Which files does bash read?

[Kegnut]

Hello. In my home directory, I have a .bash_profile, and a .bashrc. The .bashrc doesn't contain much, but the bash_profile contains all my paths and other stuff in the format that you would see in a regular .profile. How is it that when I log in, it seems as though it reads the custom prompt I have, but the paths don't work until I do a . ./.bash_profile?

Thanks in advance,
J

 

[cgswong]

If you start an interactive shell that is not a login shell then the .bashrc file would be read and not the .bash_profile. Otherwise, it would be the other way around, and after reading .profile, it looks for .bash_profile, .bash_login, and .profile taking the first it sees.

If you specify the --noprofile option then your .bash_profile or .bashrc wont be read either way. Try putting the contents of your .bash_profile in your .bashrc and see if that works. If it does then your .bashrc file is the one that is being read.

Hope this helps.