Home
>
Software
>
Quick Summary of Basic and Common Linux Commands

Quick Summary of Basic and Common Linux Commands

There are many commands that are used in linux on a daily basis, ones that everyone should know just to get by. Like back in the days of DOS, you had to know how to work with the command line and how to navigate around. Learning new commands is always hard, especially when there are so many new ones that don't always seem to make sense in their names.

Change directory - this command is essential for traversing folders and moving about your linux computer. Its quite straight forward, cd /where/you/want/togo or cd .. to go up a level. It's pretty basic, but be aware of absolute and relative paths. If you are currently in the folder /home/puppy/pictures then you can type cd .. to move up to /home/puppy/ or you could type cd /home/puppy/ not to mention cd ~/puppy/. You must learn how to traverse folders effectively before you can use the operating system.

The ls command gives you a directory listing. This command has many options, but basically provides you with the same information as the "dir" command in DOS. The most common use of ls is probably "ls -la" infact many people have an alias setup, so whenever they type "ls" it actually runs "ls -la".

The disk usage command gives you a summary of how much space a program or some piece of data is using. Normally this command uses the -h feature, which simply means it will tell you if the number it gives you is in bytes, kilobytes, etc. -h gives you the human readable output.

Move! The mv command is the move command, but it is far more powerful than the old DOS commands. You must be very careful when using the mv command, if you tell it to move a program to a new location, it will overwrite the stuff that was there, if the same file name exists. In addition the mv command is also the rename command! If I type: mv file1 file2 I just moved or effectively renamed file1 to file2!

date

The date command displays the current date and time of your server to the screen, and can be formatted in many ways, but date by itself will display something similar to: Sat Apr 30 23:58:41 EDT 2005

The copy command is a great program, and is very powerful. Often used with the -R (recursive) option, it can be used to copy single files, or entire paths around with ease.

rmdir

Remove directory is a command that I personally don't use very often. To remove a directory it must be empty, rarely do I take the time to empty a directory before I delete it. Instead I use a variation of the rm command.

This is the mother of all linux commands. Remove. You must always be very careful when you use this program. There aren't too many options with this program, its quite straight forward, you use it to delete things. -R is recursive and -f is force. If you want to clear a big folder and you are 100% sure you want it gone in a hurry, type: rm -Rf /directoryname

chgrp

Change group - this command is used to change the group ownership on a file. For the most part this is more of an administrative thing, and end users don't typically have to worry too often about this. You must know about the design of the linux file system before you worry about the chgrp command.

chown

Change owner - this command very similar to the chgrp command, and changes the owner instead of the group. Again you must really understand the design of the linux file system before this becomes really important. File ownership is an important part of security and permissions in linux.

mkdir

Make directory - this is a very straight forward command in linux, easy to use, just mkdir newfoldername

This is a text editor in linux, its extremely powerful, but not exactly user friendly. I highly suggest that you take the time to learn this program, or at least the most common features. If you want to play with this program, you might get stuck inside it, remember these words. Escape, Colon, q, ! ( escape key, :q! ) That gets you out of interactive or insert mode, then gets you to the menu, then quit without saving!

Switch user - the su command lets you login from your account to another account. If you are root, you can type su - username and jump to any account without a password. If you are a normal user account and want to go to root then type su - root. If you do not put the hyphen then you will not use that users environment. Generally if you are logging in as a user it's a good idea to be in their working environment!

pwd

Print working directory - this command gives you the current directory you are working in.

$ pwd - me running command

/home/username/my_pics - this is the output from that command

As I mentioned earlier, there are so many different commands to learn, it really just takes time and effort to play with them and learn their options. The manual (MAN) pages in linux are really great and full of information. Many of the most common commands are located in the /bin folder, check it out!

Ken Dennis http://kendennis-rss.homeip.net/

affordable house cleaning Park Ridge ..

In The News:

Holiday shopping scams surge as fake refund emails target distracted consumers during Black Friday and holiday seasons, costing Americans billions annually.

The AI-powered IRMO M1 exoskeleton features four modes, including turbo, eco, training and rest for hiking, running, cycling and sports with eight-hour battery life.

OpenAI announced upgrades for its ChatGPT Images platform on Tuesday, saying the program can now make more precise edits and produce images more quickly.

Chrome for Android now turns web articles into AI-powered podcast conversations. Get hands-free browsing with Google Gemini's natural audio summaries.

LastPass faces $1.6 million fine from U.K. regulators after 2022 data breach exposed 1.6 million users. Password manager failed proper security controls.

Petco disclosed a data breach exposing customer Social Security numbers, financial account details, and driver's license information due to a software error.

Baseball teams can now analyze complete swing mechanics in normal training environments using Theia's markerless AI system that processes standard high-speed footage.

Smart home hacking fears overblown? Expert reveals real cybersecurity risks and simple protection tips to keep your connected devices safe from hackers.

MIT develops needle-free glucose monitor using light technology. Revolutionary device could replace painful finger pricks for diabetes management.

The ClickFix campaign disguises malware as legitimate Windows updates, using steganography to hide shellcode in PNG files and bypass security detection systems.

Researchers from Osaka Metropolitan University designed a 21-foot dome that combines aquaculture and hydroponics to create a self-sustaining urban food system.

The Fox News AI Newsletter gives readers the latest AI technology advancements, covering the challenges and opportunities AI presents.

ChatGPT data breach exposes personal info of users through partner Mixpanel. OpenAI confirms names, emails compromised in security incident.

Android rolls out Emergency Live Video for 911 calls, letting dispatchers see real-time scenes during emergencies. Great for holiday travel safety.

Malicious Chrome and Edge extensions collected browsing history, keystrokes and personal data from millions of users before Google and Microsoft removed them.

Google's new Call Reason feature lets Android users mark calls as urgent before dialing, displaying an urgent label to recipients using Phone by Google app.

Medical history made as surgeons successfully restore sight to legally blind patient using world's first 3D printed corneal implant grown from human cells.

Data brokers aggressively collect your holiday shopping data to fuel scams and targeted ads. Learn how to delete your digital profile before 2025 starts.

Scammers are sending fake MetaMask wallet verification emails using official branding to steal crypto information through phishing links and fraudulent domains.

Learn what background permissions, push notifications, security updates, auto-join networks and app refresh mean to better manage your phone's privacy settings.

Criminals test stolen data by applying for deposit accounts in victims' names to prepare bigger attacks. Learn why banks won't share fraud details.

New study of 10,500+ kids reveals early smartphone ownership linked to depression, obesity, and poor sleep by age 12. Earlier phones mean higher risks.

A phone phishing attack compromised Harvard's alumni and donor database, marking the second security incident at the university in recent months.

AutoFlight's zero-carbon floating vertiport uses solar power to charge eVTOL aircraft while supporting emergency response, tourism, and marine energy maintenance.

A new phone return scam targets recent buyers with fake carrier calls. Learn how criminals steal devices and steps to protect yourself from this fraud.

Quick Summary of Basic and Common Linux Commands

Software