# Run a function on interrupt or error

It is sometimes necessary for a script to clean up when exiting prematurely. Perhaps some temporary files are written to, and the execution is halted due to an error or a user interrupt (`ctrl-c`).

We can do so using `trap`:

```bash
cleanup() {
  rm some-temp-file-maybe
  # ... other actions
  exit 1
}

trap cleanup ERR SIGINT
```

We're tying the `cleanup` function to the signals `ERR` and `SIGINT`. This function will be called if the script exits with a non-zero return code or if it is interrupted using `ctrl-c`.

Source: `man trap`


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