Basic Shell Commands in Linux: Complete List

Last Updated : 08 Mar, 2025

Anyone using Linux should become an expert in the essential shell commands, as they form the backbone of working with the Linux terminal. These commands enable you to navigate the system, manage files, handle processes, and configure settings effectively.

The Linux shell serves as an interface for users to interact with the operating system. Mastering its commands can greatly enhance your efficiency, whether you’re a system administrator or a developer. In this guide, we’ll introduce some of the most fundamental Linux commands, covering file management, system monitoring, and command syntax, along with practical examples. By the end, you’ll have the knowledge needed to perform everyday tasks confidently in the Linux command-line environment.

Basic Shell Commands in Linux

What are Shell Commands in Linux?

A shell in Linux is a program that serves as an interface between the user and the operating system. It accepts commands from the user, interprets them, and passes them to the operating system for execution. The commands can be used for a wide range of tasks, from file manipulation to system management.

Some of the essential basic shell commands in Linux for different operations are:

File Management -> cp, mv, rm, mkdir
Navigation -> cd, pwd, ls
Text Processing -> cat, grep, sort, head
System Monitoring -> top, ps, df
Permissions and Ownership -> chmod, chown, chgrp
Networking – > ping, wget, curl, ssh, scp, ftp
Compression and Archiving – > tar, gzip, gunzip, zip, unzip
Package Management – > dnf, yum, apt-get
Process Management -> kill, killall, bg, killall, kill

Basic Shell Commands for File and Directory Management

Command	Description	Example
`ls`	Lists files and directories	`ls`
`cd`	Changes the current directory	`cd /home/user/Documents`
`pwd`	Displays the current directory path	`pwd`
`mkdir`	Creates a new directory	`mkdir new_directory`
`rm`	Removes files or directories	`rm file.txt`
`cp`	Copies files or directories	`cp file1.txt file2.txt`
`mv`	Moves or renames files and directories	`mv old_name new_name`
`touch`	Creates an empty file or updates file timestamps	`touch newfile.txt`

Examples:

1. List files in a directory:

ls

2. Change directory:

cd/home/user

3. Create a new directory:

mkdir new_directory

4. Copy a file from one location to another:

cp source.txt destination.txt

5. Remove a file:

rm file.txt

Text Processing Commands in Linux

Command	Description	Example
`cat`	Displays the contents of a file	`cat file.txt`
`grep`	Searches for a pattern in a file	`grep "error" log.txt`
`sort`	Sorts the contents of a file	`sort file.txt`
`head`	Displays the first few lines of a file	`head file.txt`
`tail`	Displays the last few lines of a file	`tail file.txt`
`wc`	Counts the lines, words, and characters in a file	`wc file.txt`

Examples:

1. Display the contents of a file:

cat file.txt

2. Search for a pattern in a file:

grep "error" file.txt

3. Sort the contents of a file:

sort file.txt

4. Display the first 10 lines of a file:

head file.txt

5. Display the last 10 lines of a file:

tail file.txt

File Permissions and Ownership Commands

Command	Description	Example
`chmod`	Changes file permissions	`chmod 755 file.txt`
`chown`	Changes file owner and group	`chown user:group file.txt`
`chgrp`	Changes file group ownership	`chgrp group file.txt`

Examples:

1. Change permissions of a file:

chmod 755 file.txt

2. Change the owner of a file:

chown user:group file.txt

System Monitoring and Process Management Commands

Command	Description	Example
`top`	Displays real-time system information (CPU, memory)	`top`
`ps`	Displays the list of running processes	`ps aux`
`kill`	Terminates a process by its ID	`kill 1234`
`df`	Displays disk space usage	`df -h`

Examples:

1. View running processes:

ps aux

2. Display real-time system statistics:

top

3. Kill a process by its ID:

kill 1234

4. Check disk space usage:

df -h

Networking Shell Commands

Command	Description	Example
`ping`	Checks the network connection to a server	`ping example.com`
`wget`	Retrieves files from the web	`wget http://example.com/file.zip`
`curl`	Transfers data from or to a server	`curl http://example.com`
`ssh`	Opens SSH client (remote login program)	`ssh [email protected]`
`scp`	Securely copies files between hosts	`scp file.txt [email protected]:/path/`
`ftp`	Transfers files using the File Transfer Protocol	`ftp ftp.example.com`

Examples

1. Check the network connection to a server:

Command: ping
Example: ping example.com

2. Retrieve files from the web:

Command: wget
Example: wget http://example.com/file.zip

3. Transfer data from or to a server:

Command: curl
Example: curl http://example.com

4. Open SSH client (remote login program):

Command: ssh
Example: ssh [email protected]

5. Securely copy files between hosts:

Command: scp
Example: scp file.txt [email protected]:/path/

6. Transfer files using the File Transfer Protocol:

Command: ftp
Example: ftp ftp.example.com

Advanced Shell Commands

Command	Description	Example
`find`	Searches for files and directories	`find /home/user -name "*.txt"`
`tar`	Archives files into a tarball (.tar) or extracts them	`tar -cvf archive.tar file1.txt file2.txt`
`ssh`	Connects to a remote machine via SSH	`ssh user@remote_host`

Examples:

1. Find files in a directory:

find /home/user -name "*.txt"

2. Create a tarball archive:

tar -cvf archive.tar file1.txt file2.txt

3. Connect to a remote machine using SSH:

ssh user@remote_host

Using Shell Command Piping

You can combine multiple commands by piping their output. In short, it allows the output of one command to be used as the input for another command.

Examples:

1. View the top 10 processes:

ps aux | head -n 10

2. Search and sort a log file:

grep "error" log.txt | sort

Conclusion

Mastering the basic shell commands in Linuxis among the essential things to know so that you can perform a seamless system navigation, learn how to manage files efficiently, and perform other operations. By learning these commands, you can easily enhance your Linux skills and get a better insight over the system.

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Article Tags :

Basic Shell Commands in Linux: Complete List

What are Shell Commands in Linux?

Basic Shell Commands for File and Directory Management

Examples:

1. List files in a directory:

2. Change directory:

3. Create a new directory:

4. Copy a file from one location to another:

5. Remove a file:

Text Processing Commands in Linux

Examples:

1. Display the contents of a file:

2. Search for a pattern in a file:

3. Sort the contents of a file:

4. Display the first 10 lines of a file:

5. Display the last 10 lines of a file:

File Permissions and Ownership Commands

Examples:

1. Change permissions of a file:

2. Change the owner of a file:

System Monitoring and Process Management Commands

Examples:

1. View running processes:

2. Display real-time system statistics:

3. Kill a process by its ID:

4. Check disk space usage:

Networking Shell Commands

Advanced Shell Commands

Examples:

1. Find files in a directory:

2. Create a tarball archive:

3. Connect to a remote machine using SSH:

Using Shell Command Piping

Examples:

1. View the top 10 processes:

2. Search and sort a log file:

Conclusion

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Basic Shell Commands in Linux

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Functions and Script Organization

Input And Output

Command-Line Arguments and Options

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Regular Expressions