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.

cd

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.

ls

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".

du

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.

mv

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

cp

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.

rm

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

vi

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!

su

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/

---

Configure Windows Indexing Service for Performance

The Windows Indexing Service provides you with the ability to... Read More

Where to Find Free Fleet Maintenance Software

Costs of fleet maintenance software can vary widely. It is... Read More

Vlans

In order to implement VLANs in a network environment, you'll... Read More

Microsoft Business Solutions Partner ? How to Launch New IT Consulting Practice

In the new era of internet marketing the problem of... Read More

Fast Car Knoppix

Small can be beautiful! Working with Knoppix for the past... Read More

DB Integration - Software for Combine MS Access Databases

Our company, Novaprof Inc., developed unique software - DB Integration.... Read More

Understanding Document Management

The term "document management" and "paperless office" is the subject... Read More

Guide to Software Marketing

Intro This concise article will tell you in plain English... Read More

Spyware Statistics -- Whats New in May 2005?

Although statistics often is blamed for various deadly sins --... Read More

Microsoft CRM Implementation & Customization: MS CRM Fax Gateway

With this small article we are continuing Microsoft Business Solutions... Read More

Preventive Maintenance Software Companies

Several software companies design programs for preventive maintenance. Most of... Read More

Software Tools To Help Your Business Sell More

Sales are all about leverage, because there is only so... Read More

Professional XP Style Icons in Software and Website Development

Using professional icons in your application or website can bring... Read More

Software Piracy - Global Increase

Pirated software is on the increase and now accounts for... Read More

Microsoft CRM for Corporate Business ? Working Offline

If your company has regional and worldwide operations, you might... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains eCommerce: overview for developer

Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains was designed back in the... Read More

Falling in Love With More Than One Screensaver: The Fun Part

Having from five to ten and more favorite screensavers is... Read More

Basic Tips and tricks for Windows XP

Running Applications in Compatibility Mode With Windows XP, you can... Read More

An Easy Way to Deal with Email Viruses and Worms

If you feel intimidated when someone tries to teach you... Read More

A Case Study on Selecting Contract Management Software

Professional services firm cuts costs and improves productivity with integrated... Read More

Manufacturing Outsourcing: Microsoft Great Plains Implementation, Customization & Reporting

Manufacturing in the USA is far away down from mid... Read More

Screenplay and Script Writing Software

When it comes to screenplay software each screenwriter needs to... Read More

Business Plan Software Review: Ultimate Business Planner?

One of the main reasons business owners and entrepreneurs use... Read More

Linux Vs. Windows

This article will not attempt to advocate the use of... Read More

Navision Attain Database access via C/ODBC in ASP.NET Application

Navision Software was purchased by Microsoft and now it is... Read More

Protect Your Most Vital Business Asset with Security Software

Homeland security, airport security, Internet security â?" these days weâ??re... Read More

Microsoft CRM Customization

Microsoft CRM customization techniques are very diversified and based on... Read More

Microsoft CRM Integration with IBM Lotus Notes Domino ? Machinery Dealership Example

IBM Lotus Notes with Domino email server is traditional document... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains: exchange & brokerage ? implementation notes

If you company is small or mid-size special products or... Read More

40/sec to 500/sec

IntroductionSurprised, by the title? well, this is a tour of... Read More

CRM and Customer Life Cycle

Customer Relationship Management or CRM is a combination of enterprise... Read More

Most Common Ways to Accumulate Spyware (where It is Downloaded to Your PC)

It is possible that if one avoided all sources of... Read More

Software Companies: Generate New Revenue Streams and Decrease Costs with Custom e-Learning Content

It's no secret that software companies operate in a very... Read More