Linux Command Cheat Sheet
Single-page reference for common GNU/Linux userland commands. Paths assume Bash; flags may differ slightly on BSD/macOS.
Files & directories
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
ls -lah | List all, human sizes, long format |
cd - | Previous directory |
cp -a src dst | Recursive preserve metadata |
mv a b | Move / rename |
rm -rf dir | Recursive delete (dangerous) |
mkdir -p a/b/c | Create parents |
find . -name '*.log' -mtime +7 | Find files older than 7 days |
tar czf arc.tgz dir/ | gzip tarball create |
tar xzf arc.tgz | gzip tarball extract |
Permissions
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
chmod u+x script.sh | User execute bit |
chmod 640 file | rw-r----- |
chown user:group file | Change owner |
umask | Show default permission mask |
Processes
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
ps aux | rg nginx | Filter process list |
top / htop | Live process view |
kill -TERM PID | Graceful signal (15) |
kill -KILL PID | Force (9) |
systemctl status nginx | systemd unit status |
journalctl -u nginx -f | Follow unit logs |
Networking
| Command | Purpose |
|---|---|
ss -tlnp | Listening TCP + process |
curl -I URL | HEAD request headers |
dig +short A example.com | DNS A record |
ip addr | Interfaces & addresses |
traceroute host | Hop path (ICMP/UDP) |