LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

LINUX
CHAPTER 1

 Linux is an open-source operating system like other operating systems such as

Microsoft Windows, Apple Mac OS, iOS, Google android, etc.
 An operating system is software that enables the communication between
computer hardware and software.
 It conveys input to get processed by the processor and brings output to the
hardware to display it. This is the basic function of an operating system.
 Like other operating systems, Linux has a graphical interface, and the types of
software you are accustomed to using on other operating systems, such as
word processing applications, have Linux equivalents.
 But Linux also is different from other operating systems in many important
ways. First, and perhaps most importantly, Linux is open-source software. The
code used to create Linux is free and available to the public to view, edit, and—
for users with the appropriate skills contribute to.
 Linux is also different in that, although the core pieces of the Linux operating
system are generally common, there are many distributions of Linux, which
include different software options. This means that Linux is incredibly
customizable, because not just applications, such as word processors and web
browsers, can be swapped out. Linux users also can choose core components,
such as which system displays graphics, and other user-interface components.
 Companies and individuals choose Linux for their servers because it is secure,
and you can receive excellent support from a large community of users, many

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of the devices you own probably, such as Android phones, digital storage
devices, personal video recorders, cameras, wearables, and more, also run
Linux.
 It was originally conceived of and created as a hobby by Linus Torvalds in
1991. Linus, while at university, sought to create an alternative, free, open-
source version of the MINIX operating system, which was itself based on the
principles and design of Unix.

Features of the Linux Operating System

1. Multiprogramming – It has the capability of running various programs by

several users at a time. This feature of Linux is called multiprogramming.
2. Time-Sharing – All the programs are queued and given CPU time. It
compels Operating System to finish its work in a time specified. In case it
is not completed any way the very task is automatically put in the queue
again.
3. Portable Environment -Linux software operates flawlessly on a variety of
hardware platforms. Without the worry of incompatibility, individuals

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

can use Linux operating system on any device. It runs the same way on
both high-end and low-end hardware.
4. Free and Open-Source -Its source code is available for anybody to use and
alter. Many developers collaborate in organizations to improve and
strengthen Linux, and lots of developers constantly work on updating the
Linux system.
5. Shell/ Command-line Interface - The Linux system includes essential
programs that users can utilize in order to issue commands to the
operating system for executing the design flawlessly. You may also direct
it to carry out various forms of Linux commands for effectively carrying
out the applications.
6. End-to-end encryption - Authentication can help you keep your data
protected. Before you may access some critical files, the Linux Operating
System requires you to enter a password. Furthermore, the Linux
environment allows users to encrypt their data.
7. Graphical User Interface (GUI) - Linux Operating System comes with
Graphical User Interface (GUI) abilities in the same way you can with
Windows. Similarly, users can install the programs, and the computer
graphics will begin to work in the same way that Windows does.
8. Configure Keyboards in Different Languages - Because Linux is available
in various languages, it is simple to use it worldwide. As a result, you can
change the language on your keyboard as per your preference.
9. Frequent New Updates - Software updates are controlled by the users in
Linux. Individuals have the option to pick and choose which updates are
required, and there are plenty of system updates accessible. These

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upgrades happen considerably more quickly than on other operating

systems. Therefore, system upgrades can be deployed without difficulty.
10. Lightweight Infrastructure - Linux is a highly lightweight operating
system. Linux has far fewer prerequisites than any other operating
system, has a smaller memory footprint, and uses less storage space.
Typically, you'll find a Linux Distro with only 128MB of RAM and around
the same amount of disc space.
11. Extremely Flexible - Linux is highly flexible, and a variety of
desktop applications, embedded systems, and server applications can
benefit from the same. It also offers a number of computer-specific
limitation settings for admins to allow only essential components to get
installed.
12. Best For Developers - Linux supports nearly every popular
programming language, including C/C++, Java, Python, Ruby, etc.
Furthermore, it provides a wide range of development-related
applications.
A majority of developers all around the world prefer the Linux terminal
over the Windows command line. On a Linux system, the package
manager aids programmers in understanding how things are performed.
It also comes with features like bash scripting and supports SSH that aids
in the speedy management of servers.

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Linux Distribution
Generally, the Linux distribution comprises a Linux kernel, which is the heart
of Linux: libraries, GNU tools, documentation, X Window, desktop environment,
and free and open-source software. Mostly, the distributions available to
download are .deb or .rpm files. The .deb files are meant for Debian
distributions of Linux (like Ubuntu, Linux Mint, etc.), while the .rpm files are
used primarily by the Redhat-based distros (like CentOS, Fedora, RHEL) and
the OpenSUSE distribution.

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LINUX vs UNIX

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Linux vs Windows
 Users

There are 3 types of users in Linux (Regular, Administrative (root)) and Service
users) whereas, in Windows, there are 4 types of user accounts (Administrator,
Standard and Guest).

 Usage

 File Systems

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In Microsoft Windows, files are stored in directories/folders on different data

drives like C: D: E: but, in Linux, files are ordered in a tree structure starting
with the root directory, further branched out to various other sub-directories.

 Security

Every Windows user has faced security and stability issues at some point in
time. Since Windows is an extensively used OS, hackers, and spammers target
Windows frequently. Windows (consumer versions) were originally designed
for ease of use on a single-user PC without a network connection and did not
have security features built-in. Microsoft often releases security patches
through its Windows Update service. These go out once a month, although
critical updates are made available at shorter intervals or when necessary.

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 Compatibility

Windows shoots. Windows scores. This is where the Redmond offering wipes
the floor with Linux. Despite recent improvements in software being ported or
developed to Linux, Windows is still the king of compatibility.

Users of Windows can be certain that almost any software (even the most
obscure, outdated software) will work, even when it is abandoned by
developers. Windows has great legacy support. Plain and simple.

Linux, on the other hand, has been struggling with basics that Windows users
take for granted.

 Ease of Use

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Linux, over recent years, has gone leaps and bounds when it comes to usability.
Distributions like Linux Mint and Ubuntu, have even gone as far as making
their installation and setup simpler for non-technical users to carry on with
day-to-day activities with the utmost ease.

 Privacy

If you are a Linux user, you have an operating system that doesn’t spy on you.
Having Linux means the system is yours and yours alone. You can also add to
the mix that most Linux systems come with an option of built-in military-grade
encryption. As a user, you can be sure that device theft poses no real problem to
your data.

On the contrary, Windows has gotten more advert-driven over the last few
years. Users are definitely given the choice to opt-out but then again, who can
help the clever registry hacks which are clearly a part of Redmond’s plan.
Windows can watch what users do, offering to sync to the Microsoft One-Drive
service or to learn behavior to make Cortana (the Microsoft personal assistant)
better. To be honest, I do not favor these tools, as they’re pretty intrusive.
Though, some users like these features. Subjective opinion.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 Source Code

Linux is an open-source operating system whereas Windows OS is commercial.

Linux has access to the source code and alters the code as per user need
whereas Windows does not have access to the source code.

In Linux, the user has access to the source code of the kernel and alters the code
according to his need. It has its own advantages. Bugs in the OS will get fixed at
a rapid pace but developers may take advantage of any weakness in the OS if
found.

In windows only selected members to have access to the source code.

 License

 Reliability

Windows, as we all have come to know, becomes sluggish by the day. You have
to re-install Windows after a while when you encounter crashes or slowdowns
on your system.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

If you are a Linux user, you will not have to re-install it just to experience a
faster and smoother system. Linux helps your system run smoothly for a longer
period.

 Programming

Linux supports almost all of the major programming languages (Python, C/C++,
Java, Ruby, Perl, etc.). Moreover, it portrays a vast range of applications useful
for programming purposes.

The Linux terminal is far superior to use over Window’s command line for
developers. You would find many libraries natively developed for Linux. Also, a
lot of programmers point out that they can do things easily using the package
manager on Linux. The ability to script in different shells is also one of the most
compelling reasons why programmers prefer using Linux OS.

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Advantages of Linux
1. Open-source software. The Linux kernel is released under the GNU GPL
open-source software license. Most distros include hundreds of
applications, with many options in almost every category. Many
distributions also include proprietary software, such as device drivers
provided by manufacturers, to support their hardware.
2. Licensing costs. Unlike Microsoft Windows or Apple macOS, Linux has no
explicit licensing fees. While system support is available for a fee from
many Linux vendors, the OS itself is free to copy and use. Some IT
organizations have increased their savings by switching their server
software from a commercial OS to Linux.
3. Reliability. Linux is considered a reliable OS and is well-supported with
security patches. Linux is also considered to be stable, meaning it can run
in most circumstances. Linux also copes with errors when running
software and unexpected input.
4. Backward compatibility. Linux and other open-source software tend to
be updated frequently for security and functional patches while retaining
core functionality. Configurations and shell scripts are likely to work
unchanged even when software updates are applied. Unlike commercial
software vendors that roll out new versions of their OSes along with new
ways to work, Linux and open source applications generally don't change
their modes of operation with new releases.
5. Many choices. Between the hundreds of available distributions,
thousands of applications, and almost infinite options for configuring,

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

compiling, and running Linux on almost any hardware platform, it is

possible to optimize Linux for almost any application.

Disadvantages of Linux
1. Lack of established standard. There is no standard version of Linux,
which may be good for optimizing Linux for particular applications, but
less so for deploying standardized server or desktop images. The wide
range of options can complicate support as a result.
2. Support costs. While an organization can acquire Linux freely without
licensing fees, support is not free. Most enterprise Linux distributors like
SUSE and Red Hat offer support contracts. Depending on the
circumstances, these license fees can reduce savings significantly.
3. Proprietary software. Desktop productivity software like Microsoft
Office cannot be used on Linux desktops, and other proprietary software
may be unavailable for Linux platforms.
4. Unsupported hardware. While many hardware manufacturers make
Linux device drivers available for their products, many do not.
5. Steep learning curve. Many users struggle to learn to use the Linux
desktop or Linux-based applications.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

Linux Operating System

The Linux operating system is composed of four major subsystems. These are:

1. User Applications — The set of applications in use on a particular Linux. The

system will be different depending on what the computer system is used for,
but typical examples include a word-processing application and a web browser.

2. O/S Services — These are services that are

typically considered part of the operating system (a
windowing system, command shell, etc.); also, the
programming interface to the kernel (compiler tool
and library) is included in this subsystem.

3. Linux Kernel — The kernel abstracts and mediates access to the hardware
resources, including the CPU.

4. Hardware Controllers — This subsystem is comprised of all the possible

physical devices in a Linux installation; for example, the CPU, memory

hardware, hard disks, and network hardware are all members of this sub-

system.

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1. KERNEL

 The kernel is the heart of the Linux operating system. Like any kernel, it
acts as the brain of the system and controls how the hardware and
software interact, plus decides which activity a computer should carry
out at any particular instant.
 The kernel also makes sure that processes and daemons (server
processes) are started and stopped at the exact right times.

Definition: “The kernel is the center of the Linux operating system. It functions
to control processes, handles memory management, and manages software and
hardware communications.”

 The Linux kernel is composed of five main subsystems:

1. The Process Scheduler (SCHED): It is responsible for controlling
process access to the CPU. The scheduler enforces a policy that
ensures that processes will have fair access to the CPU while ensuring
that necessary hardware actions are performed by the kernel on time.
2. The Memory Manager (MM): It permits multiple processes to securely
share the machine’s main memory system. In addition, the memory
manager supports virtual memory that allows Linux to support
processes that use more memory than is available in the system.
Unused memory is swapped out to persistent storage using the file
system and then swapped back in when it is needed.
3. The Virtual File System (VFS): VFS abstracts the details of the variety
of hardware devices by presenting a common file interface to all
devices. In addition, the VFS supports several file system formats that
are compatible with other operating systems.

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4. The Network Interface (NET): It provides access to several

networking standards and a variety of network hardware.
5. The Inter-Process Communication (IPC): The IPC subsystem supports
several mechanisms for process-to-process communication on a
single Linux system.

2. SHELLS AND GUIS

 A shell is a program that acts as an intermediary between user and the

backbone (Kernel) of the operating system.
 Linux shells have more interesting names (like bash, etc.), but they do
pretty much the same thing. In addition to translating your commands
into something the kernel can understand and act upon, the shell adds
some important functions that the base operating system doesn’t supply.
 Using a Linux shell means working with a command line, which is much
like working from a DOS prompt. Modern versions of Linux come with a
graphical user interface (GUI) but some Linux tasks can only be done
from the command line. The shell is an advanced way of communicating

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with the system because it allows for two-way conversation and taking
initiative. Both partners in the communication are equal, so new ideas
can be tested. The shell allows the user to handle a system in a very
flexible way.
 An additional asset is that the shell allows for task automation.
 The Linux OS is controlled by the kernel, which is the heart of the entire
system. However, the kernel can only understand machine code. This is
why a shell must be used. The shell interprets commands given by the
user and translates them into machine code that the kernel can
understand.
 The basic features of all Linux shells are following:
 Prompts: A prompt is a character or string of characters (such as $
or #) that the shell displays when it is ready to receive a new
command.
 Command resolution: When you enter a command, the shell must
determine which program to run in order to perform that
command.
 Job control: Linux lets you multitask (run more than one command
at a time).
 Command history and completion: When you’re entering lots of
commands, sometimes you want to repeat the previous command
or issue a similar one.
 Wildcards and aliases: Wildcards let you process a whole bunch of
files at once, instead of having to repeat the same command for
each file.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 Piping and I/O redirection: Sending the output of one program

directly to another program or to a file can save you time and
keystrokes.

3. SYSTEM UTILITIES and APPLICATION PROGRAMS

 System libraries are special functions, that are used to implement the
functionality of the operating system and do not require code access
rights of kernel modules.
 System Utility programs are liable to do individual and specialized-level
tasks.
 A daemon is also called background processes. It is a UNIX or Linux
program that executes inside the background.
 Almost every daemon contains names that finish with the "d" letter. For
example, sshd, manages connections of SSH remote access, or the httpd
daemon manages the Apache server.

Few Application Programs Are:

1. LibreOffice

The Linux replacement for Microsoft Office, this can do everything Microsoft
Office can do, and you don’t have to pay hundreds of dollars for it. Most distros
include LibreOffice by default.

2. gscan2pdf

A simple app for scanning documents to the PDF format, which students may
find useful, but is also helpful when you need to upload official documents you
may have.
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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

3. Notepadqq

If you’re a fan of Notepad++ on Windows, you’ll be glad to know that the

developer has a Linux port called notepadqq. It may not be in your distro’s
official repositories, but you can always add a PPA or install the package
manually.

4. WINE

Stands for WINE Is Not an Emulator, allows you to run Windows applications
on Linux. It’s not perfect, many applications and games work flawlessly, but
some just won’t no matter how hard you try. Your mileage may vary.

5. PlayOnLinux

A “helper” application for WINE, which can make the installation of certain
games much easier.

6. Gimp

Linux’s answer to Photoshop. Probably the most popular image editor on Linux.

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Linux Directory Structure

The Filesystem Hierarchy Standard (FHS) defines the structure of file systems
on Linux and other UNIX-like operating systems. The file system resembles an
upside-down tree and is very similar to the treelike directory structure in DOS.
The top level is denoted by a slash (/) and is called the root directory. This (/)
is the base, or root, of the filesystem. Everything in the Linux system is housed
in this directory. Several system-related directories such as bin, dev, and etc.
appear below the root directory.

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Following is a summary of their purpose in life:

(1) /bin: Pronounced “slash bin.” Essential User Binaries.
 Unlike /sbin, the bin directory contains several useful Linux
commands that are of use to both the system administrator as well
as non-privileged users.
 It usually contains the shells like bash, csh, etc.... and commonly
used commands like cp, mv, rm, cat, ls etc.
 For this reason and in contrast to /usr/bin, the binaries in this
directory are considered to be essential. The reason for this is that
it contains essential system programs that must be available even
if only the partition containing/is mounted.
 This situation may arise should you need to repair other partitions
but have no access to shared directories (ie. you are in single user
mode and hence have no network access).
 Applications such as Firefox are stored in /usr/bin, while
important system programs and utilities such as the bash shell are
located in /bin.

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(2) /boot: Static Boot Files

 The /boot directory contains everything required for the boot
process except for configuration files not needed at boot time (the
most notable of those being those that belong to the GRUB boot-
loader) and the map installer.
 Thus, the /boot directory stores data that is used before the kernel
begins executing user-mode programs.
 This may include redundant (back-up) master boot records,
sector/system map files, the kernel and other important boot files
and data that is not directly edited by hand. Programs necessary to
arrange for the boot loader to be able to boot a file are placed in
/sbin.
 Configuration files for boot loaders are placed in /etc. The system
kernel is located in either / or /boot.

(3) /dev: Device Files.

 The /dev directory contains special device files that correspond to
hardware components. It is a very interesting directory that
highlights one important aspect of the Linux filesystem -
everything is a file or a directory.
 Look through this directory and you should hopefully see hda1,
hda2 etc.... which represent the various partitions on the first
master drive of the system. /dev/cdrom and /dev/fd0 represent
your CD-ROM drive and your floppy drive.

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(4) /etc: Configuration Files.

 The /etc directory contains configuration files for Linux and other
installed software.
 This is the nerve center of your system, it contains all system
related configuration files in here or in its sub-directories.
 A “configuration file” is defined as a local file used to control the
operation of a program; it must be static and cannot be an
executable binary. For this reason, it’s a good idea to backup this
directory regularly. It will definitely save you a lot of re-
configuration later if you re-install or lose your current installation.
 Normally, no binaries should be or are located here.

(5) /home: Home Folders.

 The /home directory contains the home directories (personal
storage) for each user on the system.
 Linux is a multi-user environment so each user is also assigned a
specific directory that is accessible only to them and the system
administrator.

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 These are the user home directories, which can be found under
‘/home/$USER’ (~/).
 It is your playground: everything is at your command, you can
write files, delete them, install programs, etc.. . Your home directory
contains your personal configuration files, the so-called dot files
(their name is preceded by a dot).
 Personal configuration files are usually ‘hidden’, if you want to see
them, you either have to turn on the appropriate option in your file
manager or run ls with the -a switch. If there is a conflict between
personal and system-wide configuration files, the settings in the
personal file will prevail.
 The /home can get quite large and can be used for storing
downloads, compiling, installing, and running programs, your mail,
your collection of image or sound files, etc.

(6) /root: Root Home Directory.

 The /root is a home directory for the root user; not to be confused
with /.

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 This is the home directory of the System Administrator, ‘root’. This

may be somewhat confusing (‘root on root’) but in former days, ‘/’
was root’s home directory (hence the name of the Administrator
account).
 To keep things tidier, ‘root’ got his own home directory. Why not in
‘/home’? Because ‘/home’ is often located on a different partition
or even on another system and would thus be inaccessible to ‘root’
when - for some reason - only ‘/’ is mounted.

(7) /proc: Kernel & Process Files.

 This directory provides a mechanism for the kernel to send
information to processes.
 /proc is very special in that it is also a virtual filesystem. It’s
sometimes referred to as a process information pseudo-file system.
 It doesn’t contain ‘real’ files but runtime system information (e.g.
system memory, devices mounted, hardware configuration, etc).

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 For this reason it can be regarded as a control and information

centre for the kernel. In fact, quite a lot of system utilities are
simply calls to files in this directory.

(8) /lib: Essential Shared Libraries.

 The /lib directory contains kernel modules and the shared library
images (the C programming code library) needed to boot the
system and run the commands in the root filesystem, ie. By binaries
in /bin and /sbin.
 Libraries are readily identifiable through their filename extension
of *.so. Windows equivalent to a shared library would be a DLL
(dynamically linked library) file.
 They are essential for basic system functionality. Kernel modules
(drivers) are in the subdirectory /lib/modules/’kernel-version’.

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(9) /media: Removable Media

 The /media directory provides a location for mounting devices,
such as remote file systems and removable media (with directory
names of cdrom, floppy, and so on).
 In Fedora and RHEL, many removable media are mounted
automatically in this directory when the media is inserted (CD or
DVD) or connected (USB pen drives or cameras).

(10) /mnt: Temporary Mount Points.

 This is a generic mount point under which you mount your
filesystems or devices.
 Mounting is the process by which you make a filesystem available
to the system. After mounting your files will be accessible under the
mount-point. This directory usually contains mount points or sub-
directories where you mount your floppy and your CD.
 Standard mount points would include /mnt/cdrom and
/mnt/floppy. There is no limitation to creating a mount-point
anywhere on your system but by convention and for sheer
practicality do not litter your file system with mount-points.
 It should be noted that some distributions like Debian allocate
/floppy and /cdrom as mount points while Redhat put them in
/mnt/floppy and /mnt/cdrom respectively.

(11) /opt: Optional Packages.

 This directory is reserved for all the software and add-on packages
that are not part of the default installation.

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 For example, StarOffice, Netscape Communicator, and WordPerfect

packages are normally found here.
 To comply with the File System, all third-party applications should
be installed in this directory. Any package to be installed here must
locate its static files (ie. Extra fonts, clipart, database files) must
locate its static files in a separate /opt/’package’ or /opt/’provider’
directory tree (similar to the way in which Windows will install
new software to its own directory tree C:\Windows\ProgamFiles\”
Program Name”), where ‘package’ is a name that describes the
software package and ‘provider’ is the provider’s LANANA
registered name.

(12) /sbin: System Administration Binaries.

 The /sbin directory contains more Linux binaries (special utilities
not for general users). Linux discriminates between ‘normal’
executables and those used for system maintenance and/or
administrative tasks.
 The latter reside either here or - the less important ones - in
/usr/sbin.
 Locally installed system administration programs should be placed
into /usr/local/sbin.
 Programs executed after /usr is known to be mounted (when there
are no problems) are generally placed into /usr/sbin. This
directory contains binaries that are essential to the working of the
system.

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 These include system administration as well as maintenance and

hardware configuration programs. You may find lilo, fdisk, init,
ifconfig, etc.... here.

(13) /srv: Service Data.

 The /srv directory contains site-specific data which is served by
this system.
 The main purpose of specifying this is so that users may find the
location of the data files for a particular service, and so that services
that require a single tree for read-only data, writable data, and
scripts (such as CGI scripts) can be reasonably placed.
 Data that is only of interest to a specific user should go in that user’s
home directory.

(14) /tmp: Temporary Files.

 The /tmp directory contains temporary files used by applications.
 Many programs use this to create lock files and for the temporary
storage of data. Do not remove files from this directory unless you
know exactly what you are doing!
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 Many of these files are important for currently running programs

and deleting them may result in a system crash.
 Usually, it won’t contain more than a few KB anyway. On most
systems, this directory is cleared out at boot or at shutdown by the
local system. The basis for this was historical precedent and
common practice.

(15) /usr: User Binaries & Read-Only Data.

 The /usr directory contains system programs and other files for
general users such as games, online help, and documentation.
 By convention, a user should not put personal files in this directory.
This is one of the most important directories in the system as it
contains all the user binaries, their documentation, libraries,
header files, etc. and its supporting libraries can be found here.
 User programs like telnet, FTP, etc.... are also placed here.
 The /usr/local directory is where locally compiled applications
install to by default — this prevents them from mucking up the rest
of the system.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

(16) /var: Variable Data Files.

 The /var directory contains directories of data used by various
applications.
 In particular, this is where you would place files that you share as
an FTP server (/var/ftp) or a Web server (/var/www).
 It also contains all system log files (/var/ log). Log files and
everything else that would normally be written to /usr during
normal operation are written to the /var directory.
 In time, FTP, HTTP, and similar services will move to the /srv
directory to adhere to the Linux Standards Base.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

ASST. PROF. ZEENAT SULTANA

 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

File Types

 Regular Files
 Regular files are ordinary files on a system that contains programs,
texts, or data. It is used to store information such as text, or images.

 These files are located in a directory/folder.

 Regular files contain all readable files such as text files, Docx files,
programming files, etc, binary files, image files such as JPG, PNG, SVG,
etc, compressed files such as ZIP, RAR, etc.

Example:

 Or we can use the “file *” command to find out the file type

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 Directory Files
 The sole job of directory files is to store the other regular files,
directory files, and special files and their related information. This
type of file will be denoted in blue color with links greater than or
equal to 2.
 A directory file contains an entry for every file and sub-directory that
it houses. If we have 10 files in a directory, we will have 10 entries in
the directory file.
 We can navigate between directories using the cd command.
 We can find out directory file by using the following command:

ls -l | grep ^d

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 We can also use the file * command

 Special Files

1. Block Files:
 Block files act as a direct interface to block devices hence they are
also called block devices.

 A block device is any device that performs data Input and Output
operations in units of blocks.

 These files are hardware files and most of them are present in /dev.

 We can find out block file by using the following command:

ls -l | grep ^b

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 We can use the file command also:

2. Character device files:

 A character file is a hardware file that reads/writes data in character
by character in a file.

 These files provide a serial stream of input or output and provide

direct access to hardware devices.

 The terminal, serial ports, etc are examples of this type of file.

 We can find out character device files by:

ls -l | grep ^c

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 We can use the file command to find out the type of file:

3. Pipe Files:
 The other name for pipe is a “named” pipe, which is sometimes called
a FIFO.

 FIFO stands for “First In, First Out” and refers to the property that the
order of bytes going in is the same as coming out.

 The “name” of a named pipe is actually a file name within the file
system. This file sends data from one process to another so that the
receiving process reads the data first-in-first-out manner.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 We can find out pipe file by using the following command:

ls -l | grep ^p

 We can use the file command to find out file type:

4. Symbol link files:

 A symbol link file is a type of file in Linux which points to another file
or a folder on your device. Symbol link files are also called Symlink
and are similar to shortcuts in Windows.

 We can find out Symbol link file by using the following command:

ls -l | grep ^l

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 We can use the file command to find out file type:

5. Socket Files:
 A socket is a special file that is used to pass information between
applications and enables communication between two processes. We
can create a socket file using the socket() system call. A socket file is
located in /dev of the root folder or you can use the find / -type
s command to find socket files.
 find / -type s

 We can find out Symbol link file by using the following command:

ls -l | grep ^s

 We can use the file command to find out file type:

ASST. PROF. ZEENAT SULTANA

 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

User Data Files

Data should be stored in a different partition of the file system of your OS. In
Linux, personal data is stored in the/home/username folder. The User data,
such as documents, photos, music, videos, eBooks, etc. are stored in Linux

System Data Files and Information

This chapter covers portable interfaces to data files, system identification
functions, and the time and date functions.

 Password File

The UNIX System's password file, called the user database by POSIX.1, contains
the following fields:

Historically, the password file has been stored in /etc/passwd and has been an
ASCII file.

 root has a user ID of 0 (superuser)

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 The encrypted password field contains a single character as a

placeholder (x)
 Some fields can be empty
 The shell field contains the user's login shell. The default value for an
empty shell field is usually /bin/sh. Another executable that prevents
a user from loggin into a system:
 /dev/null
 /bin/false: exits with an unsuccessful (nonzero) status
 /bin/true: exits with a successful (zero) status
 Historically /etc/passwd had all of the user data, there was no
shadow.
 However it was discovered that a dictionary attack could be done on
the file, to discover passwords (if they are in the dictionary).
 Therefore it was decided to remove the passwords from /etc/passwd,
the rest of the file remained, as it was used by many programs e.g. ls.
 The passwords were moved to /etc/shadow, and this file was made so
that only the root can read it.
 /etc/passwd now has an x for the password field. /etc/shadow only
shares the first field (the key-field / the user name). /etc/shadow has
been expanded to contain other password management fields.

 Shadow Passwords

 Systems store the encrypted password in another file, often called

the shadow password file. Minimally, this file has to contain the
user name and the encrypted password.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 The shadow password file should not be readable by the world.

Only a few programs need to access encrypted passwords,
e.g. login(1) and passwd(1), and these programs are often set-
user-ID root. With shadow passwords, the regular password
file, /etc/passwd, can be left readable by the world.

 Group File

 The UNIX System’s group file, called the group database by POSIX.1,
contains the following fields:

 The field gr_mem is an array of pointers to the user names that

belong to this group. This array is terminated by a null pointer

 Other Data Files

 Numerous other files are used by UNIX systems in normal day-to-day

operations.

 Services and networks:

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 /etc/services
 /etc/protocols
 /etc/networks

 Time and Date Routines

 Calendar times: number of seconds (represented in a time_t data

type) that have passed: 00:00:00 January 1, 1970, Universal Time
Coordinated (UTC). These calendar times represent both the time and
the date. The UNIX System has always differed from other operating
systems in:

 keeping time in UTC instead of the local time

 automatically handling conversions, such as daylight saving time
 keeping the time and date as a single quantity

Executable File
 An executable is a file that contains a program – that is, a particular
kind of file that is capable of being executed or run as a program in the
computer.
 In a Disk Operating System or Windows operating system, an
executable file usually has a file name extension of, bat, .com, or .exe.
 In the UNIX file system, binary executable files are generally stored in
there own location.
 /bin (core binaries)
 /sbin (system binaries)
 /usr/bin (application binaries)

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

Files
 In Linux, everything is a file. In addition to data and executable files, Linux
treats directories and even the various components of your computer as
files.
 This means there are files that represent your keyboard, console, printer,
CD-ROM, and even your system’s RAM. These special files are called
devices, and they are found in the /dev directory.

File Name Conventions

 Linux file names can be up to 256 characters long, but you really have to
enjoy typing to get to that extreme.
 You can name a file pragy-publication-pvt-ltd-Mathura.y2011 if you wish,
but you’ll probably find that shorter names (and intelligent use of
directories) will save lots of time and keystrokes in the course of a day.
 When naming files, you can use uppercase and lowercase letters,
numbers, and certain special characters. It’s a really good idea to stick
with letters, numbers, and the dash, dot, and underscore characters to
avoid trouble and confusion.
 Note: Don’t use asterisks, backslashes, or question marks in Linux file
names—these characters have special meaning to the shell and could
cause your commands to do something quite different from what you
intended. Also avoid using a dash as the first character of a file name,
since most Linux commands will treat it as a switch.

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 LINUX OPERATING SYSTEM

 Files starting with a dot are hidden files. They behave just like any other
file, except that the ls (list files) command will not display them unless
you explicitly request it to do so. Your .profile file is an example of a
hidden file.
 Also remember that Linux filenames are case sensitive, which can be
difficult to get used to if you have a DOS background. Linux allows you to
have unique files named goodstuff, GOODSTUFF, and GoodStuff in the
same directory.
 It’s best to always use lowercase in Linux unless you can think of a good
reason to use uppercase or mixed case. If you’re sharing or accessing a
DOS file system with Linux, DOS will not be able to see the files that have
uppercase or mixed-case file names.
 Unlike under DOS, the dot character (.) has no special meaning. You’re
not limited to the eight dot three (xxxxxxxx.yyy) style of naming because
Linux treats the dot just like any other character; you can name a file
Some.Yummy.CHEESECAKE.Recipes if you’re so inclined.
 And here’s another slight difference between Linux and DOS filesystems.
Linux uses the forward-slash (/) in path names, and DOS uses the
backslash (\).
 Note: A directory is merely a special type of file. So the rules and
conventions for naming files apply also to directories.

ASST. PROF. ZEENAT SULTANA