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Env, PS1

The document explains the use of environment variables in Linux, including commands to check and set them, such as 'printenv' and 'export'. It also details the PS1 variable, which customizes the command prompt appearance with various escape sequences and color codes. Additionally, it lists commonly used environment variables like $USER, $PATH, and $HOME, along with their descriptions.

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LE 406 uday
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16 views3 pages

Env, PS1

The document explains the use of environment variables in Linux, including commands to check and set them, such as 'printenv' and 'export'. It also details the PS1 variable, which customizes the command prompt appearance with various escape sequences and color codes. Additionally, it lists commonly used environment variables like $USER, $PATH, and $HOME, along with their descriptions.

Uploaded by

LE 406 uday
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 TXT, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Environment variables

---------------------
envt variables are used to store info about the env in which program runs such as
paths of files and directories,user preference and system setting.
printenv--->command to check env variables.

The 'export' command in Linux is used to set an environment variable.


export MY_VARIABLE="some_value"

for examples:
echo --> to print the contents of variables
echo "$SHELL"
echo "$BASH"
echo "$USER

PS1
-----
In Linux, PS1 is a shell variable used to define the format of the primary command
prompt. It allows users to customize the appearance of the prompt according to
their preferences. Here's a breakdown of PS1 along with some examples:

Basic PS1 Structure: The PS1 variable contains special escape sequences, which are
replaced by various information when the prompt is displayed. The most common ones
are:

\u: Username of the current user.


\h: Hostname up to the first ".".
\W: Current working directory (basename).
\w: Current working directory (full path).
\d: Date in "Weekday Month Date" format (e.g., "Tue May 26").
\t: Current time in 24-hour HH:MM:SS format.
\n: Newline.
\$: Indicates the type of user: $ for regular user and # for root.
Examples:

Example 1: Basic Prompt with Username and Directory:


PS1="\u@\h:\w\$ "
Output: user@hostname:/current/directory$

Example 2: Prompt with Current Time and Directory:


PS1="\t \w\$ "
Output: 14:25:06 /current/directory$

Example 3: Customized Prompt with Colors:


PS1="\[\033[1;32m\]\u@\h:\[\033[0;34m\]\w\[\033[0m\]\$ "
This example uses ANSI escape codes to add color. \[\033[1;32m\] sets the text
color to green, \[\033[0;34m\] sets the text color to blue, and \[\033[0m\] resets
the color to default.

Output: user@hostname:/current/directory$ (with colors)

Example 4: Multiline Prompt:


PS1="\u@\h:\w\n\$ "
Output:user@hostname:/current/directory$
Persistent Configuration: To make the PS1 changes permanent, you can add the PS1
assignment to your shell configuration file (e.g., ~/.bashrc for Bash shell). After
modifying the file, you need to either reload the shell or reopen a terminal for
the changes to take effect.
Customizing PS1 allows users to create prompts that provide useful information or
fit their aesthetic preferences, enhancing the command-line experience.

Prompt String (PS1)-->Prompt env variable


-------------------------------------------
PS1 is called primary prompt string and it is the default interaction prompt.
Bash allows these prompt strings (PS) to be customized by inserting a number of
backslash-escaped special characters that are decoded as follows:

\a : an ASCII bell character (07)


\d : the date in "Weekday Month Date" format (e.g., "Tue May 26")
\D{format} : the format is passed to strftime(3) and the result is inserted into
the prompt string; an empty format results in a locale-specific time
representation. The braces are required
\e : an ASCII escape character (033)
\h : the hostname up to the first '.'
\H : the hostname
\j : the number of jobs currently managed by the shell
\l : the basename of the shell’s terminal device name
\n : newline
\r : carriage return
\s : the name of the shell, the basename of $0 (the portion following the final
slash)
\t : the current time in 24-hour HH:MM:SS format
\T : the current time in 12-hour HH:MM:SS format
\@ : the current time in 12-hour am/pm format
\A : the current time in 24-hour HH:MM format
\u : the username of the current user
\v : the version of bash (e.g., 2.00)
\V : the release of bash, version + patch level (e.g., 2.00.0)
\w : the current working directory, with $HOME abbreviated with a tilde
\W : the basename of the current working directory, with $HOME abbreviated with a
tilde
\! : the history number of this command
\# : the command number of this command
\$ : if the effective UID is 0, a #, otherwise a $
\nnn : the character corresponding to the octal number nnn
\\ : a backslash
\[ : begin a sequence of non-printing characters, which could be used to embed a
terminal control sequence into the prompt
\] : end a sequence of non-printing characters

Color Codes
Here are the color codes you can use:

Black: \e[0;30m
Red: \e[0;31m
Green: \e[0;32m
Yellow: \e[0;33m
Blue: \e[0;34m
Magenta: \e[0;35m
Cyan: \e[0;36m
White: \e[0;37m
And for bright colors:

Bright Black: \e[1;30m


Bright Red: \e[1;31m
Bright Green: \e[1;32m
Bright Yellow: \e[1;33m
Bright Blue: \e[1;34m
Bright Magenta: \e[1;35m
Bright Cyan: \e[1;36m
Bright White: \e[1;37m
Reset Color
Reset to default color: \e[0m

Some commonly used ENVs in Linux


Environment Variables

Description

$USER

Gives search path for commands.

$PATH

Gives search path for commands.

$HOME

Gives path of home directory.

$PWD

Gives the path of present working directory.

$HOSTNAME

Gives name of the host.

$LANG

Gives the default system language.

$EDITOR

Gives default file editor.

$UID

Gives user ID of current user.

$SHELL Gives location of current user’s shell program.

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