Using the Linux Terminal

The Linux command line is a text interface to your computer. Often referred to as the shell, terminal, console, prompt or various other names, it can give the appearance of being complex and confusing to use. However, the basics are actually quite simple and easy to learn.

Side note: If you are interested in learning more about the history of the terminal, read Section 1.2.10 for more information.

Accessing the Terminal Over SSH

Most of you are probably running Windows or MacOS on your personal computer, so you will need to access a linux terminal remotely using a Secure Shell (SSH) connection. On Windows, you can do this using PuTTY. Read Section 1.2.1 for more information.

On MacOS (or Linux), you can create an SSH connection using the ssh command. For example, to connect to a remote server named example.com using the username johndoe and the password mypassword, you would run the following command:

ssh johndoe@example.com

You will be prompted to enter your password.

Accessing CSU's Linux Servers

If you are taking a CIS course this semester that requires Linux, you should have access to CSU's Linux servers. These servers have the following layout:

Your username for all of CSU's servers is <first two letters of your first name><up to the first six letters of your last name>. Your password (unless you have changed it) is <CSU ID><capital initial of your last name.

If your name is John Doe and you CSU ID is 1234567, then you would have the following:

Username: jodoe

Password: 1234567D

To access spirit with the account above, use the following command:

ssh jodoe@spirit.eecs.csuohio.edu

Using Google Cloud Shell

You also have the option of using Google Cloud Shell, which is free. Simply go to https://shell.cloud.google.com/. After the shell is provisioned, you should see the environment below:

Your linux shell should be available at the bottom of the page.

Running your First Command

To run your first command, click inside the terminal window to ensure it's active, then type the following in lowercase and press Enter:

pwd

This will display your current directory path (likely something like /home/YOUR_USERNAME), followed by the prompt text again.

The prompt indicates the terminal is ready for your next command. When you see references to "command prompt" or "command line," they simply mean the place where you type commands in the terminal.

When you run a command, any output will typically appear in the terminal. Some commands display a lot of text, while others may not show anything if they complete successfully. If a new prompt appears right away, the command likely succeeded.

Navigating the Linux Environment

The pwd command (print working directory) shows your current location in the file system. The working directory is where file operations take place by default unless specified otherwise. To check where you are, use pwd.

To change the working directory, use cd (change directory):

• Move to the root directory:

  cd /
  pwd
  

• Move to the "home" directory from root:

  cd home
  pwd
  

• Go up one level to the parent directory:

  cd ..
  pwd
  

• To return to your home directory (also represented by the ~ path):

  cd
  pwd
  

You can also move up multiple levels:

cd ../..
pwd

To go directly to the "etc" directory from your home directory:

cd ../../etc
pwd

Paths can be relative (depending on your current directory) or absolute (starting with /).

Most examples so far have used relative paths, meaning the location you navigate to depends on your current directory. For instance, moving to the "etc" directory works from the root:

cd /
cd etc

But if you're in your home directory and try cd etc, you'll get an error because the command is relative to your current location.

Absolute paths, however, work regardless of your current directory. These paths start with a /, indicating the root directory. For example:

cd /etc

This will always take you to the "etc" directory, no matter where you are. Similarly, running cd alone returns you to your home directory. Another absolute path shortcut is using ~, which refers to your home directory:

cd ~
cd ~/Desktop

To navigate directly to a specific folder, use an absolute path with /home/USERNAME/:

cd /home/USERNAME/Desktop

The prompt updates to reflect your current location in the file system, with ~ representing your home directory. Understanding absolute paths is key as you work with files and directories.

Creating and Opening Folders and Files

To safely experiment with files, let's create a directory away from your home folder:

mkdir /tmp/tutorial
cd /tmp/tutorial

This creates a new directory, "tutorial," inside /tmp using an absolute path. Now, let's create a few subdirectories:

mkdir dir1 dir2 dir3

This command creates multiple directories at once. If you'd like to create nested directories, use the -p option (short for "make all Parent directories"):

mkdir -p dir4/dir5/dir6

Here, -p ensures parent directories (dir4 and dir5) are created if they don't exist.

To create folders with spaces in the names, use quotes or a backslash to escape the space:

mkdir "folder 1"
mkdir folder\ 3

Avoid spaces in file names where possible by using underscores or hyphens for easier command-line use.

Listing and Creating Files

Let's create some files and work with them. Start by listing the contents of your current directory:

ls

To capture the output of this command into a file, use redirection (>):

ls > output.txt

This creates a file called output.txt with the list of directory contents. To view the file:

cat output.txt

The echo command can also create files with content:

echo "This is a test" > test_1.txt
echo "This is a second test" > test_2.txt
echo "This is a third test" > test_3.txt

You can view their contents using cat. To combine multiple files:

cat test_1.txt test_2.txt test_3.txt > combined.txt
cat combined.txt

Wildcards simplify commands when file names follow patterns. For example, these commands all achieve the same result:

cat test_?.txt
cat test_*

If you want to append text to an existing file, use >>:

echo "Appending a line" >> combined.txt
cat combined.txt

To view long files one page at a time, use less:

less combined.txt

You can navigate using arrow keys and exit with q. This basic workflow helps in creating and managing files with content efficiently.

Case Sesitivity

Unix systems are case-sensitive, meaning files like A.txt and a.txt are treated as entirely different. For example:

echo "Lower case" > a.txt
echo "Upper case" > A.TXT
echo "Mixed case" > A.txt

This creates three distinct files. It’s best to avoid file names that only differ by case to prevent confusion, especially when transferring files to case-insensitive systems like Windows. There, all three names would be treated as the same file, which could lead to data loss.

Rather than relying on upper case names (which would require frequent Caps Lock toggling), many users stick to lower case file names. This prevents case-related issues and keeps typing consistent with most shell commands, which are lower case. This habit helps avoid complications and reduces the chances of filename collisions.

Nope, don't wanna Shout.

A good practice for file naming on Unix systems is to use only lower-case letters, numbers, underscores, and hyphens. File names typically include a dot followed by a few characters as the file extension (e.g., .txt, .jpg). Sticking to this pattern avoids issues with case sensitivity and escaping, and simplifies command-line usage. Although it may seem limiting, this approach will save time and prevent errors when working in the terminal regularly.

File Manipulation

Moving Files:

• To move a file into a directory:

  mv combined.txt dir1
  

• To move it back to the current directory:

  mv dir1/* .
  

Moving Multiple Files:

• To move several files and directories at once:

  mv combined.txt test_* dir3 dir2
  

Moving Across Nested Directories:

• To move combined.txt from one directory to another nested location:

  mv dir2/combined.txt dir4/dir5/dir6
  

Copying Files:

• To copy a file from one location to the current directory:

  cp dir4/dir5/dir6/combined.txt .
  

• To create a copy with a different name:

  cp combined.txt backup_combined.txt
  

Renaming Files:

• To rename backup_combined.txt to combined_backup.txt:

  mv backup_combined.txt combined_backup.txt
  

Renaming Directories:

• To rename directories (use the Up Arrow for quicker edits):

  mv "folder 1" folder_1
  mv "folder 2" folder_2
  

Use ls to verify the results of each operation. These commands help manage files and folders efficiently without needing to change directories or use the mouse.

Deleting Files:

• To delete files:

rm dir4/dir5/dir6/combined.txt combined_backup.txt

Deleting Directories:

• To delete directories, use rmdir for empty folders:

rmdir folder_*

• If a directory contains files or subdirectories, rmdir will fail. To delete non-empty directories, use rm with the recursive -r option:

rm -r folder_6

This is a quick and efficient way to clean up files and folders without unnecessary repetition.

Safety Warning

When using the rm command, be extremely cautious, as it permanently deletes files without moving them to a trash folder. Accidental deletions can easily occur, especially when using wildcards. For example, rm t* deletes all files starting with "t," while rm t * could delete everything in the directory.

To prevent unintended deletions, consider using the -i (interactive) option with rm. This option prompts you to confirm each deletion, allowing you to type Y to delete, N to keep, or Ctrl-C to cancel the operation. Always double-check your commands before executing them to avoid irreversible loss.

Recursive Deletion: Be especially cautious when using rm -r, as it will delete everything within the directory, including all files and subdirectories. It’s often safer to explicitly delete files first and remove the directory afterward.

Piping

Modern computers and phones have advanced capabilities, yet text remains crucial for organizing files, from filenames to metadata. The Linux command line offers powerful tools for text manipulation, particularly through piping, which allows the output of one command to feed directly into the input of another.

Piping examples:

1. Count Files in a Directory: To count the number of lines in an output without creating a temporary file (which is required for > redirection), use:

   ls ~ | wc -l
   

2. View Large Outputs: For lengthy outputs, use less:

   ls /etc | less
   

3. Find Unique Lines: To count unique lines in combined.txt, chain commands:

   cat combined.txt | uniq | wc -l
   

   If few duplicates are removed, it’s likely because uniq only removes adjacent duplicates.
4. Check Command Documentation: Use the man command for details on how commands work:

   man uniq
   

5. Sort Before Uniquing: To prepare for using uniq, sort the file first:

   sort combined.txt | uniq | wc -l
   

6. Searching for a string in an input: To search for a string in a file, use grep:

   cat combined.txt | grep "string"