sha224sum(1) on Solnix vs Linux and the BSDs
sha224sum on Solnix is GNU coreutils 9.7. It is not in the base system; install pkgs.solnix.coreutils. It has the same options as the Linux GNU sha224sum. FreeBSD ships a different program that imitates the GNU options and output when invoked as sha224sum.
The manual pages
- Solnix: sha224sum(1) from
pkgs.solnix.coreutils - Linux: sha224sum(1) coreutils-full-9.11
- FreeBSD: sha224sum(1) 15.1-RELEASE
What Solnix runs
Not installed by default: add pkgs.solnix.coreutils. The bundle lists no other illumos variant of sha224sum. The published Solnix page is the GNU coreutils 9.7 page, dated April 2025.
Differences
| Compared with | Topic | What differs |
|---|---|---|
| Linux | same program as Linux | Solnix and Linux both run GNU coreutils sha224sum. The page text is the same except for small wording changes. The option sets are identical: -b, -c, -t, -w, -z, --tag, --ignore-missing, --quiet, --status, --strict.Source: Solnix sha224sum(1) OPTIONS; Linux sha224sum(1) OPTIONS |
| Linux | cksum relationship | The Linux page calls sha224sum a "Legacy interface to the cksum utility". The Solnix page does not say this. It lists cksum(1) only under SEE ALSO. The manual does not say whether the Solnix build behaves differently. Source: Linux sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION; Solnix sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION, SEE ALSO |
| Linux | what -c accepts | Solnix says the check input should be a former output of this program. Linux adds "or equivalent standalone program". The Solnix text names only this program's own output as valid input. Source: Solnix sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION (last paragraphs); Linux sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION (last paragraph) |
| FreeBSD | different implementation | FreeBSD sha224sum is not GNU coreutils. It is one name of a combined BSD tool page (md5, sha1, sha224 and others) that matches GNU options and output only "when the program is invoked with a name that ends in sum". Source: FreeBSD sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION, GNU OPTIONS; Solnix sha224sum(1) SYNOPSIS |
| FreeBSD | name selects the mode | On FreeBSD, the plain sha224 runs in BSD mode with different options: -c string compares against a digest, -s string hashes a string, plus -p, -q, -r, -x. The Solnix page documents only the sha224sum form.Source: FreeBSD sha224sum(1) BSD OPTIONS (-c, -s, -p, -r, -x); Solnix sha224sum(1) SYNOPSIS |
| FreeBSD | -t meaning | On Solnix, -t means text mode (default). On FreeBSD, -t is text mode in sum-named invocations. In BSD mode it runs a time trial, and the page calls it a nop for the -sum versions. Do not use -t in scripts.Source: Solnix sha224sum(1) -t; FreeBSD sha224sum(1) BSD OPTIONS -t, GNU OPTIONS -t |
| FreeBSD | file name escaping | FreeBSD encodes file names containing unprintable characters with vis(3) in VIS_CSTYLE | VIS_OCTAL style. The Solnix page mentions escaping only to say that -z disables it, and does not describe the encoding.Source: FreeBSD sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION (vis(3)); Solnix sha224sum(1) -z |
| FreeBSD | -z and escaping | Solnix -z ends lines with NUL and also disables file name escaping. The FreeBSD -z text says only that it terminates output lines with NUL; it does not mention escaping.Source: Solnix sha224sum(1) -z; FreeBSD sha224sum(1) GNU OPTIONS -z |
| FreeBSD | check-mode input and output | FreeBSD -c accepts digest lines in BSD or GNU format. It prints name: OK or FAILED per line, with counts of failures and skipped lines at the end. The Solnix page documents neither the accepted formats nor this summary.Source: FreeBSD sha224sum(1) GNU OPTIONS -c; Solnix sha224sum(1) -c, DESCRIPTION |
| FreeBSD | binary and text mode | Solnix prints a mode character after the checksum: '*' for binary, ' ' for text. It says binary and text mode do not differ on GNU systems. FreeBSD also says its implementation does not differentiate; its output layout is not in the bundle. Source: Solnix sha224sum(1) DESCRIPTION; FreeBSD sha224sum(1) GNU OPTIONS -t |
Standards
- POSIX: sha224sum is not a POSIX.1-2024 utility.
- Solnix: The sums are computed as described in RFC 3874. The page has no STANDARDS section.
- Linux: The Linux page has no STANDARDS section and does not cite RFC 3874.
- FreeBSD: No STANDARDS section appears in the bundle text for FreeBSD sha224sum(1).
Writing portable scripts
- Use only the options all three pages document:
-b,-c,--tag,--ignore-missing,--quiet,--status,--strict,-w,-z. Avoid-t, which means different things in FreeBSD's two modes. - Run sha224sum by that exact name. On FreeBSD the name selects GNU-compatible behaviour. On Solnix it must first be installed with pkgs.solnix.coreutils.
Every difference here is taken from the manual pages linked above: Solnix's published page, Linux (man-pages and the GNU and util-linux manuals), FreeBSD, OpenBSD and NetBSD. Each row names its source. Where a manual is silent, this page is too. Compiled 2026-10-26. Found a mistake? Mail hackers@lists.solnix.io.