4.8.10 Summary of getline Variants

The following table summarizes the eight variants of getline, listing which built-in variables are set by each one.

(this is a gawk extension) (this is a gawk extension)

getline	Sets $0, NF, FNR and NR
getline var	Sets var, FNR and NR
getline < file	Sets $0 and NF
getline var < file	Sets var
command | getline	Sets $0 and NF
command | getline var	Sets var
command |& getline	Sets $0 and NF
command |& getline var	Sets var