Linux commands are the building blocks of mastering this robust OS. This allows you to manipulate files, manage processes, configure networks, and perform a multitude of tasks with precision and efficiency.
Whether you're an experienced sysadmin fine-tuning your server's performance or a curious enthusiast exploring the inner workings of Linux, this guide is your indispensable companion.
The List of Linux Commands
Command | Description | Category |
---|---|---|
ls | List files and directories in the current directory | Navigation |
cd | Change the current directory | Navigation |
mkdir | Create a new directory | Navigation |
cp | Copy files or directories | Navigation |
mv | Move or rename files or directories | Navigation |
pwd | Print the current working directory | Navigation |
cat | Display the contents of a file | Files |
vi | Open a text editor (Vim) | Files |
nano | Open a text editor (Nano) | Files |
touch | Create an empty file | Files |
less | View text files page by page | Files |
tail | Display the end of a file | Files |
more | View text files page by page | Files |
chmod | Change file permissions | Files |
chown | Change file ownership | Files |
diff | Compare two files | Files |
diff3 | Compare three files | Files |
sdiff | Merge and compare two files interactively | Files |
dd | Convert and copy files | Files |
ln | Create symbolic or hard links | Files |
rm | Remove files or directories | Files |
zip | Compress files into a zip archive | Files |
wc | Count words, lines, or characters in a file | Files |
shred | Securely delete files | Files |
stat | Display file or file system status | Files |
base64 | Encode or decode data in base64 format | Files |
hexdump | Display file content in hexadecimal format | Files |
od | Display file content in octal or other formats | Files |
xxd | Create or view hex dumps | Files |
uptime | Show system uptime | System Management |
uname | Display system information | System Management |
shutdown | Shut down the system | System Management |
reboot | Reboot the system | System Management |
du | Display disk usage of directories and files | System Management |
df | Display disk space usage | System Management |
lsblk | List block devices and their attributes | System Management |
blkid | Display block device attributes | System Management |
date | Display or set the system date and time | System Management |
hostname | Display or set the system hostname | System Management |
fdisk | Partition table manipulator for disks | System Management |
gdisk | Partitioning tool for GPT disks | System Management |
mount | Mount file systems | System Management |
vmstat | Report virtual memory statistics | System Management |
echo | Print a message to the terminal | System Management |
history | Display command history | System Management |
semanage | SELinux policy management | System Management |
ldapsearch | Search LDAP directory | System Management |
passwd | Change user password | User Management |
sudo | Execute a command as another user with privileges | User Management |
usermod | Modify user account settings | User Management |
useradd | Create a new user | User Management |
userdel | Delete a user | User Management |
groupadd | Create a new group | User Management |
groupmod | Modify a group | User Management |
w | Show who is logged on and what they are doing | User Management |
ssh | Secure Shell for remote access | User Management |
top | Display and manage system processes | Manage Processes |
ps | Display information about running processes | Manage Processes |
bg | Resume a stopped background process | Manage Processes |
fg | Bring a background process to the foreground | Manage Processes |
kill | Terminate processes by process ID | Manage Processes |
nice, renice | Adjust process priority | Manage Processes |
fuser | Identify processes using a file or directory | Manage Processes |
ip | Show/manipulate routing, devices, and policy routing | Networking |
ping | Send ICMP echo requests to a host | Networking |
curl | Transfer data with URLs | Networking |
wget | Download files from the internet | Networking |
scp | Securely copy files between hosts | Networking |
rsync | Sync files and directories across systems | Networking |
ss | Socket statistics | Networking |
tcpdump | Network packet analyzer | Networking |
find | Search for files and directories | Search |
grep | Search for patterns in text | Search |
locate | Search for files and directories quickly | Search |
strings | Print the strings of printable characters in files | Search |
tr | Translate or delete characters | Filter |
cut | Remove sections from lines of files | Filter |
uniq | Report or omit repeated lines | Filter |
awk | Text processing tool | Filter |
sed | Stream editor for text | Filter |
tee | Redirect output to multiple files/streams | Filter |
sort | Sort lines of text files | Filter |
xargs | Execute commands from standard input | Filter |
Instead, if you are looking for a Linux command cheat sheet, you can refer to this blog post.
Comments