Linux Commands Cheat Sheet
This cheatsheet is designed to help you navigate the command line efficiently.
Welcome to the Linux Command Cheatsheet, a quick reference guide for essential Linux commands. Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced user, this cheatsheet is designed to help you navigate the command line efficiently. Each entry provides a brief description and example usage to assist you in mastering these powerful commands.
File System Navigation
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
cd |
Change directory | cd Documents |
Official Documentation |
ls |
List directory contents | ls -l |
GNU Coreutils |
pwd |
Print working directory | pwd |
GNU Coreutils |
File Operations
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
cp |
Copy files/directories | cp file.txt /path/to/destination |
GNU Coreutils |
mv |
Move/rename files/directories | mv old.txt new.txt |
GNU Coreutils |
rm |
Remove/delete files | rm file.txt |
GNU Coreutils |
Directory Operations
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
mkdir |
Create a new directory | mkdir my_folder |
GNU Coreutils |
rmdir |
Remove an empty directory | rmdir empty_folder |
GNU Coreutils |
rm -r |
Remove a directory and its contents | rm -r my_folder |
GNU Coreutils |
Text File Manipulation
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
cat |
Display file contents | cat file.txt |
GNU Coreutils |
nano |
Text editor for file editing | nano file.txt |
GNU Nano Manual |
grep |
Search for a pattern in files | grep "pattern" file.txt |
GNU Grep Manual |
User and Permission Management
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
whoami |
Display current username | whoami |
GNU Coreutils |
chmod |
Change file permissions | chmod 755 file.txt |
GNU Coreutils |
chown |
Change file owner | chown user:group file.txt |
GNU Coreutils |
System Information
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
uname |
Display system information | uname -a |
GNU Coreutils |
df |
Display disk space usage | df -h |
GNU Coreutils |
top |
Display real-time system statistics | top |
Linux Top Command |
Package Management
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
apt-get |
Package management for Debian-based systems | apt-get install package |
Debian Apt-get Documentation |
yum |
Package management for RPM-based systems | yum install package |
Yum Documentation |
pacman |
Package management for Arch Linux | pacman -S package |
Arch Linux Pacman |
Network Commands
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
ifconfig |
Display network interface information | ifconfig |
Linux ifconfig Command |
ping |
Test network connectivity | ping google.com |
Linux Ping Command |
netstat |
Display network statistics | netstat -a |
Linux Netstat Command |
Process Management
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
ps |
Display information about active processes | ps aux |
Linux ps Command |
kill |
Terminate a process | kill -9 PID |
Linux Kill Command |
htop |
Interactive process viewer | htop |
htop Documentation |
Archiving and Compression
Command | Description | Example | Further Reference |
---|---|---|---|
tar |
Create and extract tar archives | tar -cvf archive.tar files/ |
GNU Tar Manual |
gzip |
Compress or decompress files | gzip file.txt |
GNU Gzip Manual |
zip |
Create a zip archive | zip archive.zip files/ |
Info-ZIP Documentation |
Feel free to bookmark this cheatsheet for quick access to commonly used Linux commands. Happy coding!