Skipping input

When scanning input, sometimes a large block of data can be ignored. The do skip action offers an efficient way of skipping such blocks to reach the data of interest.

The do skip action can be used in three contexts, with somewhat different effects:

  1. In a find rule, translate rule, do scan action or repeat scan action, the do skip action continues scanning input from the point at which it last stopped.
  2. In a translate rule, only the input in the current "chunk" of data content can be skipped. A do skip action cannot skip more input than a translate any+ would match.
  3. In a find-start rule, the do skip action scans the main input usually examined by find rules. Such actions can be used to match the first part of a file. It is meaningless to do a do skip on a find-end rule (unless it is done within another scanning action) as there is no more input to be skipped.

Prerequisite Concepts
Related Topics