Linux Navigation in Simple Terms

When using Linux, moving around in the system is similar to how you use a mouse in Windows. You navigate through files and folders using commands. These commands help you find, list, and manage files and directories.

1. Check Your Current Location

To see where you are in the system, use the pwd command:

pwd

Example output:

/home/username

This tells you that you are inside the home directory.

2. List Files and Folders

To see what’s inside a directory, use the ls command:

ls

Example output:

Desktop  Documents  Downloads  Music  Pictures  Videos

This shows all the files and folders inside your current location.

To see more details (permissions, owner, size, and date modified), use:

ls -l

Example output:

drwxr-xr-x 2 username groupname 4096 Nov 13 17:37 Desktop

drwxr-xr-x → File type and permissions
2 → Number of hard links
username → Owner
groupname → Group owner
4096 → Size in bytes
Nov 13 17:37 → Date modified
Desktop → File/Folder name

To see hidden files (files that start with a dot .), use:

ls -la

3. Change Directories

To move into a folder, use cd:

cd Documents

To go back to the previous directory:

cd ..

To go directly to another directory, use the full path:

cd /var/log

To return to the last directory you were in:

cd -

4. Auto-Complete

Instead of typing long folder names, you can use the Tab key to complete them. For example, if you type:

cd /dev/s

Press Tab and Linux will suggest options like:

shm/ snd/

If you type more letters, it will complete the folder name.

5. Clear the Screen

To clean up your terminal, use:

clear

Or press Ctrl + L.

6. Check Directory Contents Without Entering It

You don’t need to enter a folder to check what’s inside. Instead, run:

ls -l /var/log