Basic Linux Commands

Linux is controlled mainly through the command line.
Knowing basic Linux commands helps you:

• Navigate the file system

• Manage files and directories

• Inspect system information

• Work efficiently on servers

This guide covers the most commonly used Linux commands in the beginning.

Basic Commands used in day-to-day activities

1. Navigation Commands

   pwd – Print Working Directory

    pwd
   

   Shows your current location in the file system.

   ls – List Files and Directories

    ls
    ls -l
    ls -a
   

   cd – Change Directory

    cd /etc
    cd ..
    cd ~
   

2. File & Directory Management

   mkdir – Create Directory

    mkdir logs
   

   touch – Create Empty File

    touch file.txt
   

   cp – Copy Files

    cp file.txt backup.txt
   

   mv – Move / Rename Files

    mv file.txt newfile.txt
   

   rm – Remove Files

    rm file.txt
    rm -r folder
   

3. Viewing File Content

   cat

    cat file.txt
   

   head / tail

    head file.txt
    tail -f app.log
   

4. File Search & Filters

   grep

    grep "error" app.log
   

   find

    find /var/log -name "*.log"
   

5. System Information Commands

    df -h     # Disk usage
    du -sh *  # Directory size
    free -m   # Memory usage
    uptime   # System running time
    whoami   # Current user
   

6. Networking Basics

    ping google.com
    curl https://example.com
    wget https://example.com/file.zip
   

Common Beginner Mistakes ⚠️

• Using rm -rf / blindly

• Forgetting file paths

• Running commands as root unnecessarily

• Ignoring command options (-h, --help)

🔚 Conclusion

Mastering basic Linux commands is the foundation of Linux, DevOps, and Cloud work.
These commands are used daily on servers and production systems.