Command | Action |
|---|
grep pattern filename | Searches the file filename for the specified pattern or regular expression. (See Chapter 8; also refer to Chapter 11, "Introduction to Perl Programming," for more information on regular expressions.) |
less filename | Views the contents of filename one screen at a time. The more command is a synonym for less. (See Chapter 8.) |
cat filename | Displays (catenates) the contents of filename. cat is normally used with redirection or pipes to send a file's contents through another command. (See Chapter 8.) |
wc filename | Displays the number of words, lines, and characters in filename. (See Chapter 8.) |
diff file1 file2 | Compares the contents of file1 with the contents of file2 and then displays the differences between these files. You can use -r to recursively compare the contents of whole directories. (See Chapter 8.) |
fmt filename | Formats filename by wrapping its lines so that it's suitable for emailing. Output is sent to STDOUT by default. (See Chapter 8.) |
cut options filename | Displays only a particular column or field from tabular data in filename. Output is sent to STDOUT by default. (See Chapter 8.) A corresponding command, used for combining multiple files into a text table, is paste. |
head filename | Displays the first 10 lines of filename. Use a different number as an option (for example, -50) to see that number of lines. (See Chapter 8.) |
tail filename | Displays the last 10 lines of filename. Use a different number as an option (for example, -50) to see that number of lines. (See Chapter 8.) |
sort filename | Sorts the contents of filename into alphabetical order, or (if the -n option is used) numerical order. Output is sent to STDOUT by default. (See Chapter 8.) |
cal | Displays a calendar for the current month. The -y option shows all the months of the year, and -y year shows the specified year. (See man cal for more information.) |
date | Displays the current date and time. The root user can also use this command to change the date and time. Many formatting options are available. (See man date for more information.) |
man command | Displays the manual page for command. (See Chapter 8.) |
vi | Invokes the vi text editor. If a filename is specified, that file will be opened. (See Chapter 6, "Working with Applications.") |
ee | Invokes the FreeBSD Easy Editor. If a filename is specified, that file will be opened. (See Chapter 6.) |
