The purpose of this book is to do much more than tell you about 100 Linux commands. The purpose is to help walk you through examples of each command. We will examine the command, purpose, and output of each of the 100 commands. Other examples of how to use the command are in the bottom box. In the bottom box, the # and any text after is a comment and should not be typed in your terminal. This is known as a “comment” to clarify the command. Ultimately, the more we understand how to utilize these Linux tools, the better we will become at our craft.
It is recommended you have a Linux machine while reading this book. As you read this book, please try the commands yourself. Do not simply try to repeat the tasks, but reflect on the commands you run, adjust as needed, gain an understanding of the purpose of the command, its output, and any results.
If you do not have a Linux machine, you can download VirtualBox or VMware and use a Linux virtual machine (VM). There are a lot of great YouTube videos showing you how to install a Linux virtual machine. I utilized the newest Ubuntu LTS version (22.04) available at the writing of this book.
You will need to alter the commands to your environment. For example, I might be viewing a file called names.txt; however, you would replace names.txt with the file you want to view on your Linux machine.
Some of the basic commands and a few others (such as apt) are critical to grasp to maximize your experience with this text. If you are familiar with some of these commands already, that is awesome. I hope you can add a few more tools to your toolbox. If you have already mastered and memorized all 100 Linux commands and options, please kindly share your skills with up-and-coming Linux lovers and let them know about this book.
If at any time you see a “permission denied” error, please see the sudo command. If you see a “package or command not found” error, please see the apt command. Troubleshooting is expected while navigating through this book. Please begin your troubleshooting by searching online for the exact error you receive and the task you are trying to perform. Many others have had similar hurdles and overcame them. You can and will too!
Lastly, please attempt the challenge question(s) for each command (located on the left page of each command). This is your opportunity to showcase your work. This book will help you self-assess your skills and learn where you can improve.
The utilization of whitespace in this book is intentional. Hopefully it allows your focus to be on words that matter, instead of “fluff”.
I look forward to your growth and development. If you would like to try out some of your new Linux skills, feel free to look at solving some of the CTF challenges at https://316ctf.com
Please contact me if I can be of any help or if you have any questions/concerns.
Your friend,
Brandon