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OSY Micro Project

This document provides an introduction to Linux shells and shell scripting. It defines key terms like kernel, shell, and terminal. The kernel manages system resources and processes, while the shell acts as an interface between the user and kernel. A terminal allows users to enter commands and see outputs. Common Linux shells include Bash, CSH, and KSH. Shell scripts allow automating repetitive tasks by storing commands in files with a .sh extension.

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Shree M K
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778 views9 pages

OSY Micro Project

This document provides an introduction to Linux shells and shell scripting. It defines key terms like kernel, shell, and terminal. The kernel manages system resources and processes, while the shell acts as an interface between the user and kernel. A terminal allows users to enter commands and see outputs. Common Linux shells include Bash, CSH, and KSH. Shell scripts allow automating repetitive tasks by storing commands in files with a .sh extension.

Uploaded by

Shree M K
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Introduction to Linux Shell and Shell Scripting

If we are using any major operating system, we are indirectly


interacting with the shell. While running Ubuntu, Linux Mint, or any
other Linux distribution, we are interacting with the shell by using the
terminal. In this article we will discuss Linux shells and shell scripting so
before understanding shell scripting we have to get familiar with the
following terminologies:
 Kernel
 Shell
 Terminal

What is Kernel?
The kernel is a computer program that is the core of a computer’s
operating system, with complete control over everything in the system.
It manages the following resources of the Linux system –
 File management
 Process management
 I/O management
 Memory management
 Device management etc.

It is often mistaken that Linus Torvalds has developed Linux OS, but
actually, he is only responsible for the development of the Linux kernel.

Complete Linux system = Kernel + GNU system utilities and libraries +


other management scripts + installation scripts.
What is Shell?
A shell is a special user program that provides an interface for the user
to use operating system services. Shell accepts human-readable
commands from users and converts them into something which the
kernel can understand. It is a command language interpreter that
executes commands read from input devices such as keyboards or from
files. The shell gets started when the user logs in or starts the terminal.

Linux Shell
Command Line Shell
Shell can be accessed by users using a command line interface. A
special program called Terminal in Linux/macOS, or Command Prompt
in Windows OS is provided to type in the human-readable commands
such as “cat”, “ls” etc. and then it is being executed. The result is then
displayed on the terminal to the user. A terminal in Ubuntu 16.4 system
looks like this –

linux command line

In the above screenshot “ls” command with “-l” option is executed. It


will list all the files in the current working directory in a long listing
format.
Working with a command line shell is a bit difficult for beginners
because it’s hard to memorize so many commands. It is very powerful;
it allows users to store commands in a file and execute them together.
This way any repetitive task can be easily automated. These files are
usually called batch files in Windows and Shell Scripts in Linux/macOS
systems.

Graphical Shells
Graphical shells provide means for manipulating programs based on the
graphical user interface (GUI), by allowing for operations such as
opening, closing, moving, and resizing windows, as well as switching
focus between windows. Window OS or Ubuntu OS can be considered
as a good example which provides GUI to the user for interacting with
the program. Users do not need to type in commands for every action.
A typical GUI in the Ubuntu system –

GUI Shell

There are several shells are available for Linux systems like –
 BASH (Bourne Again SHell) – It is the most widely used shell in
Linux systems. It is used as default login shell in Linux systems and
in macOS. It can also be installed on Windows OS.
 CSH (C SHell) – The C shell’s syntax and its usage are very similar
to the C programming language.
 KSH (Korn SHell) – The Korn Shell was also the base for the POSIX
Shell standard specifications etc.

Each shell does the same job but understands different commands and
provides different built-in functions.

What is a terminal?
A program which is responsible for providing an interface to a
user so that he/she can access the shell. It basically allows users
to enter commands and see the output of those commands in a
text-based interface. Large scripts that are written to automate
and perform complex tasks are executed in the terminal.
To access the terminal, simply search in search box “terminal”
and double-click it.
Here you can see how the terminal looks of Red Hat Linux.

Terminal
Shell Scripting
Usually, shells are interactive, which means they accept commands as
input from users and execute them. However, sometimes we want to
execute a bunch of commands routinely, so we have to type in all
commands each time in the terminal.

As a shell can also take commands as input from file, we can write
these commands in a file and can execute them in shell to avoid this
repetitive work. These files are called Shell Scripts or Shell Programs.
Shell scripts are similar to the batch file in MS-DOS. Each shell script is
saved with `.sh` file extension e.g., myscript.sh.

A shell script has syntax just like any other programming language. If
you have any prior experience with any programming language like
Python, C/C++ etc. It would be very easy to get started with it.
A shell script comprises the following elements –

 Shell Keywords – if, else, break etc.


 Shell commands – cd, ls, echo, pwd, touch etc.
 Functions
 Control flow – if..then..else, case and shell loops etc.

Why do we need shell scripts?


There are many reasons to write shell scripts:

 To avoid repetitive work and automation


 System admins use shell scripting for routine backups.
 System monitoring
 Adding new functionality to the shell etc.
Some Advantages of shell scripts
 The command and syntax are exactly the same as those directly entered in
the command line, so programmers do not need to switch to entirely
different syntax
 Writing shell scripts are much quicker
 Quick start
 Interactive debugging etc.

Some Disadvantages of shell scripts


 Prone to costly errors, a single mistake can change the command which
might be harmful.
 Slow execution speed
 Design flaws within the language syntax or implementation
 Not well suited for large and complex task
 Provide minimal data structure unlike other scripting languages. etc.

get to the “python” directory:

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