Linux Command Line playlist by sir @recluze is a excellent crash course for beginners. It goes straight into the essential terminal commands and common Linux tasks. This is a structured guide based on his lessons to help you quickly master the CLI.
🎯 1. What You’ll Learn
- Basic navigation and file management (
cd, ls, cp, mv, rm)
- File viewing and editing (
cat, less, head, tail, nano)
- Permission and ownership (
chmod, chown, sudo)
- Process and service management (
ps, top, kill, systemctl)
- Networking basics (
ping, netstat, ifconfig / ip)
- Package management (APT on Debian/Ubuntu)
- Using wildcards, piping, and redirection
Disclaimer: This post is not for very beginners.
🔧 2. Recommended Practice Flow
✅ Step 1: Terminal Navigation
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| mkdir linux-tutorial
cd linux-tutorial
touch file{1..3}.txt
ls -l
ls -a
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creating multiple files qiuckly. Replace . with ,for specific file numbers
✅ Step 2: File Viewing & Edits
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| echo "Hello Linux" > file1.txt
cat file1.txt
head file{1..2}.txt
tail file{2..3}.txt
more file1.txt
less file1.txt
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echo and > used for inserting the text into file, but using > will overwrite all existing content in the file with the new. So use >> instead, to append (adding text at the end).- cat used to concatenate and display file content on the terminal.
- head for printing first 10 lines of the text.
10 is by default, you can change it to different using i.e -n 15
- tail same like head but for last 10 lines. use
tail -f filename if you want to see if new lines of text are being added like in case of logs.
- more for printing the text of file which have more than 1 pages, use
spacebar to go to the next page.
- less improved version of
more involving use of arrow keys for scrolling up and down.
Use nano or vim to edit files.
✅ Step 3: Permissions & Ownership
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| chmod 640 file1.txt
chown $USER:$USER file2.txt
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- chmod Change file permissions (e.g., read/write/execute for user/group/others).
- chown for changing ownership and group of the file.
✅ Step 4: Process & Services
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| ps aux | grep ssh
top
kill -9 <PID>
sudo systemctl status ssh
sudo systemctl start ssh
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- ps aux show all processes and filter using grep utility.
- top Live real-time view of processes.
- kill -9 force kill the process
- systemctl start, stop, restart and check status of the system services.
✅ Step 5: Networking Commands
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| ping google.com
netstat -tuln
ip addr show
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- ping test internet connectivity
- netstat show open ports and connections,
-tuln shows TCP/UDP listening
- ip addr show display network interfaces and IPs
✅ Step 6: Package Management (Debian/Ubuntu)
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| sudo apt update
sudo apt install htop
sudo apt remove htop
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🚀 3. Build a Mini Project: “System Info Snapshot Script”
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| #!/bin/bash
echo "=== System Snapshot ==="
echo "Date: $(date)"
echo "Uptime: $(uptime -p)"
echo "Kernel: $(uname -r)"
echo "Memory:"
free -h
echo "Disk Usage:"
df -h
echo "Top 5 processes:"
ps aux --sort=-%mem | head -n 6
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- Save as
sys_snapshot.sh
- Make it executable:
chmod +x sys_snapshot.sh
- Run it to generate a quick overview of your system.
This script provides a snapshot of system health — useful for monitoring or quick system audits.
📘 4. Why This Matters
- Foundational Skills: Every software or DevOps role requires CLI proficiency.
- Automation Roots: Bash + cron = simple yet powerful automation.
- Confidence for Next Steps: With this knowledge, we are ready for Docker, scripting, or server management.
Watch the Full Playlist on YouTube