Man pages › Compared with Linux and the BSDs

`zforce(1)` on Solnix vs Linux and the BSDs

zforce is not in the Solnix base system; install pkgs.solnix.gzip to get it. The Solnix and Linux pages are the same gzip text. The BSD pages describe the script differently: they list which suffixes are skipped and warn that existing files are overwritten without warning.

The manual pages

Solnix: zforce(1) from pkgs.solnix.gzip
Linux: zforce(1) gzip-1.14
FreeBSD: zforce(1) 15.1-RELEASE
OpenBSD: zforce(1) 8.0
NetBSD: zforce(1) 11.0

What Solnix runs

Not installed by default: add pkgs.solnix.gzip. The bundle shows no illumos variant of zforce, so there is nothing else on PATH to compare.

Differences

Compared with	Topic	What differs
Linux	same program	The Solnix zforce page (package pkgs.solnix.gzip) and the Linux zforce page (gzip-1.14) have the same text and the same synopsis, zforce [ name ... ]. Behaviour is the same as far as the manuals say. Source: Solnix zforce(1) SYNOPSIS, DESCRIPTION; Linux zforce(1) SYNOPSIS, DESCRIPTION
FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD	skipped suffixes	The BSD pages say files with an existing .gz, `-gz`, _gz, .tgz or .taz suffix, or files not compressed by gzip(1), are ignored. The Solnix page only says a name such as foo.tgz is left intact. It does not list the other suffixes or say what happens to non-gzip files. Source: FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD zforce(1) DESCRIPTION; Solnix zforce(1) DESCRIPTION
FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD	overwrite warning	The BSD pages warn that zforce overwrites existing files without warning. The Solnix page has no such caveat and does not say what happens if the target .gz name already exists. Check before running it on a directory with possible name clashes. Source: FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD zforce(1) CAVEATS; Solnix zforce(1) (no CAVEATS section)
FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD	name truncation for 14-character limits	The Solnix page describes truncating the original name to fit the .gz suffix on systems with a 14-character file name limit (12345678901234 becomes 12345678901.gz). The BSD pages do not mention truncation. Source: Solnix zforce(1) DESCRIPTION; FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD zforce(1) DESCRIPTION
FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD	synopsis	The BSD synopses give zforce file ... with at least one file operand. The Solnix and Linux synopses show [ name ... ], with the operands optional. The manuals do not say what zforce does with no arguments. Source: FreeBSD/OpenBSD/NetBSD zforce(1) SYNOPSIS; Solnix zforce(1) SYNOPSIS
FreeBSD, OpenBSD, NetBSD	related commands	The Solnix and Linux pages point to znew, zmore, zgrep, zdiff and gzexe. The FreeBSD and NetBSD pages point only to gzip(1), and OpenBSD adds compress(1). Source: Solnix zforce(1) SEE ALSO; Linux zforce(1) SEE ALSO; FreeBSD/NetBSD/OpenBSD zforce(1) SEE ALSO

Standards

POSIX: zforce is not a POSIX.1-2024 utility.

Writing portable scripts

Do not rely on zforce being present. On Solnix it needs pkgs.solnix.gzip. Check with command -v zforce first.
Before running zforce, make sure no file with the target .gz name exists. The BSD pages say existing files are overwritten without warning.

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.