mkdir's “-p” option

Question

So this doesn\'t seem like a terribly complicated question I have, but it\'s one I can\'t find the answer to. I\'m confused about what the -p option does in Unix.

Answer 1

PATH: Answered long ago, however, it maybe more helpful to think of -p as "Path" (easier to remember), as in this causes mkdir to create every part of the path that isn't already there.

mkdir -p /usr/bin/comm/diff/er/fence

if /usr/bin/comm already exists, it acts like: mkdir /usr/bin/comm/diff mkdir /usr/bin/comm/diff/er mkdir /usr/bin/comm/diff/er/fence

As you can see, it saves you a bit of typing, and thinking, since you don't have to figure out what's already there and what isn't.