Essential Linux Command Cheat Sheet
Linux Command Cheat Sheet: Essential Commands for Beginners
Vagrant and Virtual Installation
To practice and execute these common commands, you can set up a virtual machine using Vagrant and VirtualBox. Here's a step-by-step guide on how to proceed:
Install Vagrant and VirtualBox on your machine. You can find the installation instructions for your operating system on the respective websites:
Vagrant: vagrantup.com
VirtualBox: virtualbox.org
Open a terminal or command prompt on your machine.
Create a new directory where you want to set up the Vagrant project, e.g.,
/home/user/vagrant-project
.Change to the newly created directory:
cd /home/user/vagrant-project
Initialize the Vagrant project by creating a
Vagrantfile
vagrant init ubuntu/focal64
Edit the
Vagrantfile
using a text editor of your choice and configure the virtual machine settings. For example, you can specify the base box, CPU and memory allocation, network settings, etc.Save the changes to the
Vagrantfile
and exit the text editor.Start the virtual machine:
vagrant up
Once the virtual machine is up and running, you can connect to it using SSH:
vagrant ssh
You are now inside the virtual machine, and you can run the Linux commands mentioned below:
Note: If you want more help or information about a command use the
man
or--help
command:man [command]
[command] --help
Navigation:
Change directory:
cd /home/user/Documents
List files and directories:
ls
orls -l
Print working directory:
pwd
Make directory:
mkdir mydir
Remove files and directories:
rm myfile.txt
orrm -r mydir
Copy files and directories:
cp file1.txt file2.txt
orcp -r dir1 dir2
Move or rename files and directories:
mv file1.txt file2.txt
ormv myfile.txt newdir/myfile.txt
Search for files and directories:
find /home/user -name myfile.txt
Search for patterns in files:
grep "keyword" myfile.txt
Concatenate and display file content:
cat myfile.txt
View file content with pagination:
less myfile.txt
Output the beginning of a file:
head myfile.txt
Output the end of a file:
tail myfile.txt
Create links between files:
ln -s myfile.txt mylink
Change file permissions:
chmod 644 myfile.txt
File Manipulation:
Create an empty file:
touch myfile.txt
Text editor (nano):
nano myfile.txt
Text editor (vi/vim):
vim myfile.txt
Determine file type:
file myfile.txt
Word, line, character, and byte count:
wc myfile.txt
Archive files:
tar -cvf archive.tar file1.txt file2.txt
Compress files:
gzip myfile.txt
Decompress files:
gunzip myfile.txt.gz
Package and compress files:
zip
archive.zip
file1.txt file2.txt
Extract files from a zip archive:
unzip
archive.zip
Process Management:
Display running processes:
ps aux
Monitor system activity and processes:
top
Terminate processes:
kill PID
Run a process in the background:
command &
Bring a background process to the foreground:
fg
Display current jobs:
jobs
System Information:
Print system information:
uname -a
Print the current user:
whoami
Print the hostname:
hostname
Disk space usage:
df -h
Estimate file and directory space usage:
du -sh /path/to/directory
Display memory usage:
free -m
System uptime:
uptime
Network configuration:
ifconfig
orip addr show
Package Management:
Package handling utility (Debian-based systems):
sudo apt-get install package_name
Package manager (RHEL-based systems):
sudo yum install package_name
Package manager (Arch Linux):
sudo pacman -S package_name
Networking:
Send ICMP echo requests to a network host:
ping
www.example.com
Download files from the web:
Transfer data using various protocols:
curl
https://example.com
Secure shell client:
ssh user@hostname
Securely copy files between hosts:
scp myfile.txt user@hostname:/path/to/destination
File Transfer Protocol (FTP) client:
ftp hostname
Secure FTP client:
sftp user@hostname
Network configuration:
ifconfig
orip addr show
Network statistics:
netstat
User Management:
Create a new user:
sudo adduser newuser
Delete a user:
sudo deluser username
Change user password:
sudo passwd username
Switch to another user:
su username
Grant administrative privileges:
sudo usermod -aG sudo username
System Maintenance:
Update package lists and upgrade installed packages:
sudo apt-get update && sudo apt-get upgrade
Restart the system:
sudo reboot
Shutdown the system:
sudo shutdown now
View system logs:
tail /var/log/syslog
Check system disk usage:
df -h
Check system memory usage:
free -m
Monitor system resources and processes:
top
These are just a few examples of commonly used Linux commands. There are many more commands available with various options and functionalities. It's always a good idea to refer to the documentation or online resources for more detailed information about specific commands.