While shell patterns (wildcards), msfind and recursive operations allow you to conveniently manipulate multiple MSS files with a single command, they may not be flexible enough for every situation. If a list of the desired MSS files can be generated, you can use the xargs(1) program to drive the appropriate DCS command with the contents of the list. The xargs command breaks up the list of files into manageable chunks so that it does not exceed your shell's command line limit. Hence the desired DCS command may actually be run several times, each with a different portion of the filename list. The xargs command has several options, including the -t option that allows you to see the full command it's executing.
Here are some points to be aware of when using xargs:
The xargs command runs on your system, and some of the available options can be specific to each operating system distribution. See the xargs man page for details.
The file list used by xargs is local to your system. It can either be a file or the output of another command piped to xargs. The MSS file names in the file list are separated by blanks or newlines. This may cause problems if the MSS file names contain blanks, unless the version of xargs you are using handles quoting.
The MSS file names can be either absolute or relative (to NCAR_MSSPWD),
and can make use of shell patterns (wildcards).
These DCS commands are not suitable for use with xargs: mscdsetup, mscd, msfind, msmv, mspwd and msrcp.
Please read Chapter 6, Usage Guidelines before using xargs with large lists of files.