A small Linux cheat sheet, introducing the very basic and very essential commands for surviving at the Linux CLI.
| Moving around in the file system | |
| Command | Action |
| pwd | "Print working directory" - show what dir you're in. |
| ls | List the contents of a dir. |
| ls -l | List the contents of a dir and show additional info of the files. |
| ls -a | List all files, including hidden files. |
| cd | Change directory. |
| cd .. | Go to the parent directory. |
| Examining files | |
| Command | Action |
| file | Determine the type of a file. |
| cat | Concatenate a file. |
| less | View text files and paginate them if needed. |
| Manipulating files and directories | |
| Command | Action |
| cp | Copy a file. |
| cp -i | Copy a file and ask before overwriting. |
| cp -r | Copy a directory with its contents. |
| mv | Move or rename a file. |
| mv -i | Move or rename a file and ask before overwriting. |
| rm | Remove a file. |
| rm -r | Remove a directory with its contents. |
| rm -i | Ask before removing a file. Good to use with the -r option. |
| mkdir | Make a directory. |
| rmdir | Remove an empty directory. |
rpm command cheat sheet for Linux
rpm is a powerful Package Manager for Red Hat, Suse and Fedora Linux. It can be used to build, install, query, verify, update, and remove/erase individual software packages. A Package consists of an archive of files, and package information, including name, version, and description:
| Syntax | Description | Example(s) |
| rpm -ivh {rpm-file} | Install the package | rpm -ivh mozilla-mail-1.7.5-17.i586.rpm rpm -ivh --test mozilla-mail-1.7.5-17.i586.rpm |
| rpm -Uvh {rpm-file} | Upgrade package | rpm -Uvh mozilla-mail-1.7.6-12.i586.rpm rpm -Uvh --test mozilla-mail-1.7.6-12.i586.rpm |
| rpm -ev {package} | Erase/remove/ an installed package | rpm -ev mozilla-mail |
| rpm -ev --nodeps {package} | Erase/remove/ an installed package without checking for dependencies | rpm -ev --nodeps mozilla-mail |
| rpm -qa | Display list all installed packages | rpm -qa rpm -qa | less |
| rpm -qi {package} | Display installed information along with package version and short description | rpm -qi mozilla-mail |
| rpm -qf {/path/to/file} | Find out what package a file belongs to i.e. find what package owns the file | rpm -qf /etc/passwd rpm -qf /bin/bash |
| rpm -qc {pacakge-name} | Display list of configuration file(s) for a package | rpm -qc httpd |
| rpm -qcf {/path/to/file} | Display list of configuration files for a command | rpm -qcf /usr/X11R6/bin/xeyes |
| rpm -qa --last | Display list of all recently installed RPMs | rpm -qa --last rpm -qa --last | less |
| rpm -qpR {.rpm-file} rpm -qR {package} |
Find out what dependencies a rpm file has | rpm -qpR mediawiki-1.4rc1-4.i586.rpm rpm -qR bash |
{package} - Replace with actual package name
apt-get is the command-line tool for handling packages for Debian Linux which is use to:
- Install/manage individual packages
- Upgrade packages
- Apply security patch(s)
- Keep Debian system up to date
- Download source .deb files
- Front-end to many GUI and other utilities
Here is quick cheat sheet you will find handy while using apt-get at shell prompt:
| Syntax | Description | Example(s) |
| apt-get install {package} | Install the new package. If package is installed then try to upgrade to latest version | apt-get install zip apt-get install lsof samba mysql-client |
| apt-get remove {package} | Remove/Delete an installed package except configuration files | apt-get remove zip |
| apt-get --purge remove {package} | Remove/Delete everything including configuration files | apt-get --purge remove mysql-server |
| apt-get update apt-get upgrade |
Resynchronize the package index files and Upgrade the Debian Linux system including security update (Internet access required) | apt-get update apt-get upgrade |
| apt-get update apt-get dist-upgrade |
Usually use to upgrade to Debian distribution. For example Woody to Sarge upgrade. 'dist-upgrade' in addition to performing the function of upgrade, also intelligently handles changing dependencies with new versions of packages; apt-get has a "smart" conflict resolution system, and it will attempt to upgrade the most important packages at the expense of less important ones if necessary. | apt-get update apt-get dist-upgrade |
{package} - Replace with actual package name
dpkg is package manager for Debian Linux which is use to install/manage individual packages. Here is quick cheat sheet you will find handy while using dpkg at shell prompt:
| Syntax | Description | Example |
| dpkg -i {.deb package} | Install the package | dpkg -i zip_2.31-3_i386.deb |
| dpkg -i {.deb package} | Upgrade package if it is installed else install a fresh copy of package | dpkg -i zip_2.31-3_i386.deb |
| dpkg -R {Directory-name} | Install all packages recursively from directory | dpkg -R /tmp/downloads |
| dpkg -r {package} | Remove/Delete an installed package except configuration files | dpkg -r zip |
| dpkg -P {package} | Remove/Delete everything including configuration files | dpkg -P apache-perl |
| dpkg -l | List all installed packages, along with package version and short description | dpkg -l dokg -l | less dpkg -l '*apache*' dpkg -l | grep -i 'sudo' |
| dpkg -l {package} | List individual installed packages, along with package version and short description | dpkg -l apache-perl |
| dpkg -L {package} | Find out files are provided by the installed package i.e. list where files were installed | dpkg -L apache-perl dpkg -L perl |
| dpkg -c {.Deb package} | List files provided (or owned) by the package i.e. List all files inside debian .deb package file, very useful to find where files would be installed | dpkg -c dc_1.06-19_i386.deb |
| dpkg -S {/path/to/file} | Find what package owns the file i.e. find out what package does file belong | dpkg -S /bin/netstat dpkg -S /sbin/ippool |
| dpkg -p {package} | Display details about package package group, version, maintainer, Architecture, display depends packages, description etc | dpkg -p lsof |
| dpkg -s {package} | grep Status | Find out if Debian package is installed or not (status) | dpkg -s lsof | grep Status |
{package} - Replace with actual package name
Appendix C. DOS to Linux Cheat Sheet
Many Linux commands you type at a shell prompt are not that different from the commands you would type either in MS-DOS or in Windows (from the MS-DOS prompt). In fact, some commands are identical.
DOS and Linux Commands
What follows are some common commands used at the MS-DOS prompt in Windows 9x, and in Linux, as well as a basic example of how the command is used at the Linux shell prompt. Note that these commands usually have a number of options. To learn more about each command, read its associated man page (for example, type man ls at the shell prompt to read about the ls command).
Table C-1. Similar Commands
| Command's Purpose | MS-DOS | Linux | Basic Linux Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copies files | copy | cp | cp thisfile.txt /home/thisdirectory |
| Moves files | move | mv | mv thisfile.txt /home/thisdirectory |
| Lists files | dir | ls | ls |
| Clears screen | cls | clear | clear |
| Closes prompt window | exit | exit | exit |
| Displays or sets date | date | date | date |
| Deletes files | del | rm | rm thisfile.txt |
| "Echoes" output on the screen | echo | echo | echo this message |
| Edits files with simple text editor | edit | pico[a] | pico thisfile.txt |
| Compares the contents of files | fc | diff | diff file1 file2 |
| Finds a string of text in a file | find | grep | grep this word or phrase thisfile.txt |
| Formats a floppy | format a: (if floppy's in A:) | mke2fs (or mformat[b]) | /sbin/mke2fs /dev/fd0 (/dev/fd0 is the Linux equivalent of A:) |
| Displays command help | command /? | man[c] | man command |
| Creates a directory | mkdir | mkdir | mkdir directory |
| Screens through a file | more | less[d] | less thisfile.txt |
| Renames a file | ren | mv | mv thisfile.txt thatfile.txt[e] |
| Shows your location in the file system | chdir | pwd | pwd |
| Changes directories with a specified path (absolute path) | cd pathname | cd pathname | cd /directory/directory |
| Changes directories with a relative path | cd .. | cd .. | cd .. |
| Displays the time | time | date | date |
| Shows amount of RAM and use | mem | free | procinfo |
| Notes: a. Pico is a simple text editor; other editors you can use in place of pico include emacs and vi. b. This formats a disk for the DOS filesystem. c. Or you can use info for some commands. d. You can also another pager, called more, to scroll through a file a screen at at time. e. The mv command serves double-duty, because it can both move a file and, if you want to rename a file in the same directory, you "move" that file to the same directory with a new name, as in this example. |
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