Basic Linux Commands for Beginners

When you first log into a Linux server, you're greeted by the command line. It can be intimidating, but it's incredibly powerful. This guide covers the essential commands every beginner should know.

Navigation

pwd - Where Am I?

Print Working Directory shows your current location:

pwd

Output might be: /home/username

ls - What's Here?

List files and directories:

ls

List with details:

ls -la

cd - Change Directory

Navigate to a directory:

cd /home/username/documents

Go back to home:

cd ~

File Operations

mkdir - Make Directory

Create a new directory:

mkdir myproject

touch - Create File

Create an empty file:

touch readme.txt

cp - Copy

Copy a file:

cp file.txt backup.txt

Copy a directory:

cp -r myfolder backupfolder

mv - Move/Rename

Move or rename files:

mv oldname.txt newname.txt

rm - Remove

Delete a file:

rm unwanted.txt

Delete a directory:

rm -rf myfolder

Viewing Files

cat - View Entire File

cat myfile.txt

head/tail - View Part of File

First 10 lines:

head myfile.txt

Last 10 lines:

tail myfile.txt

less - Browse File

less myfile.txt

Press q to quit, / to search

System Info

whoami - Current User

whoami

uname - System Info

uname -a

df - Disk Space

df -h

free - Memory Usage

free -h

top - Running Processes

top

Press q to quit

Pipes and Redirection

| - Pipe

Send output to another command:

ls -la | grep txt

> - Redirect Output

Save output to file:

echo "hello" > file.txt

>> - Append

Append to file:

echo "more" >> file.txt

Help

--help

ls --help

man - Manual Pages

man ls

which - Find Command

which python

These commands form the foundation of Linux. Practice them and you'll be navigating the command line with confidence in no time!