
  -M | --max          Outputs the single highest/latest value in the list and with '-r' the lowest/earliest,
                      with integer shows top or bottom of total list eg. -M 3 is top 3 and -M 3 -r the bottom.
  -RM [int]           Outputs the single lowest/earliest value in the list. With integer, as -M but
                      reverses only the M filter set, not the list, eg. -M 3  > 3 2 1  -RM 3 > 1 2 3
                      also accepts '-r' to reverse a lowest set filter ...
  -g | -qg | --gt     A > B, returns true/false eg. if fv -g "A B"; then .. (.nums or sem ver)
                      use -v for dev output, normally quiet and allows conditional testing (-qg quieter errors)
  -Q | --quiet        Quieten general error messages, as alternative to using '2>/dev/null'
                      Use -qc | -qs | -qg  for reduced error output on full machine tests (no help notes)
  -v | --verbose      Show algorithm sequences (full version only) for problem output
       --sort-v       use sort -V (if present) in preference to the default jq methods
       --no-svb       no falling back to 'jq' if 'sort -V' is unavailable, show error instead

  Without options, produces a single sorted string of all unique items found
  Filters output as string, column or max. Post-output grep requires columns.

  Tests show 'jq' sort methods as more reliable than 'sort -V' when encountering suffixes
  In all cases, returns false if none found in data, with error if data missing.

  Stdin and Pipes require the Standalone version.  Either or both input methods may be used.
  Only use 'fv' or short name links in PATH controlled situations. See readme for further notes.

Superior sorting methods

• Standard numeric or semantic ordering

# standard
floatversion --num "floats.txt"
0.039  0.4  1.09  1.1  1.10  1.11  1.222  1.24  3.0  3.1114  3.141  5.111899  5.7899  16.311  16.32  34.107  34.6

# semantic
floatversion  "floats.txt"
0.4  0.039  1.1  1.09  1.10  1.11  1.24  1.222  3.0  3.141  3.1114  5.7899  5.111899  16.32  16.311  34.6  34.107

• Sort to latest version, to unique or to listed entries, top 3 etc

• Uses reliable JQ sort formula

# JQ:
floatversion --full --starts "1.2" "non-pad-test.txt"
1.2.0-beta.2  1.2.3-beta.1  1.2.3-live  1.2.3-rc1  1.2.3  1.22.3-rc1  1.22.3

# correct latest:
floatversion --max -f -S "1.2"  "non-pad-test.txt"
1.22.3

# sort -V  incorrect:
tr ' ' '\n' <<< "1.2.3-rc2  1.2.3  1.22.3-rc1  1.22.3  1.2.0-beta2  1.2.3-beta1" | sort -Vr | head -n 1
1.22.3-rc1

Easy to use single pass extraction and filter

• Outputs as true/false test, as single item, or as space or line separated list.

# reduce huge lists
curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=' | wc -l
271

# of the 271 entries the following are unique:
floatversion "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')"
3.0  3.1  4.0  5.0.0  5.0.1  5.0.2  5.0.3  5.0.4  5.0.5  5.0.6  5.0.7  5.0.8  5.0.9  5.0.10  6.0.0  6.0.1  6.0.2  6.0.2.1  6.0.3  6.0.4  6.0.5  6.0.6  6.0.7  6.0.8  6.0.9  6.0.10  7.0.0  7.1.0  7.2.0  7.3.0  7.4.0  7.5.0  7.6.0  7.7.0  7.8.0  7.9.0  7.10.0  7.11.0  8.0.0  8.1.0  8.2.0  8.3.0  8.4.0  8.5.0  8.6.0  8.7.0  8.7.1  8.8.0  8.9.0  8.10.0  8.11.0  8.11.1  9.0.0  9.0.1  9.1.0  9.2.0  9.2.1  9.3.0  9.4.0  9.5.0  9.6.0  9.7.0  9.8.0  9.9.0  9.10.0  9.11.0  9.12.0  9.13.0  10.0.0  10.1.0  10.2.0  10.3.0  10.4.0  10.5.0  10.6.0  10.7.0  10.8.0  10.9.0  10.10.0  10.11.0  10.12.0  10.13.0  11.0.0  11.1.0  11.2.0  11.3.0  11.4.0  11.5.0  11.6.0  11.7.0  11.8.0  11.9.0  11.10.0  11.11.0  12.0.0  12.1.0  12.2.0  12.3  12.3.0  12.4.0  12.5.0  12.6.0

# the latest is:
floatversion -M "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')"
12.6.0

# the latest three are:
floatversion -M 3 "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')"
12.6.0  12.5.0  12.4.0

# the oldest is:
floatversion --rev -M "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')"
3.0

• Starts with

floatversion -r --starts 11  "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')"
11.11.0  11.10.0  11.9.0  11.8.0  11.7.0  11.6.0  11.5.0  11.4.0  11.3.0  11.2.0  11.1.0  11.0.0

floatversion -r --starts 6  "$(curl -sLf "http://mirror-master.dragonflybsd.org/iso-images" | grep -Eo '"dfly-x86_64-.*_REL.iso.bz2"')"
6.4.0  6.2.2  6.2.1  6.0.1  6.0.0

• Keywords +/-

floatversion -f "non-pad-test.txt"
1.1.1  1.1.3-beta.1  1.1.3-beta.2  1.2.0-beta.2  1.2.3-beta.1  1.2.3-live  1.2.3-rc1  1.2.3  1.3.1  1.3.1.2  1.10.1  1.10.3-beta.3  1.10.3  1.22.3-rc1  1.22.3  1.30.1  12.2.3  22.3.4-beta  22.3.4-beta.1  22.3.4-rc.2  22.13.4-rc.1

floatversion -f -D "beta rc" "non-pad-test.txt"
1.1.1  1.2.3-live  1.2.3  1.3.1  1.3.1.2  1.10.1  1.10.3  1.22.3  1.30.1  12.2.3

floatversion --rev -f -D "beta rc" "non-pad-test.txt"
12.2.3  1.30.1  1.22.3  1.10.3  1.10.1  1.3.1.2  1.3.1  1.2.3  1.2.3-live  1.1.1

floatversion -f -F live -M "non-pad-test.txt"
1.2.3-live

• Compare versions

LatestAchive="$(floatversion -M "$(curl -sLf  "https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/archive/" | grep 'src=')" )"
Current="$(cat /etc/debian_version)"
if floatversion --gt  "$Current $LatestAchive" ; then echo "Up to Date"; fi
Up to Date

Easy Install

FloatVersion will run in Bash or in Non-Bash shells.

Requires up-to-date versions of Bash, Grep, JQ, BC and Curl.

• On MacOS install these via Homebrew

Curl is needed from version 1.1 for the update checker on the full version only.

BC is needed for standard numerical comparisons.

Use as a Standalone

The name floatversion was carefully checked for duplication before it was selected.

Short forms, such as fv may be used but only in controlled situations.

Enabling stdin and pipes

From version 1.3 onwards, sub-shelled pipe constructs are possible when the full version script has been located within $PATH

Ideally the script should be placed in a non-standard location and a temporary session export routine should be used:

fvPath="/usr/share/my-prog/utils"
export PATH="${fvPath}:${PATH}"

Use with std args

This method is ideal when re-using script lines that have been employed on the embedded floatversion function.

It is slightly easier to set up but code lines are slightly longer to construct.

A simple wrapper can be used in Bash to call the full script from an includes folder:

floatversion () {
  "/usr/share/my-prog/utils/floatversion" "$@"
}

For Non-Bash, see below

Symbolic links and aliases

Only where a custom PATH has been exported within a script or where a custom path is head of the list

cd /usr/share/my-prog
sudo ln -s floatversion fv
>
fv -f -S "1.2" "non-pad-test.txt"  etc ...

On a known computer where local or other appears first in $PATH and where the addition of other software is user controlled

# possibly:
sudo cp floatversion /usr/local/bin
sudo chmod +x /usr/local/bin/floatversion
alias fv='floatversion'
>
ls | fv -f
5.13  6.8.0-56-generic  6.8.0-57-generic

Embedding

This method is suitable only for Bash scripts.

Single scripts can add the compact function in a simple copy and paste operation which is ready to go.

In larger projects, the required extra space for the full function won't notice and you will have verbose mode ready built in.

Either of the functions can be copied by simply opening the floatversion script in a text editor.

The full version is named differently inside the standalone script to enable easy separation. When pasting the full version, it should be renamed to floatversion, the same as with the compact one.

Using the standard syntax floatversion --options "quoted-input-source" will ensure that if a function is not present, the call will re-route to floatversion as a standalone dependency, also that any later usage changes or any code re-use won't have negative impact.

Locale settings should be implemented as outlined in the floatversion script header.

Output Array

The standalone script can be set to output a transfer file which is easily mappable by most shells. When embedding, the array ${fvOutputArr[*]} is by default present as global. See notes at start of script.

Testing

For testing the compact function inside scripts, it is recommended that a $PATH version be installed on the development computer. Any Bash script calls can then be temporarily prefixed by the control word command which will cause the function to re-route and will allow verbose output to be enabled.

• Show verbose algorithmics

if floatversion --verbose --gt "$Current $LatestAchive"; then echo "Up to Date"; fi

Str:
12.7 12.6.0

Nums: (2)
12.7
12.6.0

declare -a NumArrTemp=([0]="12.7" [1]="12.6.0")

declare -a NumArrSorted=([0]="12.6.0" [1]="12.7")

declare -a fvOutputArr=([0]="12.6.0" [1]="12.7")

true

Up to Date

Error message suppression may be used to tidy screen output, if required. This can be particularly useful when producing machine output.

Updates

The script snippets, above, show how to check floatversion releases and how to compare versions.

Version 1.1 now has an auto-update checker that will run on request:

floatversion -V

CurrentVersion: 1.1.0

Checking for updates....   LatestVersion: 1.1.0  Up-to-Date

(c) Alex Genovese  https://github.com/TuxVinyards/floatversion

OR ....

if floatversion -V | grep -sq 'Up-to-Date' ; then echo OK ; fi

OK

Requires Curl. @ 2024 Most distros will have this.

Alternatively see GitHub's dependabot docs for setting up alerts ....

Use in different shells

The script's Shebang will mean that direct running of the standalone is possible from the interactive terminal.

For example:

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$]
╰─λ echo $SHELL
/usr/bin/fish

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$]
╰─λ floatversion -F 10 -M -n  "non-pad-test.txt"
1.10.3

To include calls to floatversion standalone script from within an actual fishshell script, the following method may be used:

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$] took 0s
╰─λ if bash -c 'floatversion --gt "1.4.5  2.3.6.7"'
echo yes
else
echo no
end

no

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$] took 0s
╰─λ if bash -c 'floatversion --gt "3.4.5  2.3.6.7"'
echo yes
else
echo no
end

yes

The use of a transfer file will enable variables to be passed:

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$]
╰─λ set Foo 3.1.4.1

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$]
╰─λ set Bar 42.00


╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$]
╰─λ if bash -c 'floatversion --gt "$Foo  $Bar"'
echo yes
else
echo no
end

ERROR: no input found.


# Output vars to file and read file instead:

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$?] took 0s
╰─λ echo "$Bar  $Foo" > fish-tx.txt

╭─xxx@garuda in repo: floatversion on  main [$?] took 0s
╰─λ if  bash -c 'floatversion --gt "fish-tx.txt"'
echo yes
else
echo no
end

yes

Limitations

The input must resemble semantic versioning to some extent, or decimal floating points.

• Plain integers are ignored. The version number must be dot separated.

• Only one single hyphenated suffix is permitted.

Some pre-filtering may sometimes be required.

Hyphens

If the version number is embedded amongst multi-hyphens, then full hyphen removal may help.

eg:

Data="d7fe3d6a0419667d2f8eff12796996328daa2d4f90cd9f87aa9371b362f987bf *ubuntu-24.04.2-desktop-amd64.iso
faabcf33ae53976d2b8207a001ff32f4e5daae013505ac7188c9ea63988f8328 *ubuntu-24.04.3-desktop-amd64.iso"

fv "${Data//-/}"

24.04.2  24.04.3

or

tr -d '-' <<< "$Data" | fv

24.04.2  24.04.3