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GPT-6.1 Sol (effort default (no reasoning-effort override) · thinking on) on Write a robust backup rotation script (dry-run, spaces, exit codes, safe deletion)

OGPT-6.1 Soldefault · thinking on · Codex CLI 0.163.0 (codex exec --json) · cloud · 2026-10-22 · by @bobsiopener

Trust 80%Fully autonomouspartial · 0 retries
Estimated cost
$0.04
Wall time
1m
Human step-ins
0
Outcome
Partial

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Summary

Exact prompt

# Task: write a robust backup-rotation shell script Write `rotate.sh` (bash, coreutils + tar/gzip only) implementing: ``` rotate.sh [--keep N] [--dry-run] SRC_DIR DEST_DIR ``` - Creates `DEST_DIR/backup-YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS.tar.gz` containing SRC_DIR's contents (paths inside the archive relative to SRC_DIR, i.e. `./file`), excluding any `*.tmp` files and any directory named `.cache` (at any depth). Use the timestamp from env `BACKUP_NOW` (format `YYYYMMDD-HHMMSS`) if set, else the current UTC time. Creates DEST_DIR if missing. - Then keeps only the N newest backups (default 5, ordered by the timestamp in the filename), deleting older ones. Never delete files in DEST_DIR that don't match `backup-????????-??????.tar.gz`. - `--dry-run`: change nothing on disk; print one line per action: `CREATE <path>` and `DELETE <path>`. - Must handle file/dir names with spaces, newlines are not required. - Exit codes: 0 ok; 2 usage error (unknown option, missing args, N not a positive integer); 3 SRC_DIR does not exist. Errors go to stderr. - `rotate.sh --help` prints usage to stdout and exits 0. Make it executable. No network.

15 scenario checks incl. names with spaces, excluded .cache/*.tmp, dry-run with no side effects, only deleting pattern-matching files, exact exit codes. Original benchmark task written for usecaserank.com. Headless, offline run on a reproducible fixture. Cost shown is a list-price API-equivalent estimate (run on a ChatGPT subscription, not billed).

Success criteria: 1. 15 scenario checks in a private temp dir, all must pass: 2. --help exits 0; no args, --keep 0, and an unknown option each exit 2; missing SRC exits 3. 3. Archive created as backup-<BACKUP_NOW>.tar.gz; it contains './sub dir/my file.txt' and './a/keep.log' and no *.tmp or .cache entries. 4. --dry-run --keep 3 changes nothing on disk, prints the exact CREATE line and exactly 5 DELETE lines. 5. Real run with --keep 3 leaves exactly the 3 newest pattern-matching backups. 6. Non-matching files (notes.txt, 'backup-old copy.tar.gz') are never deleted. 7. Destination path with a space works; without BACKUP_NOW a correctly-named timestamped archive is created.

Setup notes: Use Case Scout batch4 case d07-bash-backup-rotation (offline fixture). Prepared with batch4/prepare.sh on the shared box; only TASK.md + starting files were copied to the agent machine, hidden key/tests stayed on the box. Prompt = TASK.md verbatim on stdin. Flags: --json -s workspace-write --skip-git-repo-check --ephemeral --ignore-user-config --ignore-rules -C <workdir>. Scored on the box with the scout's scorer: `bash score.sh WORKDIR`. Single run, no retries. User-level AGENTS.md (846 bytes, sha256 83ec4fe50da8) may have been in context; --ignore-user-config does not document excluding it. Serving model not confirmed: requested via -m; the event log does not echo the serving model id. Price source is secondary (pricing.json verification='secondary', https://www.actuia.com/en/news/ai-api-pricing-in-october-2026-050-to-50-for-output/), not an official OpenAI price page. Score: 14/15. Cost is an ESTIMATE: measured tokens x pricing.json list price (ChatGPT plan, nothing billed); input_tokens include cached reads; output_tokens include reasoning tokens. Tool calls 3 (1 failed, recovered). Single run.

Estimated cost List-price estimate; not actually billed.

Metrics

Estimated cost
$0.04
Wall time
1m
Human step-ins
0
Turns
1
Model usage
ModelInput tokOutput tokCost
OGPT-6.1 Solopenai/gpt-6.1-soleffort default (no reasoning-effort override) · thinking on66,9982,644$0.04

Reproduce this run

  1. Use the use case prompt on the use case page.
  2. Same setup: GPT-6.1 Sol (openai/gpt-6.1-sol, effort default (no reasoning-effort override) · thinking on) via Codex CLI 0.163.0 (codex exec --json), cloud.
  3. It counts as a success only if it meets every success criterion: 1. 15 scenario checks in a private temp dir, all must pass: 2. --help exits 0; no args, --keep 0, and an unknown option each exit 2; missing SRC exits 3. 3. Archive created as backup-<BACKUP_NOW>.tar.gz; it contains './sub dir/my file.txt' and './a/keep.log' and no *.tmp or .cache entries. 4. --dry-run --keep 3 changes nothing on disk, prints the exact CREATE line and exactly 5 DELETE lines. 5. Real run with --keep 3 leaves exactly the 3 newest pattern-matching backups. 6. Non-matching files (notes.txt, 'backup-old copy.tar.gz') are never deleted. 7. Destination path with a space works; without BACKUP_NOW a correctly-named timestamped archive is created.
  4. Log model, tokens, wall time, human step-ins and the evidence log, then submit it as a reproduction. A different model? Submit a head-to-head rerun.

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Evidence log
{"type": "thread.started", "thread_id": "01a16427-1c25-7762-9948-5c51375e0ce4"}
{"type": "turn.started"}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_0", "type": "agent_message", "text": "I\u2019ll implement the script, then check archive contents, rotation order, dry-run behavior, and error codes locally."}}
{"type": "item.started", "item": {"id": "item_1", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc \"pwd && rg --files -g AGENTS.md -g rotate.sh -g '*test*' -g 'README*'\"", "aggregated_output": "", "exit_code": null, "status": "in_progress"}}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_1", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc \"pwd && rg --files -g AGENTS.md -g rotate.sh -g '*test*' -g 'README*'\"", "aggregated_output": "/home/bob/usecase-runs/batch/out/gpt-6.1-sol/154_d07/work\n", "exit_code": 1, "status": "failed"}}
{"type": "item.started", "item": {"id": "item_2", "type": "file_change", "changes": [{"path": "/home/bob/usecase-runs/batch/out/gpt-6.1-sol/154_d07/work/rotate.sh", "kind": "add"}], "status": "in_progress"}}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_2", "type": "file_change", "changes": [{"path": "/home/bob/usecase-runs/batch/out/gpt-6.1-sol/154_d07/work/rotate.sh", "kind": "add"}], "status": "completed"}}
{"type": "item.started", "item": {"id": "item_3", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc 'chmod +x rotate.sh\nbash -n rotate.sh'", "aggregated_output": "", "exit_code": null, "status": "in_progress"}}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_3", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc 'chmod +x rotate.sh\nbash -n rotate.sh'", "aggregated_output": "", "exit_code": 0, "status": "completed"}}
{"type": "item.started", "item": {"id": "item_4", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc \"python3 - <<'PY'\nimport os, pathlib, subprocess, tempfile, tarfile\nscript=str(pathlib.Path('rotate.sh').resolve())\nwith tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as t:\n p=pathlib.Path(t); s=p/'source space'; d=p/'dest space'; s.mkdir()\n for name in ['hello world','skip.tmp','.cache']:\n  (s/name).write_text('data')\n (s/'sub').mkdir(); (s/'sub'/'.cache').mkdir(); (s/'sub'/'.cache'/'hidden').write_text('x')\n (s/'dir.tmp').mkdir(); (s/'dir.tmp'/'yes').write_text('y')\n def run(*args, stamp='20260101-000000', code=0):\n  r=subprocess.run([script,*map(str,args)],env={**os.environ,'BACKUP_NOW':stamp},capture_output=True,text=True)\n  assert r.returncode==code,(args,r.returncode,r.stderr)\n  return r\n r=run('--dry-run',s,d); assert not d.exists(); assert r.stdout.startswith('CREATE ')\n run(s,d)\n with tarfile.open(next(d.iterdir())) as a:\n  names=a.getnames(); assert './hello world' in names and './.cache' in names and './dir.tmp/yes' in names, names\n  assert not any('skip.tmp' in n or 'sub/.cache' in n for n in names),names\n (d/'unrelated').write_text('safe')\n for day in range(2,8): run('--keep','2',s,d,stamp=f'2026010{day}-000000')\n assert sorted(x.name for x in d.glob('backup-*'))==['backup-20260106-000000.tar.gz','backup-20260107-000000.tar.gz']\n before={x.name:x.read_bytes() for x in d.iterdir()}\n r=run('--keep','1','--dry-run',s,d,stamp='20260108-000000')\n assert r.stdout.count('DELETE ')==2,r.stdout\n assert before=={x.name:x.read_bytes() for x in d.iterdir()}\n run('--keep','999999999999999999999999',s,d,stamp='20260109-000000')\n run('--keep','0002',s,d,stamp='20260110-000000')\n for args in [[],['--bad'],['--keep','0',s,d],['--keep','-1',s,d],['--keep','abc',s,d]]: run(*args,code=2)\n run(p/'missing',d,code=3)\n assert run('--help').stdout.startswith('Usage:')\n print('PASS: archive contents, exclusions, rotation, dry-run, large/zero-padded keep values, help, and error codes')\nPY\"", "aggregated_output": "", "exit_code": null, "status": "in_progress"}}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_4", "type": "command_execution", "command": "/bin/bash -lc \"python3 - <<'PY'\nimport os, pathlib, subprocess, tempfile, tarfile\nscript=str(pathlib.Path('rotate.sh').resolve())\nwith tempfile.TemporaryDirectory() as t:\n p=pathlib.Path(t); s=p/'source space'; d=p/'dest space'; s.mkdir()\n for name in ['hello world','skip.tmp','.cache']:\n  (s/name).write_text('data')\n (s/'sub').mkdir(); (s/'sub'/'.cache').mkdir(); (s/'sub'/'.cache'/'hidden').write_text('x')\n (s/'dir.tmp').mkdir(); (s/'dir.tmp'/'yes').write_text('y')\n def run(*args, stamp='20260101-000000', code=0):\n  r=subprocess.run([script,*map(str,args)],env={**os.environ,'BACKUP_NOW':stamp},capture_output=True,text=True)\n  assert r.returncode==code,(args,r.returncode,r.stderr)\n  return r\n r=run('--dry-run',s,d); assert not d.exists(); assert r.stdout.startswith('CREATE ')\n run(s,d)\n with tarfile.open(next(d.iterdir())) as a:\n  names=a.getnames(); assert './hello world' in names and './.cache' in names and './dir.tmp/yes' in names, names\n  assert not any('skip.tmp' in n or 'sub/.cache' in n for n in names),names\n (d/'unrelated').write_text('safe')\n for day in range(2,8): run('--keep','2',s,d,stamp=f'2026010{day}-000000')\n assert sorted(x.name for x in d.glob('backup-*'))==['backup-20260106-000000.tar.gz','backup-20260107-000000.tar.gz']\n before={x.name:x.read_bytes() for x in d.iterdir()}\n r=run('--keep','1','--dry-run',s,d,stamp='20260108-000000')\n assert r.stdout.count('DELETE ')==2,r.stdout\n assert before=={x.name:x.read_bytes() for x in d.iterdir()}\n run('--keep','999999999999999999999999',s,d,stamp='20260109-000000')\n run('--keep','0002',s,d,stamp='20260110-000000')\n for args in [[],['--bad'],['--keep','0',s,d],['--keep','-1',s,d],['--keep','abc',s,d]]: run(*args,code=2)\n run(p/'missing',d,code=3)\n assert run('--help').stdout.startswith('Usage:')\n print('PASS: archive contents, exclusions, rotation, dry-run, large/zero-padded keep values, help, and error codes')\nPY\"", "aggregated_output": "PASS: archive contents, exclusions, rotation, dry-run, large/zero-padded keep values, help, and error codes\n", "exit_code": 0, "status": "completed"}}
{"type": "item.completed", "item": {"id": "item_5", "type": "agent_message", "text": "Created executable [rotate.sh](/home/bob/usecase-runs/batch/out/gpt-6.1-sol/154_d07/work/rotate.sh).\n\nVerified archive paths and exclusions, rotation, dry-run behavior, names with spaces, help, and required error codes. All checks passed."}}
{"type": "turn.completed", "usage": {"input_tokens": 66998, "cached_input_tokens": 62976, "cache_write_input_tokens": 0, "output_tokens": 2644, "reasoning_output_tokens": 535}}

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