How to Pretty Print JSON file in Linux Shell Script

JSON (JavaScript Object Notation) is a popular lightweight data interchange format used for exchanging data between servers and clients. While it is designed to be human-readable, JSON files can sometimes become difficult to read and understand, especially when dealing with large or complex data structures. In such cases, pretty printing JSON files becomes essential for better readability and debugging.

In this article, we will show you how to pretty print JSON files in Linux using the `json_pp` command, a built-in JSON processor.

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Understanding the json_pp Command

The `json_pp` command is a JSON preprocessor that ships with Perl, which is typically installed by default on most Linux distributions. It provides a simple way to pretty print JSON files by parsing and reformatting the JSON data with proper indentation and line breaks.

Example JSON File

For this tutorial, you can use the following example JSON data in a file named input.json

Pretty Printing JSON Files with json_pp

To pretty print a JSON file using the `json_pp` command, follow these steps:

1. Open a terminal and navigate to the directory containing the JSON file you want to pretty print.
2. Run the following command, replacing input.json with the name of your JSON file:

   json_pp < input.json 
   

3. The `json_pp` command will pretty print the JSON file to the terminal. If you want to save the output to a new file, use the following command:

   json_pp < input.json > output.json 
   

Integrating `json_pp` into Shell Scripts

1. The `json_pp` command can be easily integrated into shell scripts to automate JSON processing tasks. Here's an example of a simple shell script that pretty prints a JSON file:
   #!/bin/bash if [ -z "$1" ]; then echo "Usage: $0 <input_json_file>" exit 1 fi json_pp < "$1"

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   #!/bin/bash   if [ -z "$1" ]; then   echo "Usage: $0 <input_json_file>"   exit 1 fi   json_pp < "$1"

2. Save the script as `pretty_print_json.sh` and make it executable with:

   chmod +x pretty_print_json.sh 
   

3. Run the script with the JSON file as an argument:

   ./pretty_print_json.sh input.json 
   

Conclusion

Pretty printing JSON files is crucial for improved readability and easier debugging. The `json_pp` command provides a straightforward way to pretty print JSON files in Linux. By using `json_pp` and integrating it into your shell scripts, you can efficiently work with JSON data, enhance your development workflow, and make your JSON files more accessible and understandable.