Book Image

Linux Utilities Cookbook

By : James Kent Lewis
Book Image

Linux Utilities Cookbook

By: James Kent Lewis

Overview of this book

<p>Linux is a stable, reliable and extremely powerful operating system. It has been around for many years, however, most people still don't know what it can do and the ways it is superior to other operating systems. Many people want to get started with Linux for greater control and security, but getting started can be time consuming and complicated. <br /><br />A practical, hands-on guide that provides you with a number of clear step-by-step examples to help you solve many of the questions that crop up when using an operating system you may not be familiar with.</p> <p>Presenting solutions to the most common Linux problems in a clear and concise way, this helpful guide starts with spicing up the terminal sessions by command retrieval and line editing, and shell prompt variables. We will then get to know the different desktops (GUIs) available for Linux systems and which is the best fit for you. We will then explore the world of managing files and directories, connectivity, and what to do when it goes wrong. We will also learn a range of skills, from creating and managing user accounts to securing your system, managing and limiting processes, and letting information flow from one process to another using pipes. Later, we will master disk management, working with scripts and automating tasks quickly, and finally, understand the need for a custom kernel and tips on how to build one.</p> <p><br />Based on the author's extensive experience, there is a section on best practices that every Linux user should be familiar with.</p>
Table of Contents (19 chapters)
Linux Utilities Cookbook
Credits
About the Author
About the Reviewers
www.PacktPub.com
Preface
Index

Other helpful commands such as stat, sum, touch, and more


There are many more commands available in Linux that deal with files. In this section I show how to use a few of them.

How to do it...

The following are some of the commands I find myself using all the time:

  1. Run the following command:

    cd /tmp
    
  2. Create a file:

    dmesg > file1.txt
    
  3. Now run ls -la and remember the info. We will use this later.

  4. Use the stat command to see practically everything you would ever want to know about the file:

    stat file1.txt
    
  5. Now suppose you have sent that file to someone that is running a Linux system, and want to ensure it did not get corrupted along the way. Run the following command:

    sum file1.txt
    
  6. The first number is the checksum and the second is the number of blocks for that file. If the other person runs sum on his copy of the file and sees the same info, the files are the same.

    Tip

    The file names do not have to match.

  7. We have created a lot of files by using the redirection operator. You can also use the touch...