Bash array not retaining values after background process completion
I'm sure I'm missing something obvious here, but I'm migrating some code and I'm experiencing an scenario where a Bash array loses its values after executing a background process... I have a script that performs some operations in parallel but when I check the array after the background jobs are done, it’s empty or contains unexpected values. Here's a simplified version of my script that illustrates the question: ```bash #!/bin/bash my_array=(1 2 3 4 5) function background_task() { sleep 2 echo "Finished task with PID $$" } for val in "${my_array[@]}"; do background_task & # Run as a background process echo "Started task for value: $val" done wait # Wait for all background jobs to finish echo "Array after background tasks: " "${my_array[@]}" ``` When I run this script, I see the expected output for starting tasks, but when it reaches the final echo for the array, it prints nothing or just the last value. I suspect that the background processes are somehow interfering with my array, but I’m not sure why this is happening. I've tried using `declare -a` to explicitly define the array but it didn't help. Also, I ensured that there are no unintentional modifications to `my_array` within the background process. This behavior occurs on both Bash 5.0 and Bash 5.1. Could anyone shed light on why the array appears to lose its values after the background jobs finish and how I can retain them? I'm open to any suggestions.