Linux Command Line Basics
Navigate, create and manage files from the terminal. The essential commands every Linux user needs on day one.
The command line is the most powerful tool on a Linux system. Once you learn to use it, you can do in one line what takes ten clicks in a file manager — and you can do it on any machine, anywhere in the world.
This tutorial assumes zero prior experience. You will open a terminal, learn your first commands, and by the end you will comfortably navigate the filesystem, create and move files, and search for text inside them.
Do this at the same time
Follow along in your own terminal. Typing a command yourself is the fastest way to make it stick — reading alone will not teach you the command line.
By the end of this tutorial you will be able to:
- Open a terminal and understand the shell prompt
- Navigate the filesystem with
pwd,lsandcd - Create, copy, move and delete files and directories
- Read and search files with
cat,less,head,tailandgrep
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Tutorial Lessons
- 01 The Terminal and Your First Commands Open a terminal, understand the prompt, and run your first commands: pwd and ls. 2 min
- 02 Navigating the Filesystem Move around with cd, and understand absolute versus relative paths. 2 min
- 03 Creating Files and Directories Create and manage files and folders with touch, mkdir, cp, mv and rm. 2 min
- 04 Reading and Searching Files View file contents with cat, less, head and tail, and search with grep. 2 min
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