 An A-Z Index of the Bash command

line for Linux.

 A

 alias Create an alias•

 apropos Search Help manual pages (man -k)
 apt-get Search for and install software packages ( Debian /Ubuntu)
 aptitude Search for and install software packages (Debian/Ubuntu)
 aspell Spell Checker
 awk Find and Replace text, database sort/validate/index

 B

 basename Strip directory and suffix from filenames

 bash GNU Bourne-Again Shell
 bc Arbitrary precision calculator language
 bg Send to background
 break Exit from a loop •
 builtin Run a shell built in
 bzip2 Compress or decompress named file(s)

 c

 cal Display a calendar

 case Conditionally perform a command
 cat Concatenate and print (display) the content of files
 cd Change Directory
 cfdisk Partition table manipulator for Linux
 chgrp Change group ownership
 chmod Change access permissions
 chown Change file owner and group
 chroot Run a command with a different root directory
 chkconfig System services (runlevel)
 cksum Print CRC checksum and byte counts
 clear Clear terminal screen
 cmp Compare two files
 comm Compare two sorted files line by line
 command Run a command - ignoring shell functions •
 continue Resume the next iteration of a loop •
 cp Copy one or more files to another location
 cron Daemon to execute scheduled commands
 crontab Schedule a command to run at a later time
 csplit Split a file into context-determined pieces
 cut Divide a file into several parts
 d
 date Display or change the date & time
 dc Desk Calculator
 dd Convert and copy a file, write disk headers, boot records
 ddrescue Data recovery tool
 declare Declare variables and give them attributes •
 df Display free disk space
 diff Display the differences between two files
 diff3 Show differences among three files
 dig DNS lookup
 dir Briefly list directory contents
  dircolors Colour setup for `ls'
 dirname Convert a full pathname to just a path
 dirs Display list of remembered directories
 dmesg Print kernel & driver messages
 du Estimate file space usage

 echo Display message on screen •

 egrep Search file(s) for lines that match an extended expression
 eject Eject removable media
 enable Enable and disable builtin shell commands •
 env Environment variables
 ethtool Ethernet card settings
 eval Evaluate several commands/arguments
 exec Execute a command
 exit Exit the shell
 expect Automate arbitrary applications accessed over a terminal
 expand Convert tabs to spaces
 export Set an environment variable
 expr Evaluate expressions

 f

 false Do nothing, unsuccessfully

 fdformat Low-level format a floppy disk
 fdisk Partition table manipulator for Linux
 fg Send job to foreground
 fgrep Search file(s) for lines that match a fixed string
 file Determine file type
 find Search for files that meet a desired criteria
 fmt Reformat paragraph text
 fold Wrap text to fit a specified width.
 for Expand words, and execute commands
 format Format disks or tapes
 free Display memory usage
 fsck File system consistency check and repair
 ftp File Transfer Protocol
 function Define Function Macros
 fuser Identify/kill the process that is accessing a file

 g

 gawk Find and Replace text within file(s)

 getopts Parse positional parameters
 grep Search file(s) for lines that match a given pattern
 groupadd Add a user security group
 groupdel Delete a group
 groupmod Modify a group
 groups Print group names a user is in
 gzip Compress or decompress named file(s)

 h

 hash Remember the full pathname of a name argument

 head Output the first part of file(s)
 help Display help for a built-in command •
 history Command History
 hostname Print or set system name
 htop Interactive process viewer
 i

 iconv Convert the character set of a file

 id Print user and group id's
 if Conditionally perform a command
 ifconfig Configure a network interface
 ifdown Stop a network interface
 ifup Start a network interface up
 import Capture an X server screen and save the image to file
 install Copy files and set attributes
 ip Routing, devices and tunnels
 j
 jobs List active jobs •
 join Join lines on a common field
 k
 kill Kill a process by specifying its PID
 killall Kill processes by name
 l
 less Display output one screen at a time
 let Perform arithmetic on shell variables •
 link Create a link to a file
 ln Create a symbolic link to a file
 local Create variables •
 locate Find files
 logname Print current login name
 logout Exit a login shell •
 look Display lines beginning with a given string
 lpc Line printer control program
 lpr Off line print
 lprint Print a file
 lprintd Abort a print job
 lprintq List the print queue
 lprm Remove jobs from the print queue
 ls List information about file(s)
 lsof List open files
 m
 make Recompile a group of programs
 man Help manual
 mkdir Create new folder(s)
 mkfifo Make FIFOs (named pipes)
 mkisofs Create an hybrid ISO9660/JOLIET/HFS filesystem
 mknod Make block or character special files
 more Display output one screen at a time
 most Browse or page through a text file
 mount Mount a file system
 mtools Manipulate MS-DOS files
 mtr Network diagnostics (traceroute/ping)
 mv Move or rename files or directories
 mmv Mass Move and rename (files)
 n
 netstat Networking information
 nice Set the priority of a command or job
 nl Number lines and write files
 nohup Run a command immune to hangups
 notify-send Send desktop notifications
 nslookup Query Internet name servers interactively
 o
 open Open a file in its default application
 op Operator access
 p
 passwd Modify a user password
 paste Merge lines of files
 pathchk Check file name portability
 ping Test a network connection
 pkill Kill processes by a full or partial name.
 popd Restore the previous value of the current directory
 pr Prepare files for printing
 printcap Printer capability database
 printenv Print environment variables
 printf Format and print data •
 ps Process status
 pushd Save and then change the current directory
 pv Monitor the progress of data through a pipe
 pwd Print Working Directory
 q
 quota Display disk usage and limits
 quotacheck Scan a file system for disk usage
 quotactl Set disk quotas
 r
 ram ram disk device
 rar Archive files with compression
 rcp Copy files between two machines
 read Read a line from standard input •
 readarray Read from stdin into an array variable •
 readonly Mark variables/functions as readonly
 reboot Reboot the system
 rename Rename files
 renice Alter priority of running processes
 remsync Synchronize remote files via email
 return Exit a shell function
 rev Reverse lines of a file
 rm Remove files
 rmdir Remove folder(s)
 rsync Remote file copy (Synchronize file trees)
 s
 screen Multiplex terminal, run remote shells via ssh
 scp Secure copy (remote file copy)
 sdiff Merge two files interactively
 sed Stream Editor
 select Accept keyboard input
 seq Print numeric sequences
 set Manipulate shell variables and functions
 sftp Secure File Transfer Program
 shift Shift positional parameters
 shopt Shell Options
 shutdown Shutdown or restart linux
 sleep Delay for a specified time
 slocate Find files
 sort Sort text files
 source Run commands from a file '.'
 split Split a file into fixed-size pieces
 ssh Secure Shell client (remote login program)
 stat Display file or file system status
 strace Trace system calls and signals
 su Substitute user identity
 sudo Execute a command as another user
 sum Print a checksum for a file
 suspend Suspend execution of this shell •
 sync Synchronize data on disk with memory
 t
 tail Output the last part of file
 tar Store, list or extract files in an archive
 tee Redirect output to multiple files
 test Evaluate a conditional expression
 time Measure Program running time
 timeout Run a command with a time limit
 times User and system times
 touch Change file timestamps
 top List processes running on the system
 tput Set terminal-dependent capabilities, color, position
 traceroute Trace Route to Host
 trap Run a command when a signal is set(bourne)
 tr Translate, squeeze, and/or delete characters
 true Do nothing, successfully
 tsort Topological sort
 tty Print filename of terminal on stdin
 type Describe a command •
 u
 ulimit Limit user resources •
 umask Users file creation mask
 umount Unmount a device
 unalias Remove an alias •
 uname Print system information
 unexpand Convert spaces to tabs
 uniq Uniquify files
 units Convert units from one scale to another
 unrar Extract files from a rar archive
 unset Remove variable or function names
 unshar Unpack shell archive scripts
 until Execute commands (until error)
 uptime Show uptime
 useradd Create new user account
 userdel Delete a user account
 usermod Modify user account
 users List users currently logged in
 uuencode Encode a binary file
 uudecode Decode a file created by uuencode
 v
 v Verbosely list directory contents (`ls -l -b')
 vdir Verbosely list directory contents (`ls -l -b')
 vi Text Editor
 vmstat Report virtual memory statistics
 w
 wait Wait for a process to complete •
 watch Execute/display a program periodically
 wc Print byte, word, and line counts
 whereis Search the user's $path, man pages and source files for a program
 which Search the user's $path for a program file
 while Execute commands
 who Print all usernames currently logged in
 whoami Print the current user id and name (`id -un')
 wget Retrieve web pages or files via HTTP, HTTPS or FTP
 write Send a message to another user
 x
 xargs Execute utility, passing constructed argument list(s)
 xdg-open Open a file or URL in the user's preferred application.
 yes Print a string until interrupted
 zip Package and compress (archive) files.
 . Run a command script in the current shell
 !! Run the last command again
 ### Comment / Remark