Linux ls Command

     The ls command is a command-line utility used to list the files and directories in a directory. It is one of the most basic and frequently used commands in the command-line interface. It can be used without any options to list the files and directories in the current working directory, or with a directory path as an argument to list the files and directories in a specific directory. Some common options include -l for a detailed listing format, -a for showing hidden files and -h for showing file sizes in a human-readable format.

 

Here are some common options for the ls command:

 

          -l: This option displays the files and directories in a long listing format, which includes additional information such as permissions, ownership, file size, and timestamps.

[oracle@bracecoder ~]$ ls -l
total 4
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Desktop
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall  23 Nov 24 11:24 dir1
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall  35 Nov 24 11:24 dir2
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Documents
drwxr-xr-x. 4 oracle oinstall  70 Nov 10 20:20 Downloads
-rw-r--r--. 1 oracle oinstall  22 Nov 24 11:07 file1.txt
-rw-r--r--. 1 oracle oinstall   0 Nov 24 11:01 file2.txt
--w-r-x---. 1 oracle oinstall   0 Nov 24 10:42 file.txt
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall  25 Nov 11 18:34 HR
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall 197 Nov 11 18:27 human_resources
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Music
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Pictures
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Public
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall  62 Nov 10 20:21 scripts
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Templates
drwxr-xr-x. 2 oracle oinstall   6 Nov 10 20:03 Videos
[oracle@bracecoder ~]$

 

          -a: This option shows hidden files and directories, which are files and directories that have a "." prefix in their names.

[oracle@bracecoder ~]$ ls -la
total 36
drwx------. 23 oracle oinstall 4096 Jan 29 19:44 .
drwxr-xr-x.  4 root   root       33 Nov 10 20:00 ..
-rw-------.  1 oracle oinstall 3463 Jan 28 10:42 .bash_history
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall   18 Aug  2 16:35 .bash_logout
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall  174 Nov 10 20:21 .bash_profile
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall  376 Aug  2 16:35 .bashrc
drwxr-xr-x. 12 oracle oinstall  269 Nov 10 21:01 .cache
drwx------. 12 oracle oinstall  272 Jan 27 23:57 .config
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Desktop
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall   23 Nov 24 11:24 dir1
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall   35 Nov 24 11:24 dir2
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Documents
drwxr-xr-x.  4 oracle oinstall   70 Nov 10 20:20 Downloads
-rw-------.  1 oracle oinstall   16 Nov 10 20:03 .esd_auth
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall   22 Nov 24 11:07 file1.txt
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall    0 Nov 24 11:01 file2.txt
--w-r-x---.  1 oracle oinstall    0 Nov 24 10:42 file.txt
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall   25 Nov 11 18:34 HR
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall  197 Nov 11 18:27 human_resources
-rw-------.  1 oracle oinstall 3414 Jan 29 19:44 .ICEauthority
drwxr-xr-x.  3 oracle oinstall   19 Nov 10 21:01 .java
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall  172 Sep 13 20:15 .kshrc
drwx------.  3 oracle oinstall   19 Nov 10 20:03 .local
drwxr-xr-x.  4 oracle oinstall   39 Apr  1  2022 .mozilla
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Music
drwxr-x---.  2 oracle oinstall   40 Nov 10 21:18 .oracle_jre_usage
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Pictures
drwxr-----.  3 oracle oinstall   19 Nov 10 20:03 .pki
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Public
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall   62 Nov 10 20:21 scripts
drwx------.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 22:48 .ssh
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Templates
drwxr-xr-x.  2 oracle oinstall    6 Nov 10 20:03 Videos
[oracle@bracecoder ~]$

 

          -h: This option shows file sizes in a human-readable format, meaning that the sizes are displayed in a more easily readable format like "1K" or "234M" instead of bytes.

[oracle@bracecoder Downloads]$ ls -lh
total 5.6G
drwxr-xr-x.  4 oracle oinstall   55 Nov 10 20:57 19-c
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall 2.9G Feb 25  2022 19-c.zip
drwxr-xr-x. 65 oracle oinstall 4.0K Nov 10 20:33 grid-19c
-rw-r--r--.  1 oracle oinstall 2.7G Nov 10 11:45 grid-19c.zip
[oracle@bracecoder Downloads]$

 

          -R: This option recursively lists files and directories in subdirectories.

[muthu@bracecoder ~]$ ls -R
.:
Desktop  dir1  dir2  Documents  Downloads  file.txt  HR  Music  Pictures  Public  Templates  Videos

./Desktop:

./dir1:
file1.txt

./dir2:
dir1  file1.txt

./Documents:

./Downloads:

./HR:
hr_main.log

./Music:

./Pictures:

./Public:

./Templates:

./Videos:
[muthu@bracecoder ~]$

 

          -t: This option sorts the files and directories by modification time, with the most recently modified files appearing first.

 

          -S: This option sorts the files and directories by size, with the largest files appearing first.

 

          --color: This option highlights the files and directories based on their type or attributes.

 

          -1 : This option display each file on separate line.

 

     These are just a few of the many options available for the ls command, and there are many others available depending on the specific implementation.

That’s it.

If you would have any questions or concerns, please leave your comments. I would be glad to explain in more details. Thank you so much for all your feedback and support!