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website/versioned_docs/version-latest/faq.mdx

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+---
+slug: /faq/
+sidebar_position: 15
+---
+
+# FAQ
+
+This page contains a list of frequently asked questions about Task.
+
+## Why won't my task update my shell environment?
+
+This is a limitation of how shells work. Task runs as a subprocess of your
+current shell, so it can't change the environment of the shell that started it.
+This limitation is shared by other task runners and build tools too.
+
+A common way to work around this is to create a task that will generate output
+that can be parsed by your shell. For example, to set an environment variable on
+your shell you can write a task like this:
+
+```yaml
+my-shell-env:
+  cmds:
+    - echo "export FOO=foo"
+    - echo "export BAR=bar"
+```
+
+Now run `eval $(task my-shell-env)` and the variables `$FOO` and `$BAR` will be
+available in your shell.
+
+## I can't reuse my shell in a task's commands
+
+Task runs each command as a separate shell process, so something you do in one
+command won't effect any future commands. For example, this won't work:
+
+```yaml
+version: '3'
+
+tasks:
+  foo:
+    cmds:
+      - a=foo
+      - echo $a
+      # outputs ""
+```
+
+To work around this you can either use a multiline command:
+
+```yaml
+version: '3'
+
+tasks:
+  foo:
+    cmds:
+      - |
+        a=foo
+        echo $a
+      # outputs "foo"
+```
+
+Or for more complex multi-line commands it is recommended to move your code into
+a separate file and call that instead:
+
+```yaml
+version: '3'
+
+tasks:
+  foo:
+    cmds:
+      - ./foo-printer.bash
+```
+
+```shell
+#!/bin/bash
+a=foo
+echo $a
+```
+
+## 'x' builtin command doesn't work on Windows
+
+The default shell on Windows (`cmd` and `powershell`) do not have commands like
+`rm` and `cp` available as builtins. This means that these commands won't work.
+If you want to make your Taskfile fully cross-platform, you'll need to work
+around this limitation using one of the following methods:
+
+- Use the `{{OS}}` function to run an OS-specific script.
+- Use something like `{{if eq OS "windows"}}powershell {{end}}<my_cmd>` to
+  detect windows and run the command in Powershell directly.
+- Use a shell on Windows that supports these commands as builtins, such as [Git
+  Bash][git-bash] or [WSL][wsl].
+
+We want to make improvements to this part of Task and the issues below track
+this work. Constructive comments and contributions are very welcome!
+
+- #197
+- [mvdan/sh#93](https://github.com/mvdan/sh/issues/93)
+- [mvdan/sh#97](https://github.com/mvdan/sh/issues/97)
+
+{/* prettier-ignore-start */}
+[git-bash]: https://gitforwindows.org/
+[wsl]: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/wsl/install
+{/* prettier-ignore-end */}