What is the difference between Copied context output format and Unified context output format when taking a diff?
diff -NBur dir1/ dir2/
diff -NBcr dir1/ dir2/
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1 Answer
Apparently you've misread the manual. The -u flag is for unified context, not Unicode and -c is for copied context, not 'Context format':
-c -C NUM --context[=NUM]
Output NUM (default 3) lines of copied context.
-u -U NUM --unified[=NUM]
Output NUM (default 3) lines of unified context.
The most straightforward way to find out what is the difference, is to try it out:
$ cat >1
line
diff
more
^D
$ cat >2
line
ffid
more
^D
$ diff -c 1 2
*** 1 2010-12-14 09:08:48.019797000 +0200
--- 2 2010-12-14 09:08:56.029797001 +0200
***************
*** 1,3 ****
line
! diff
more
--- 1,3 ----
line
! ffid
more
$ diff -u 1 2
--- 1 2010-12-14 09:08:48.019797000 +0200
+++ 2 2010-12-14 09:08:56.029797001 +0200
@@ -1,3 +1,3 @@
line
-diff
+ffid
more
Do you get what's the difference?
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i admit the mistake i made in telling unified context format. But the man page of diif says -c as context output format.Navaneeth Sen– Navaneeth Sen2010-12-14 09:25:53 +00:00Commented Dec 14, 2010 at 9:25
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Do you get what's the difference? i could see only difference in the symbols used. In one it is * and in the other it is +. Does it imply something else?Navaneeth Sen– Navaneeth Sen2010-12-14 09:28:59 +00:00Commented Dec 14, 2010 at 9:28
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3@Sen: that, plus with
-cyou have two blocks of differing text, where!marks the lines which differ, and with-uthere is only one, where+and-before line denote versions of the differing line: minus when line in1is missing from2, plus when line in2was added to1. Is this clear enough now?alex– alex2010-12-14 13:32:59 +00:00Commented Dec 14, 2010 at 13:32 -
So it's just a formatting difference, and they carry the same set of info, e.g. for
patchcommand, the behavior will be the same using either of thediffresults.tartaruga_casco_mole– tartaruga_casco_mole2024-07-02 16:33:01 +00:00Commented Jul 2, 2024 at 16:33