The tables in this appendix list some basic Linux/UNIX commands to get you up and running. There may be slight differences in syntax from distribution to distribution, and there are many, many more commands. Check your user manuals, online resources, or simply type man command at the prompt for more information on any command, where you replace command with any Linux/UNIX command.
Table B.1. File System Navigation Commands
Commands
Descriptions
cd path /directory- name
Changes the directory to the specified directory.
ls
Shows a short version of the file listing of the current directory.
ls “l
Shows the file listing with more information.
pwd
Shows the name of the directory you are in.
Table B.2. File Viewing Commands
Commands
Descriptions
cat file-name
Shows the content of the file you specify on screen.
less file-name
Opens the file to view in a read-only mode (Linux systems only).
pico file-name
Opens the file in a text editor.
Table B.3. Directory and File Manipulation Commands
Commands
Descriptions
cp “r source-dir dest-dir
Copies a whole directory's contents to dest-dir .
cp source-file dest-file
Copies a file named source-file to a file named dest-file .
mkdir dir-name
Makes a new directory with the name dir-name .
mv path/source-file path/dest-file
Moves a file from source-file to dest-file in the appropriate paths.
rm file-name *
Removes a one or more files matching the wildcard statement using * (asterisk).
rmdir dir-name
Removes a directory. Will not remove non-empty directories.
rmdir “rf dir-name
Removes the directory and all subdirectories and files under it.
Table B.4. Miscellaneous Commands
Commands
Descriptions
date
Shows system time and date. It is important to make sure this is the correct time and date.
df
Checks file system's capacity.
du
Shows disk usage.
grep string
Searches for a string when used with other commands. For example, ls grep Tony will list all files with Tony in their name in the directory you issue the command in.
printenv
Shows all the environment variables for the current user (terminal, shell, text editor preferences, and so on).