Basic Linux Commands

9/14/2023 Updated: Finished initial version of the linux cheatsheet.

pwd (Print Working Directory): Displays the current directory’s full path.
ls (List): Lists files and directories in the current directory.
cd (Change Directory): Used to change the current working directory.
mkdir (Make Directory): Creates a new directory.
rmdir (Remove Directory): Deletes an empty directory.

File Operations

touch: Creates an empty file.
cp (Copy): Copies files or directories.
mv (Move): Moves files or directories, also used for renaming.
rm (Remove): Deletes files or directories.

File modifying

nano: A simple text editor for the terminal.
vim: A powerful and extensible text editor.
sed (Stream Editor): Edits text using scripts.
awk: A versatile text processing tool for data extraction and manipulation.

File display

cat (Concatenate): Displays or combines the content of files.
grep (Global Regular Expression Print): Searches for text within files.
find: Searches for files and directories.
more and less: Display the content of a file one page at a time.
head and tail: Display the beginning or end of a file.

File comparing and Sorting

cmp: Compares two files byte by byte.
diff: Compares and displays differences between files.
sort: Sorts lines in a text file.

File Compressing and Archiving

tar (Tape Archive): Create, extract, and manage tar archives.
zip and unzip: Create and extract ZIP archives.

File Transfer and Remote Access

scp (Secure Copy Protocol): Copies files securely over SSH.
rsync: Syncs files and directories locally or remotely.
ssh (Secure Shell): Connects to remote systems securely.
sftp (Secure File Transfer Protocol): Securely transfers files over SSH.

Process and System Management

ps (Process Status): Lists running processes.
top and htop: Dynamic process monitoring.
kill: Terminates processes.
pkill: Terminates processes by name.
shutdown: Shuts down the system.
reboot: Reboots the system.
systemctl: Controls systemd services.
exit: Exit the current shell session.

User and Group Management

useradd and adduser: Add user accounts.
passwd: Change user passwords.
userdel and deluser: Delete user accounts.
groupadd and addgroup: Add user groups.
groupdel and delgroup: Delete user groups.

Package Management

apt (Advanced Package Tool): Package management for Debian-based systems.
yum and dnf: Package management for Red Hat-based systems.
pacman: Package management for Arch Linux.

Network Operations

ping: Tests network connectivity.
ifconfig and ip: Configure network interfaces.
netstat and ss: Display network statistics.
nc (Netcat): Networking utility for reading and writing data across networks.
curl: Transfers data with URLs.
iptables: Manages firewall rules.
ufw: Uncomplicated Firewall configuration.
ip address: Displays network interface information.

File and System Information

stat: Displays file or file system status.
lsblk: lists storage device information in Linux.
df: Displays disk space usage.
free: Displays system memory usage.
uname: Displays system information.
neofetch: Displays system information.
finger: Provides information about user accounts.
man: Displays manual pages for commands.
echo: Displays text or variables.

System Information and Utilities

clear: Clears the terminal screen.
whoami: Displays the current username.
whatis: Displays a brief description of a command.
uname: Displays system information.
chmod (Change Mode): Modifies file/directory permissions.
chown (Change Owner): Changes file/directory ownership.
history: Displays command history.
ln: Creates links between files.
cal: Displays a calendar.
sudo: Executes commands with superuser privileges.
su: Switches user context.
resolvectl status: Displays DNS configuration.
shred: Securely delete files, making them difficult to recover.