File Basics

Use this post as a guide, to learn basic file commands.

List Files

• Use ls to just list file:

1ls

• Use long listing (ls -l) to do the same.
• List a specific file (let's say you have a file called "mydata"):

1ls mydata

• Long list that file:

1ls -l mydata

• List a directory that is not the current directory:

1ls /tmp

Create Files (using the touch command)

• Create a file using the touch command, eg:

1touch myfile

• Use ls long listing to look at the last update time of the file.
  Then touch the file again and see the result.
  Didn't work?
  Maybe you should have waited a minute.

Create a Directory

• Try the mkdir command with the following:
• Create a directory under the current directory
• Create a directory under /tmp

Remove Files and Directories

• Remove a file with rm
• Remove an empty directory with rm
• Try the same on a non-empty directory
• DANGER DANGER DANGER...
  Remove a non-empty directory recursively:

1rm -r my-non-empty-dir

Copy files using cp

• Copy a file with cp
• Try to copy a directory in the same way
• How would you solve it?

Move or rename files with mv

• Rename a file with mv
  (e.g rename myfile to myfile1)
• Move a file into a directory