Common Linux Commands

The following is a list of some of the commands commonly available on a Linux system. Because implementations vary as to the exact commands supported you may find commands on this list that are not supported on your particular Linux implementation. Conversely, your Linux implementation may also support commands that are not on this list.

aliases	aliases file for sendmail.
at	execute command at specific date/time.
awk	pattern processing language.
batch	execute commands when load permits.
bc	interactive integer calculator.
cal	print a calendar.
calendar	invoke reminder service.
cancel	cancel a request to a printer.
cat	concatenate files and display their contents.
cd	change the current working directory.
chgrp	change group ownership of files.
chmod	change access permissions for files.
chown	change ownership of files.
clear	clear terminal screen.
cmp	compare two files.
copy	copy groups of files in directories.
cp	copy files.
cpio	archive and extract files.
cron	daemon to execute batch and at commands.
crontab	schedule commands at regular intervals.
cancel	cancel a request to a printer.
crypt	encrypt and decrypt files.
csh	invoke the C shell.
csplit	split one file into several.
cu	call another unix system.
cut	cut selected fields from each line of a file.
date	display current date, also allows root to change date.
dd	convert and copy a file.
df	report on free disk space.
diff	compare two text files.
diff3	compare three text files.
dircmp	compare two directories.
du	report disk usage.
dump	file system backup.
echo	echoes input to standard output.
ed	line oriented text editor.
egrep	extended version of grep command.
eject	eject media (floppy, cd etc.) from the specified drive.
expr	evaluate boolean and arithmetic expressions.
false	returns a non-zero exit status.
fgrep	fast version of grep command.
file	report type of file.
find	find matching files and perform specified action.
finger	report user information.
format	format a disk or cartridge tape.
ftp	invoke File Transfer Protocol to transfer files to/from a remote system.
grep	search files for regular expression matches.
groff	format files for printing.
gzip	compress or expand a file.
head	display the first few lines of a file.
iconfig	configure a network interface.
ipfwadm	IP firewall and accounting administration.
insmod	load a kernel module.
join	display the lines between two files having common fields.
kill	send a signal to a process (a terminate signal by default).
ksh	invoke the Korn shell.
line	shell script command to read a line from a file.
ln	create a link to a file.
logname	get a login name.
lp	send request to printer.
lpc	administer print queues.
lpr	send request to printer for offline printing.
lprm	remove a job from the print queue.
lpq	report printer status.
ls	list the contents of a directory.
lsmod	list loaded kernel modules.
mail	send and receive mail.
make	compile and link utility to maintain groups of programs.
man	display or print pages from an online reference manual.
mesg	grant or deny permission to receive write messages from other users.
mkdir	make a new directory.
mke2fs	create a linux second extended file system.
mknod	build a special file.
mkswap	set up a linux swap area.
more	display a file one page at a time.
mount	mount a special file or report its status.
mtools	read or write MS-DOS or Windows disks.
mv	move or rename a file.
netstat	display network connections.
passwd	update a user's authentication token (ie. password).
ping	send echo request packets to network hosts.
restore	restore files from backups made with dump.
rm	remove files.
rmdir	remove empty directories.
route	show or manipulate the routing table.
rpm	red hat package manager.
shutdown	shut down the system.
ssh	secure client shell remote login.
su	run a shell with a substitute user (default substitution is root).
tar	(tape) archiving facility, compression program.
test	test various expressions.
time	display elapsed execution, process, and system times for a command.
touch	update the date and time stamp on a file.
tr	substitute sets of characters.
true	return zero exit status.
tset	set terminal modes.
tty	report name of terminal.
umask	set file creation mode permission mask.
umount	unmount a device.
uname	display the name of the current system.
uniq	report any duplicate lines in a file.
unzip	list, test, and extract compressed files in a zip archive.
uptime	report system activity.
useradd	create a new user or update default new user info.
usermod	modify a user account.
uucp	copy files between two unix systems.
uulog	report on UUCP status.
uuname	list UUCP sites known to this one.
uudecode	decode to binary after uuencode transmission.
uuencode	encode binary for email transmission.
uustat	report status for or cancel UUCP jobs.
uupick	receive public files sent via uuto.
uuto	send public files to another unix system.
uux	execute a command on a remote unix system.
vi	screen oriented text editor.
wall	send a message to all users (from root).
wait	await completion of background tasks.
wc	count characters, words, or lines in one or more files.
who	report on active users.
whois	search for user information.
write	send a message to another user.

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