6.5 Basic operations

ls

dir

List the contents of the current directory. The command dir is an alias to ls so these two commands do exactly the same thing. The file listing is normally color-coded: dark blue= directories, light grey = regular files, green = executable files, magenta = graphics files, red = compressed (zipped) files, light blue = symbolic links, yellow = device files, brown = FIFO ("First-In First-Out" named pipes).

ls -al |more

List the content of the current directory, all files (also those starting with a dot), and in a long form. Pipe the output through the "more" command, so that the display pauses after each screen-full. The ls command has several very useful options. Some of these may have shortcuts (aliases) to avoid clumsy typing. Try ll (="long ls", an alias to ls -l). Another option I use quite often is ls -ad (list all the subdirectories in my current directory, but don't list their contents).

cd directory

Change directory. Using "cd" without the directory name will take you to your home directory. "cd - " will take you to your previous directory and is a convenient way to toggle between two directories. "cd .." will take me one directory up (very useful).

./program_name

Run an executable in the current directory. The ./ is needed when the executable is not on my PATH. An executable which is on my PATH is simply run using: program_name

shutdown -h now

(as root) Shut down the system to a halt.

Mostly used for a remote shutdown. Use <Ctrl><Alt><Del> for a shutdown at the console (which can be done by any user).

halt

reboot

init 6

(as root, three commands) Halt or reboot the machine. Used for remote shutdown, simpler to type than the previous command. Also great if the computer "hangs" (I lose control over the keyboard)--I telnet to it from another machine on the network and remotely reboot it. I use <Ctrl><Alt><Del> for normal shutdown at the console of a local computer.

vlock

(Not present on older versions of RedHat.) Lock a local (text mode) terminal. I can also use vlock -a to lock all terminals (probably not a good idea). The best is probably to log out. You don't use vlock in GUI--the windows managers come with password-protected screensaver and a locking utility (the small icon with padlock in KDE, the keyboard shortcut <Ctrl><Alt><l>).

* License

* Linux Newbie Administrator Guide Index