Basic Commands
Basic commands for the Unix family, including Linux and Mac OS X.
Command-Chaining Operators
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
AND - OR && - || |
Combining and AND and OR operator acts like an if-else statement |
AND && |
Execute proceeding command only if the preceding command succeeds with an exit status of 0 |
Ampersand & |
Run the preceding command in the background |
Group {} |
Group two or more commands, dependent on the preceding operand. |
NOT ! |
Execute all except the condition provided |
OR || |
Execute proceeding command only if the preceding command fails with an exit status of 1 |
PIPE | |
Output from the preceding command is fed to the proceeding command |
Precedence () |
Execute commands with precedence such as in math |
Semi-colon ; |
Run the preceding command sequentially |
File Management
cd
Change working directory.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ cd ~/ |
Change to home directory. |
$ cd .. |
Change working directory to one level back. |
clear
Clear the terminal output.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ clear |
Clear the terminal output. |
find
Recursively finds files within path.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ find ~/ -name basic-commands.md |
Finds the file basic-commands.md within the users home directory. |
locate
Find filenames quickly by using a database.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ locate *.md -n 20 |
List filenames ending with .md, and limit queries to 20. |
ls
List files within working directory.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ ls -1 *.md |
List files that ends with .md, and force output to be one entry per line. |
man
Displays manual for the utility. Pressing q quits the process.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ man cd |
Displays manual for the ls utility. |
mkdir
Create directory if they do not already exist.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ mkdir wiki |
Create directory named wiki. |
mv
Move and or rename file/folder from source to destination.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ mv basic-commands.md unix/basic-commands.md |
Move basic-commands.md to the unix directory, and name the file commands.md. |
pwd
Return working directory name.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ pwn |
Return working directory name. |
rm
Removes directory entries. Be very careful with this command.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ rm basic-commands.md |
Remove file named basic-commands.md. |
$ rm -rf .DS_Store |
Removes all Mac Desktop Servies Store files, recursively. |
rmdir
Removes directories.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ rmdir docs |
Remove directory named docs. |
touch
Create a file with default permissions.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ touch basic-commands.md |
Create file basic-commands.md, if it does not exist. If it does, change modification and access times. |
whereis
Locates source/binary and manuals sections for specified files in a list of standard Linux places.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ whereis mame |
Where is the installed mame binary. |
Removing .DS_Store Files
Find and remove all matches, recursively. This is incredibly useful for removing Desktop Services Store files (Mac OSX). Be sure to change into your target directory first!
$ cd wiki
$ find . -name '.DS_Store' -type f -delete
Power Management
halt
Stop the system.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ sudo halt |
Stop the system. |
reboot
Restart the system.
| Syntax | Description |
|---|---|
$ sudo reboot |
Restart the system. |